Practical Wisdom from ACP Financial Advisors

This episode is the third in our series, “Greater Together,” highlighting the experiences of ACP members who maintain other professional memberships as well. Registered Life Planner® Frankie Corrado, CFP®, Principal and Managing Director at Robertson Stephens in Holmdel, NJ, talks about his experience being a member of the Kinder Institute of Life Planning as well as the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Frankie Corrado, please visit www.RSCapital.com.

Listen to the first episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring PJ Wallin, CPA/PFS, CFP®, discussing dual membership in XYPN and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode08

Listen to the second episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring Chris Wentzien, CFP®, CPA/PFS, discussing dual membership in AICPA and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode10

Many fiduciary planners began their careers in a different part of the financial world. But others come from careers in entirely different fields. Our guest, Bill Carlson, CFP®, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Fog City Advisors, started his professional life as an airport administrator. Hear how he turned his attention to financial planning and a holistic, retainer-based practice.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Bill Carlson, please visit www.FogCityAdvisors.com.

This episode is the second in our series, “Greater Together,” highlighting the experiences of ACP members who maintain other professional memberships as well. Chris Wentzien, CFP®, CPA/PFS, Founder of Natural Bridges Financial Advisors in Santa Cruz, California, talks about his experience being a member of the American Institute of CPAs as well as the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Chris Wentzien, please visit www.NaturalBridgesFA.com.

Listen to the first episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring PJ Wallin, CPA/PFS, CFP®, discussing dual membership in XYPN and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode08

Listen to the third episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring Frankie Corrado, CFP®, RLP®, discussing dual membership in the Kinder Institute of Life Planning and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode12

Recorded on location at ACP's Annual Conference held November 2019 in San Diego, California, this special episode is a collage of ideas from a sampling of ACP financial planners. Advisors were asked to provide their top tips and words of wisdom. Eleven members are featured here, offering thoughts on fiduciary planning, firm succession, fees, business development, and more.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org.

ACP members featured in this episode:

Dennis McNamara, CFP®, AIF®, Co-Founder of wHealth Advisors;

David Klepeisz, CFP®, EA, Vice President of Accruent Wealth Advisors;

Sheila Padden, CPA, CFP®, RLP®, Founder of Padden Financial Planning;

Mary Alpers, CFP®, EA, President of Alpers Financial Planning;

Wendy Marsden, CPA/PFS, CFP®, Founder of ProsperiTea Planning;

Kelly Adams, CFP®, EA, Founder of Harbor Light Planning;

Bridget Sullivan Mermel, CFP®, CPA, Founder of Sullivan Mermel, Inc.;

Rorik Larson, CFP®, EA, Founder of Essential Financial Strategies;

Kevin Jacobs, CFP®, EA, Founder of Step By Step Financial;

Carol Friedhoff, CFP®, EA, Founder of Savvy Outcomes;

Ken Robinson, CFP®, JD, Founder of Practical Financial Planning

This episode is the first in a series, “Greater Together,” highlighting the experiences of ACP members who maintain other professional memberships as well. PJ Wallin, CPA/PFS, CFP®, Founder of Atlas Financial in Richmond, Virginia, talks about his experience as a founding member of the XY Planning Network and why he then joined ACP in 2016.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about PJ Wallin, please visit www.AtlasFG.com.

Listen to the second episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring Chris Wentzien, CFP®, CPA/PFS, discussing dual membership in AICPA and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode10

Listen to the third episode in the “Greater Together" series, featuring Frankie Corrado, CFP®, RLP®, discussing dual membership in the Kinder Institute of Life Planning and ACP: https://soundcloud.com/PracticalWisdomPodcast/Episode12

Most of the financial planning industry is so focused on Assets Under Management, those words describe both the size of a firm and how much clients pay for advice. With the AUM model being so prevalent, why would you switch to a different way to charge—and, more importantly, a different way to practice? Our guest, Steve Swicegood, CFP®, shares his professional journey from the insurance business to comprehensive Financial Life Planning—a journey he took because his clients wanted more of his unbiased advice.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Steve Swicegood, please visit https://www.ConsciousMoney.com.

Income tax is about far more than return preparation. Can you transform this annual filing chore into something else, helping your clients understand how their decisions throughout the year save them (or cost them) thousands of dollars? Our guest, Jonathan M. Heller, CFA, CFP®, EA, explains how tax planning integrates with the holistic financial plan and adds value for your clients, whether or not you prepare their returns.

Jon is the co-author of the whitepaper 'Tax Alpha: How to Add Measurable Value with Tax-Focused Financial Planning' (https://www.acplanners.org/acpmainsite/consumer/media/tax-alpha).

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Jonathan Heller, please visit www.KEJFinancial.com.

The label lifestyle practice suggests that the advisor has greater-than-average freedom with their time, but at the cost of restricting their own professional revenue. Do you have to choose between limited business success and overcommitment of your time? Or is it really possible to have both a life that’s balanced and a practice that provides a solid living? Our guest, Troy Von Haefen, CFP®, explains how he maintains lifestyle he's chosen and achieves the compensation that a professional financial advisor is worth.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Troy Von Haefen, please visit www.VHFinancialManagement.com.

For decades, financial advisors have heard that the future of the profession is in fee compensation. But the transition from commissions to fees is still a daunting challenge for many. Our guest, Meredith Briggs, CFP®, shares her journey: from selling products in the name of financial advice, to her ideal quality of life as a partner in a fiduciary, fee-only practice that’s dedicated to helping clients to really plan — and achieve — financial and life goals.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Meredith Briggs, please visit www.TaconicAdvisors.com.

Sometimes it seems financial plans are focused more on products or investment theory instead of how clients live their real lives. Adding more value for the client, by using a process that focuses on what makes a real difference to them, starts with looking at how they actually experience their money day by day. And this point of view compels us to challenge some widely held assumptions about how to deliver financial planning. Our guest, financial planning pioneer and ACP founder Bert Whitehead, JD, MBA, discusses seven core concepts holistic financial planners can apply to acknowledge the reality of what it’s like to create a plan for a real, living person, instead of a financial institution.

To learn more about the ACP, please visit www.ACPlanners.org. To learn more about Bert Whitehead, please visit www.BertWhitehead.com.