With the new year around the corner, financial advisors are preparing to set objectives and targets to achieve and improve themselves. This is the ideal time for self-reflection to help highlight past achievements, mistakes and areas for personal growth.
In an article by the Boston Consultancy Group on ‘The Rewards of CEO Reflection’, it shares that, “Deep thought and reflection are casualties of a high-pressure and high-stakes environment. CEOs who do make time to reflect, however, say that it is time well spent.” Similar to CEOs, advisors also often work in a high-pressure environment while managing their practice like a business. Here are some methods to help with self-reflection to become a better version of yourself.
Keep a journal
This is where you will pen down all your thoughts on various work encounters and what you learned from them to identify areas for growth. Alternatively, it could serve as a memo for a scenario which has been executed perfectly that you wish to recreate. As shared by Marcus Seet an MDRT member from Singapore: “As humans, there are times where we fall short, but I believe it’s important to address these times and reflect on any setbacks that one might have faced. With a journal, I was able to mark out clear plans for myself to replicate success or learn from failure in future months.”
A journal can also help solidify future goals based on your reflections of your past goals, whether you achieved them or not. It helps you understand where you had previously over or underestimated your performance for both short- and long-term goals. This would help you identify any unachieved goals and the effectiveness of your strategy and how you execute them. With this approach, you can gain better footing to set realistic and meaningful goals for the coming year.
Process feedback positively
Sometimes receiving feedback may naturally trigger one’s defensive reactions as it feels like you are getting criticized and it usually puts a spotlight on your weaknesses. Take the time to reflect on the feedback given and determine if it is constructive feedback. If it is, the most important step is to understand the message shared, as this could possibly be skills that you could set as goals to improve on and achieve for the next year. If the feedback is positive, you can reflect on how to further improve and polish it, and possibly apply it in other areas of your practice.
Similarly, avoid taking mistakes or failure personally and do not allow it to create self-doubt. The approach to dealing with failure is identifying what could be improved on, and you’d be one step closer to achieving a better version of yourself. As shared by Brian Chok, an MDRT member from Singapore, “When I reached out to one of my really close and respected seniors in school, his first reply to me was, ‘Why do you get into this [profession]?’”. Based on this interaction, he then reflected and asked himself three questions which helped him better articulate the purpose and passion behind his work. For Chok, his three questions were:
- Why did you join this industry?
- Will you stay in this industry for long?
- How do you plan to sustain in this career?
When you are faced with such failures, take a step back and revisit your “why”.
Recognize the importance of your well-being
While achieving career success through efficient goal setting is important, your well-being should also be at the top of mind. Without good health, it is usually difficult to enjoy the benefits of wealth with our family and friends. Reflecting on your past year performance can be a therapeutic way to learn from situations or scenarios which have caused stress or burnout. By understanding your personal stress triggers and coping mechanisms, you will have better peace of mind.
As shared by Augustine Seah, an MDRT member from Singapore, “I realized that financial success was just one part of life. As advisors working hard in this industry, we need to take care of many other aspects to feel holistically well as a person. This awareness made me step back and review how I was leading my life.”
As you start planning for the year ahead, try setting your goals centered on reflection. Goals rooted in thoughtful self-reflection tend to be more balanced and achievable. Hitting these goals will be more certain and fulfilling, allowing you to reach your targets and steadily increase production levels while avoiding burnout.
Contact: MDRTeditorial@teamlewis.com
