What kind of role can a financial professional play for an investor?

The answer: an important one. While the value of such a relationship is hard to quantify, the intangible benefits may be long-lasting.

There are certain investors who turn to a financial professional with one goal in mind: the "alpha" objective of beating the market. But even Wall Street's brightest money managers can come up short.

At some point, these investors realize that their financial professional has no control over what happens in the financial markets. They come to understand the real value of the relationship, which is about strategy, coaching, and understanding.

A financial professional can provide guidance about today's financial climate, determine objectives, and assess progress toward those goals. Alone, an investor may find it difficult to do any of these tasks. Moreover, an investor may make self-defeating decisions. Today's steady stream of information can prompt emotional behavior and may lead to blunders.

No investor is infallible.

Investors can feel that way during a great year when every decision seems to work out well. But overconfidence may set in, and the reality that the markets have challenging years can be forgotten.

Want to be happier in 2022?

Turns out money CAN buy happiness - assuming a person uses it to hire a financial advisor. According to the Herbers & Co. 2021 Consumer Financial Behaviors Study, people who work with a financial advisor are 3X happier than those who don’t.

It appears that working with a financial advisor also accelerates happiness in other key areas of life. People who have financial advisors are not only happier with their finances, but are also far happier about their personal relationships and their communication with their partners. This pattern apparently holds true regardless of age, gender, marital status, US region, income or assets!

Interestingly enough, for those who make it to the top 5% of wealth, working with an advisor is critical to happiness.

A financial professional can help an investor commit to staying on track.

Through subtle or overt coaching, the investor can learn to take short-term market volatility in stride and focus on the long term. A strategy is put in place based on the investor's goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon.

As the investor-professional relationship unfolds, the investor begins to notice the intangible ways the professional provides value. The professional may help explain the subtleties of investment trends and how potential risk often relates to potential reward.

Perhaps most importantly, the professional helps the client get past the "noise" and "buzz" of the financial markets to see what is really important to their financial life.

The investor gains a new level of understanding, a context for all the investing and saving. The effort to build wealth and retire well is not merely focused on success but also significance.

Allos offers different levels of care based on your needs. If you’re ready to talk with an advisor about your situation, we would be happy to discuss how we might be able to help.

Please remember that different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy, or product made reference to directly or indirectly in this content, will be profitable, equal any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), or be suitable for you or your portfolio. Due to various factors, including changing market conditions, the content may no longer be reflective of current opinions or positions. Moreover, you should not assume that any discussion or information contained in this newsletter (article) serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from Allos Investment Advisors, LLC.

The content of this letter does not constitute a tax or legal opinion. Always consult with a competent professional service provider for advice on tax or legal matters specific to your situation. To the extent that a reader has any questions regarding the applicability of any specific issue discussed in this content, he/she is encouraged to consult with the professional advisor of his/her choosing.

Published for the blog on March 29, 2022 by Allos Investment Advisors, LLC.