Source/Contribution by : NJ Publications
"Do not be feverish about success, if your aim is clear and you have the patience to move towards it, nature will support you" - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Wright Brothers who marked a date of revolution for the generations to come on December 17, 1903, are a perfect example of "Patience is a key element of success". Wilbur and Orville Wright were no scholars in Physics or Engineering, rather they grew up in a small side street in Ohio having minimal education. They were gifted a toy helicopter by their father when they were kids, they were so inspired by the toy that they wanted to make a machine through which humans could fly and they took their passion to the extreme level. The brothers made a living and pursued their mission by initially running a printing business and later a bicycle repair and sales shop followed by manufacturing cycles. They kept working towards their mission: humans can fly. And after decades of struggle, persistence and patience, they landed with one of the biggest inventions in the history of mankind: the first airplane.
The story depicts the worth of patience and how having patience will help you live your dream. There is a long list of prerequisites and skills required to become a successful financial advisor, and Patience holds a prominent position amongst the various components of the list. It is widely accepted by the financial advisor fraternity that Patience plays a key role in the advancement of their business, yet it is one of the most difficult to follow.
For our advisor brothers, we would like to call your attention to the fact that is no shortcut to success, efforts are required from your end in all phases of your business. You must maintain patience when you enter the business, when you are trying to grow your business and even when you are running a large setup with many clients and employees.
Just imagine, you have been standing in an Aarti for an hour, you haven't eaten anything since morning and finally it is the time for the Prasad distribution, and you have to stand in a long queue to get the Prasad. The people standing ahead of you are the obstacles that you have to face to reach your destination, and you are waiting for your turn patiently. You finally reached the destination and it gives immense pleasure when you are the leader of the queue, standing tall, getting the Prasad, and every else is looking upto you, following your steps.
Similar is the life of an advisor, Patience is not the ability to wait but how you act while you are waiting in the line. If you give up when you first see the obstacles lying ahead, or you give up in the middle because you just can't handle the hardships anymore, you will never be able to get the Prasad (achieve your target). You have to maintain Patience throughout the queue to satiate your hunger.
The most difficult and crucial stage of advisory business is the 'icebreaker stage'. You are new, you may not know much about the business, you'll commit the maximum mistakes during this time. You have to put in extraordinary efforts to enable yourself stand steady. You have to meet people, make contacts, tell people about what you have for them, and then there will be people who may not trust you because you are new. Yes these circumstances may be irritating, but you have to patient, you have to be focused and you don't have to loose your smile.
Once you have moved ahead in the line and you are somewhere in the middle stage, you'll have either of the two reasonings:
- When you turn, you may realize, 'I have crossed so many obstacles, I have to be patient, I can see my target and I'll move ahead by overcoming the forthcoming obstacles'
OR
2.You may look ahead and realize, 'Oh my God, there are so many obstacles ahead, I might collapse in between, I can't do it, I'd better leave the line'
You have to decide which path you will follow in the middle of your advisory career, the one which requires patience but will lead you to become the leader or the one where you lose focus and patience, and not reach your target at all. If your choice is Option 1, then you have to be patient build your reputation, you have to maintain the business that you have achieved as well as enter the expansion stage. At any time you do not have to loose focus.
Once you are in near the target stage, you must not forget the value of the obstacles which you crossed. It is because of the humility and composure, you maintained throughout, that you are here. So you must not loose these essential virtues at the peak.
There are types of patience which you should maintain:
- Patience with others: There will be times when the markets are falling and your customers panic, they call you and pester you with questions. You have to step into your clients' shoes to understand their position, it's their hard earned money which is at stake, and they are bound to be agitated. You must be gentle and be patient with them, respond to their calls and explain to them that harsh times will pass and they must trust you and their investments.
- Patience with the universe: Expected the unexpected. Things will not always flow in the pattern you are prepared for. There will be times when your efforts would go futile. A client may confirm a meeting, and you have cancelled an important commitment because you are expecting a big investment from and he doesn't show up, or even after four meetings he gives the investment to someone else. At such points, you must not loose your calm, you have to be Patient with your clients at all times.
- Patience with Self: Having patience within ourselves is the most difficult and crucial. Things will come in eventually. You must not loose heart any any stage of life and business. You must be patient and confident within yourself. If things are not working out today, tomorrow they will. Throughout your journey, you must maintain calm and conquer the obstructions.
You have to be patient with yourself, your clients, your staff, the government agencies, etc., you deal with, because you cannot succeed alone.
Your composure during the most demanding times will be the biggest contributor to your success!
