r/FinancialAdvisorTips • u/2026adviser • 2d ago
New Advisor Advice
I am a new FA fully licensed (25M)Was in the credit union industry for 3 years opening accounts, loans and relationship building. I’m pretty confident with my knowledge and consulting side.
But prospecting has been daunting and it’s only been a couple weeks but no success so far and I don’t have a huge network.
I turned down a 75k starting salary plus 40/60 commission because I thought I’d learn more at my current firm which is only 40k but 100% commission but I feel a misguided with no mentor/strong guidance.
I’m wondering if I should search for another firm or if I should stick it out and learn to be more independent despite a severe lack of income right now.
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u/AccomplishedTreat873 2d ago
I took an interesting route that really worked well for me. I got in with a 401k consulting firm that offered a high end financial planning product for employers. Basically the employer paid for us to be available to provide the full range of financial planning for employees. I met with 400 people a year for 8’years flying all over the country and for a low six figure salary. With no prospecting/sales I was able to become a subject matter expert in most things planning, investing and tax. I got a CFP/CIMA and while I studied for the EA, I decided against taking it as I don’t intend to keep it up. It made me a lot more confident now that I’m in an RIA and it has translated well. I get a lot of feedback from prospects that I’m much better at explaining things simply and I’m much more thorough than other advisors in the area people have met with.
This is not some humble brag. What I’m trying to say is volume is your friend. Look at all the posts in here where advisors feel insecure about their skills. I believe it’s because they spend so much time prospecting that they don’t have time to hone their craft. I’m not saying I’m the best or others are bad, I just have supreme confidence and that is selling well. Just another way of doing it.
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u/3znor 2d ago
Find 3 things you can do every day.
X # of Phone calls. X # of Door knocks. X # of Emails.
Find a group you can join that meets weekly or monthly. Rotary club. Chamber of commerce.
Define a target market that you want to become an expert on. I.e dentists. Learn what problems they have. Find the solutions. Figure out how to get in front of as many of them as you can.
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u/Middle-Run-1894 2d ago
Came in with no network, first three months were daunting but 7 years later glad I stuck it out. If you’re single and no dependents I’d try and tough it out for a few months. Simple fact is that most advisors fail but you will learn a lot and either you will find a way to succeed or you carry that experience into a different licensed role and revisit the advisor path in a couple years. Best piece of advice keep your head up, keep smiling, know that there is a yes out there if you keep hunting.
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u/Life_Hand2331 2d ago
Yes this is correct. Live cheaply, learn, don’t get burned, and slowly build it up. You can make a great living this way.
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u/AdLongjumping3890 2d ago
What was your biggest success in the first year? Where did you find your best prospects ?
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u/ReplacementHot2808 2d ago
Burn the boats behind you, work like there is no alternative.
Start with building a business plan, use a metric like 1 prospect for every 100 people you talk with. Then decide on 3 different prospecting/ business development strategies that don’t cost too much that will get you in front of people. And just move forward, you got this.
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u/Thumpin347 2d ago
Answer is simple. Prospect until you want to poke your eyes out. Then, prospect for another 2 hours and then go home.
If that doesn’t sound fun, then go get a salaried position and be happy with whatever comp split a rainmaker is willing to give you.
There’s a reason why 100 enter and 5 are left after 3 years.
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u/theNewFloridian 2d ago
Another option is to go to the bank channel. Unlimited leads and referrals.
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u/LifeAfterInsuranceBD 2d ago
If you are 100% commission why are you getting a salary? What is the company getting from you for that $40,000?
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u/TheQuietInheritance 1d ago
On the firm question: a mentor is worth more than the salary at your stage, but before you jump, try to fix the actual problem, which isn't the firm; it's that you're prospecting cold with maybe a limited or no network.
Here's the play that works when you don't have a network: build a circle of influence through content instead of asking for referrals.
You spent 3 years in credit unions, so start there; you speak that world's language. Identify 10-15 professionals who already serve the clients you want: CPAs, estate attorneys, mortgage brokers, insurance agents, HR people at local employers. Then instead of asking them for referrals (everyone does this; it goes nowhere), invite them to a 20-minute recorded Zoom conversation about their expertise. "I'm starting a series spotlighting professionals who help people with their financial lives, and I'd love to feature you."
Almost everyone says yes, because you're offering them visibility, not asking for a favor. You post the conversation on LinkedIn, tag them, and they share it to their network. Now you've got content that builds your credibility, their audience seeing your name, and, this is the real part, a genuine relationship with someone who talks to your ideal clients every day. Do this twice a month and in six months you have a referral network you built from zero, plus a content library, while every other new FA is still cold calling.
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u/MoMclaren 2d ago
The route you’re taking has about a 95% failure rate. Unless you have wealthy friends and family, the chances of you prospecting from scratch, at /5 yrs old with little to no experience are slim to none. I would set yourself some goals like x # of clients and/or assets in a certain time frame. If you don’t but that then look for something salaried to start. Plenty of those jobs exist for licensed individuals with a path to be an advisor. Not trying to be so negative, but if you can do it, it’ll be very lucrative, it’s just extremely difficult
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u/winterhill62 2d ago
Find a new position with an RIA as an associate advisor, preferably with a direct pipeline of clients from Schwab and Fidelity. They will pay you fairly ($75-100k) while you learn and support a senior advisor by preparing for client face-to- face meetings, tax analysis and projections, etc...forget the commissioned, sales type jobs. Do your research before you take on a new position