I consider myself to have many tribes. I have my close circle of women business owners, parents of my daughter’s friends, online-only conversations and local neighborhood peeps. I have my high school friends, my college friends, my adult friends that remember me in my 20’s and my adult friends who will know me only in my 50’s. The Wall Street finance bros that are my peer group and the women-only team that I work with daily. These tribes have changed and evolved through the years. But when I really think about my tribe, the one that has been with me for more than half of my life, I think about my clients. You see, what makes them stand out from the rest is that they are not in my tribe, but they have invited me to be a part of their tribe.
This role reversal changes the playing field a bit in the concept of client vs customer. When you choose the person, they are your client. When the person chooses you, they are your customer. When you choose each other, they are your tribe.
In my profession, it is common to have long standing relationship with people. Similar to a doctor or accountant, the relationship between a Financial Planner and their client can stand the test of time. Some may be just for a transaction that needs processing, but most are relationships that last for decades. They choose me to be that trusted advisor in their life. I choose them when I know I can add significant value to their life. The role is rarely reversed, where it is my agenda or my timetable. And when it is, it is only due to the fact that this was they wanted ten years ago and I’m just motivating them to stay on track all these years later. And while I perform the same duty for every client, the detail of the work is different for every client. Always tailored to their individual needs. Making this tribe always changing, always evolving, always moving forward.
And when I think about the families who have allowed me to be a part of their financial journey, I think of this as my favorite tribe. A web of humans sometimes interconnected, but most often never even knowing each other. I am the tie that binds this tribe together, even when I play a very minor role in their life, they are all moving in the same direction bound by the desire for the same destination: financial freedom.
Kimberly Enders CFP® CWS® CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™
Enders Wealth Management
37800 Van Dyke Ave, Suite 125
Sterling Heights MI 48312
www.enderswm.com
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Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) owns the CFP® certification mark, the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification mark, and the CFP® certification mark (with plaque design) logo in the United States, which it authorizes use of by individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements.