Recently the Supernova team attended a National Speakers Association conference in Tampa, Florida. The opening speaker was Stephen Shapiro. We were not only blown away by his presentation, but also blessed, encouraged and challenged to rethink much of what we are doing each day. A lot of his information translates perfectly to Supernova. Here is what I mean.
In the financial services business, we have often heard it said that survival of the fittest is the rule of our profession. The strong succeed; the weak will eventually disappear. Stephen Shapiro disagrees. He said, “It is not the survival of the fittest, but the survival of the adaptable that matters.”
We agree. That’s a truth that we try to communicate every day at Supernova. The world has changed. Financial services have changed. Customer expectations have changed. Markets have changed. Customer service has been radically redefined. Consider this from Stephen Shapiro, “When the pace of change outside your organization is greater than the pace of change within, you will… have a tough time keeping your business afloat. And, as you know, the pace of change outside your organization is faster than ever.”
The way to survive is to continue to innovate your practice. To take deliberate action. Know what will improve your business. Understand the marketplace and harness the energies of your organization by focusing on what’s most important.
A Supernova Advisor knows you cannot be all things to all people and that segmentation to 100 or fewer households is required. That is a drastic change for some. It no longer matters how many accounts you have, but do you have the right accounts.
A Supernova Advisor knows that clients demand a new standard of service. “12-4-2”
is a standard that is seldom met by anyone other than a Supernova Advisor. Your Concierge practice will differentiate you from everyone else. Not only will you out-service your competition, but you will also create a referral source like never before.
Supernova Advisors know the only way to give that higher standard of service is to organize their Concierge practice. They make it simple and easy to manage by implementing the Supernova scheduling tool and folder system. When excellence is the minimum, everyone benefits.
In order to survive and thrive, a successful financial advisor must be continually adapting to the markets and the customers that are being served. Supernova is not just an idea—it is a proven approach to adapting and innovating to achieve the highest levels of success.
“Although people believe that Darwin suggested that it is the survival of the fittest, his perspective on ‘natural selection’ was that it is not physical shape but rather the ability to adapt that is critical.”
The smartest advisors may not survive. The company with the most money can quickly fall from grace. But “the organization and the individuals that adapt and evolve to address the ever-changing market conditions around us will thrive in the long run.”
All quotes are from Stephen N. Shapiro’s book, Best Practices Are Stupid, a Penguin book.