Communication Essentials for Financial Planners: Strategies and Techniques

Exploring the Human Element of Financial Planning Communication Essentials for Financial Planners tackles the counseling side of practice to help financial planners build more productive client relationships. CFP Board’s third book and first in the Financial Planning Series, Communication Essentials will help you learn how to relate to clients on a more fundamental level, and go beyond "hearing" their words to really listen and ultimately respond to what they're saying. Expert coverage of body language, active listening, linguistic signals, and more, all based upon academic theory. There is also an accompanied set of videos that showcase both good and bad communication and counseling within a financial planning context. By merging written and experiential learning supplemented by practice assignments, this book provides an ideal resource for any client-facing financial professional as well as any student on their pathway to CFP® certification.  Counseling is a central part of a financial planner's practice, and attention to interpersonal communication goes a long way toward progressing in the field; this guide provides practical instruction on the proven techniques that make a good financial planner great.  Build client relationships based on honesty and trust Learn to read body language and the words not spoken Master the art of active listening to help your clients feel heard Tailor your communications to suit the individual client's needs The modern financial planning practice is more than just mathematics and statistical analysis—at its heart, it is based on trust, communication, and commitment. While interpersonal skills have always been a critical ingredient for success, only recently has this aspect been given the weight it deserves with its incorporation into the certification process. Communication Essentials for Financial Planners provides gold-standard guidance for certification and beyond.

Table of Contents:
Preface xi Acknowledgments xxv How to Use This Book xxvii Introduction xxix Chapter 1 An Introduction to Applied Communication 1 Introduction Financial Planning Outcomes Communication Defined The Theory of Communication The Importance of Feedback Conclusion Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 2 Structuring the Process of Interpersonal Communication 21 Introduction Social Penetration Theory Orientation Exploration Affective Exchange Stable Exchange Relationship Benefits and Costs Accounting for Stress Building Client Trust: An Appreciative Inquiry Example Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 3 Structuring the Process of Communication through the Office Environment 37 Introduction Identifying Target Clientele Understanding the Office Environment Stress and Communication: Bringing the Pieces Together Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 4 Listening Skills 57 Paying Attention to the Client Attending to What Is Said Interpreting What Is Heard Transference and Countertransference Passive versus Active Listening and Responding Silence: A Stressful Time for Client and Financial Planner Responding to “I Don’t Know” Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 5 Questioning 75 Introduction Open-Ended Questions Closed-Ended Questions Choosing Between Open and Closed-Ended Questions Question Transformations Swing Questions Implied and Projective Questions Scaling Questions Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 6 Nondirective Communication 91 Why Nondirective Communication? Outcomes Associated with Nondirective Communication Clarification Summarization Reflection Paraphrasing Styles of Paraphrasing Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 7 Directive Communication 109 Direction: The Essence of Financial Planning Interpretation Reframing Explanation Advice Suggestion Urging Confrontation Ultimatum Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 8 Trust, Culture, and Communication Taboos 135 Understanding a Client’s Cultural Attributes Interpersonal Preference Risk Management Culture and Trust Communication Taboos A Cultural Example Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 9 Politeness and Sensitivity in Communicating with a Broad Range of Clients 157 The Power of Language Politeness Politeness through Inclusion versus Exclusion Sensitivity Language Sensitivity Summary Chapter Applications Notes Chapter 10 Financial Planning—A Sales Perspective 173 Sales Models The Challenger Model The Consultative Model Manipulation versus Persuasion Consultative Selling and Compensation Understanding Client Behavior Dealing with “No” The Ethics of Selling Summary Chapter Applications Notes Solutions 189 About the Authors 193 About the Companion Website 195 Index 197

About the Author :
JOHN E. GRABLE, PHD, CFP®, holds an AthleticAssociation Endowed Professorship at the University of Georgia (UGA), where he conducts research and teaches financial planning. JOSEPH W. GOETZ, PHD, is an associate professor of financial planning at UGA and co-founder of the ASPIRE Clinic and Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group. CHARLES R. CHAFFIN, EdD, is Director of Academic Home, CFP Board Center for Financial Planning, where he oversees all initiatives related to academic research, teaching pedagogy, and building the body of knowledge for financial planning. CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER BOARD OF STANDARDS, INC. (CFP BOARD) is an initiativeto create a more diverse and sustainablefinancial planning profession so that every American has access to competent andethical financial planning advice. The Center brings together CFP® professionals, firms, educators, researchers and experts to address profession-wide challenges in the areas of diversity and workforce development, and to build an academic home that offers opportunities for conducting and publishing new research that adds to the financial planning body of knowledge. More about the Center and its initiatives can be found at www.CenterforFinancialPlanning.org.