By Jessica Hall
In an age of robo-advisers and technology, some financial firms see retirement coaching as a way to differentiate themselves
As some financial advisers become more technology-driven and as low-cost robo-advisers gain more traction, financial planner Casey Weade is taking a different approach to retirement advice – one that adds a more human, personal touch.
Weade, the chief executive and founder of retirement-planning firm Howard Bailey Financial and the host of the “Retire With Purpose” podcast, wants to help clients go beyond the spreadsheet to find their reasons and purpose behind saving for retirement.
To that end, he hired Les McDaniel, a pastor, life coach and business coach, as the firm’s first chief purpose officer last year. McDaniel talks to clients about their goals and expectations and how they view meaning in retirement.
“The most important planning is beyond the numbers,” Weade said. “People have to have meaning and purpose – the why – before they can get to the details of what to spend their money on – the what.”
Weade said the addition of McDaniel helps differentiate the firm at a time when so much financial advice is just a click away.
“I think the financial industry goes one of three ways,” Weade said. “There’s the status quo, which will become irrelevant over time. Then there’s firms that will invest more in technology and become essentially technology firms. And then there’s the minority where the value is even more so in the personal side – that human connection. We’re doing that intentionally.”
According to 2023 research by the Retirement Coaches Association, 90% of retirees said that financial professionals should be helping with nonfinancial aspects of retirement. Coping with a loss of direction or purpose, staying relevant, managing time, dealing with health issues and staying connected to family and friends were the top nonfinancial issues cited by retirees, the RCA research found.
“There’s a big, fundamental problem with retirement planning. People are more financially prepared than nonfinancially prepared. There’s a lot of people feeling disappointed and a little lost,” said Mitchell Whitney, founder and chief executive of financial-planning firm Whitney & Associates.
Whitney feels so strongly about the need for nonfinancial discussions with clients that he had 30 financial advisers get retirement-coaching training with the goal of becoming holistic advisers who can lead discussions with clients about their goals and purpose.
“It’s surprising how many people are unsuccessful in retirement. Half the people feel they are failing at retirement. With the right planning, tools and discussions, we should be able to do better,” Whitney said. “You can have all the money in the world, but if you don’t have happiness, fulfillment, time with family, you’re missing the mark.”
Talking about feelings and purpose in retirement was not a big concern for the so-called silent generation – those born between 1928 and 1945 – but baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, are more likely to talk about their emotions, problems and concerns, said Robert Laura, who founded the Retirement Coaches Association in 2017.
“This isn’t about holding their hand or therapy. It’s about finding their purpose,” Laura said. “It’s looking at retirement as a whole. It doesn’t take a lot to have an ‘aha’ moment about life.”
With the oldest members of Generation X turning 60 in 2025, that generation is preparing for retirement at a time of increased longevity, longer working lives and ideas about retirement that go beyond the traditional notion of years spent on a golf course.
“Retirement is not changing. It’s already changed,” Laura said. “Financial advisers want to help people become more successful at the softer side – the emotional, purpose-driven side – instead of focusing just on the numbers.”
Some clients may find it strange at first to hear a financial adviser raise topics that extend beyond savings, investing, tax planning and estate planning, Whitney said. The goal is not to become a client’s therapist but to raise topics for discussion, such as how will someone will fill their time in retirement, how they will stay connected with friends and what their reason is for getting out of bed every day, he explained.
“We’re not out to become a counselor. We’re not trained to do that. We want to incorporate discussions into what we’re good at, which is retirement planning,” Whitney said. “Retirement is this carrot we’ve all been chasing since we started working. Once people retire and get that carrot, there’s a sense of ‘what now?’ We want to help people think about what’s next.”
McDaniel agreed.
“The beautiful thing that it’s not therapy. It’s coaching,” said McDaniel. “Everybody wants to tell me their story. Often, they’re telling it for the first time. There is wisdom being shared. We’re not robots. The broader the technological gap gets, the more people will need a human connection.”
Weade said that adding coaching to financial planning is a smart business move, as well.
“The reaction of people who get it is incredible. It can be life-changing for them. That is someone who will be a client for life,” Weade said.
-Jessica Hall
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12-24-24 1051ET
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