Meeting with Financial Advisors

I recently met with my Financial Advisor to iron out what to do with my return of value that I was paid by the military en lieu of a pension.  (The fact that the payment was only two and a half months late should not reflect poorly on military bureaucracy.  After all only losing your paperwork twice is pretty good for them.)  There are a couple things that I advise people do when they meet with their advisor.

1 - Bring your actual numbers and know where all of your money is located.  When your advisor asks you for a fact you should be able do give him/her an answer in 30 sec.  Otherwise you are making the process much more difficult.

2 - Start by letting your Financial Advisor know what you know on the subject.  I have found that most advisors assume that I don't no what a TFSA or RRSP is let alone how the stock market works.  As a result they tend to start with the very basics, which I am already familiar with.  Same goes for the reverse.  If you need them to explain things from the beginning tell them that.

3 - Have a list of what you want to know by the end of the meeting.  You've told the Financial Advisor what you do know.  Now tell them what you want to learn.

4 - Keep in mind that every one has a different investing strategy.  Listen to other peoples explanation but stick to what your research has told you is the best course of action.  You know your needs/wants and you're the only one who'll be advocating for them.

At the end of the day your Financial Advisor is a resource, a source of information, not the one in control of your money.

Have a question?  I'd love to hear it!