Financial Advisor Training

Participants in financial advisor training programs are likely to find a lucrative career with opportunity for continued growth and opportunities. However, the most successful will have some natural abilities and aptitudes as well as specific skills and knowledge. Before entering a financial planner training program, the prospective student may wish to research the many options that are available to determine the right one for his specific circumstances and needs. This is definitely a growing field with tremendous potentials for those with the right combination of skills and education. The baby boomer generation has influenced the culture and economy for decades and will continue to do so as millions are in the process of retiring or planning for retirement. This large demographic needs relevant and timely professional advice, not just for growing and managing assets, but also for the transfer of those assets in properly crafted estate plans. According to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Vital Statistics, there were approximately 176,000 financial advisors in 2006 with about thirty percent of these being self-employed. The median wage was a little over $66,000. The Bureau's number-crunchers expect the profession to grow by about forty-one percent by 2016 and estimate there will be about 248,000 financial planners by that time.

Those with an aptitude for numbers and good people skills can find financial advisor training programs throughout the country that teach the necessary courses for achieving the industry's certification through the Certified Financial Planner Board. The Board has specific requirements for achieving this recognition. Individuals with the certification have a marketing advantage over colleagues who do not have it. The certified planner can use the designation in the marketing of his services and expertise. The Board requires that individuals have a bachelor's degree, though the specific field is not important. It also requires three years of experience and the passing of a ten-hour comprehensive exam. Finally, the certified individual undergoes a background check and must adhere to a professional code of ethics. Though the Board does not endorse any particular financial planner training program, over three hundred academic programs designed to help students pass the comprehensive exam are available throughout the country. Some of these programs are for credit and others are not. Though many are traditional programs held in college classrooms, others are available either as self-study or online courses. These last two options can be especially beneficial for the older, non-traditional student who is working full-time while pursuing the needed education for taking the exam. In addition, some large investment firms offer financial advisor training programs which may include mentorship or apprentice-type options. If the individual plans to sell insurance, he will need to know and follow the requirements of his state licensing agency to receive licensure.

Even after achieving experience in the field and certification, individuals will want to pursue financial planner training in the form of workshops and seminars. The successful professional needs to be informed about a multitude of varying economic topics. For example, what changes have been made in the tax code from one year to the next? How have the changing economic conditions of the country affected different investment vehicles? What new investment opportunities are available to clients that will increase the worth of their portfolios? By keeping on top of such valuable information and then presenting it to clients in an easy-to-understand format, the professional can gain an advantage over her competitors. And competition can be fierce -- this is an extremely lucrative field for the best and the brightest and the individual seeking professional success will need to take advantage of every opportunity to showcase her skills, knowledge, and expertise. However, the professional needs to guard against one pitfall: "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (I Timothy 6:10). The wise professional assists clients in being good stewards of the assets that God has given them by encouraging wise investments.

A good financial advisor training program will teach students to help clients both establish and meet short- and long-term monetary goals. The professional will not steer clients toward the investment programs that provide the most return in fees and commissions, but toward the investment opportunities that are most likely to meet the clients' goals. Frequently, these goals include the following desires: to fund the children's college expenses, to plan for an early retirement, or to create an estate plan that legitimately reduces tax expenditures for the heirs. A trained individual may wish to become a specialist in one of these areas and might find that new clients are reached by offering seminars on the specialized topic. Whether a generalist or a specialist, the professional will have learned through appropriate financial planner training how to analyze the clients' goals and what combination of investment vehicles is best suited to reaching those goals. In the analysis, the professional will consider such factors as the amount of money available for investments, the time horizon (how many months or years before the goal needs to be reached), and the level of risk that the particular client is willing to take to reach the goal. Most planners, whether self-employed or working for an investment firm, are expected to build a clientele. With an aptitude for numbers, great interpersonal skills, the certification that proves expertise, and good customer service, an individual can find that helping others with good stewardship can be a fulfilling and rewarding profession.

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