Tag Archives: Wealth Management

Making the American Dream a Reality: A Conversation with Sathya Chey Patterson (Ep. 70)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In this episode of the Always On Podcast, host Duncan MacPherson engages in a profound and inspiring discussion with Sathya Chey Patterson CFP®, Esq., AIF®, Managing Partner at Arise Private Wealth. Recognized as a 2023 Forbes Top Women Wealth Advisor and a 2024 AdvisorHub Advisors to Watch, Sathya shares her incredible journey from adversity to achievement, demonstrating the power of resilience and vision.

This conversation is divided into three compelling parts:

  1. Honoring the Past – Sathya’s remarkable personal story, including her family’s survival through the Cambodian genocide, and how those experiences shaped her perspective and purpose.
  2. Thriving in the Present – Insights into the strategies and tools she uses to differentiate herself as a financial advisor, from leveraging cutting-edge technology to building authentic client relationships.
  3. Designing the Future – Sathya’s vision for scaling her impact by empowering advisors and clients alike with a structured, values-driven approach to achieving financial independence.

Whether you’re a financial professional, a leader, or simply seeking inspiration, this episode delivers invaluable lessons on purpose, perseverance, and professionalism.

Resources:

Connect With Duncan MacPherson:

Connect With Sathya Chey Patterson:

About Our Guest:

Sathya is a trailblazing leader in wealth management, co-founder of Arise Private Wealth, and a dedicated advocate for empowering others through financial clarity and purpose. With nearly two decades of experience, she is renowned as a financial architect, crafting personalized strategies that secure her clients’ futures while helping them live purpose-driven lives. Her name, meaning “truth” in Sanskrit, reflects her commitment to understanding clients’ deepest needs and aspirations, enabling them to navigate complex decisions with confidence.

Born in a Thai refugee camp after her family fled the Cambodian genocide, Sathya’s story is one of resilience and transformation. Her journey fuels her passion for mentoring women and minorities, empowering them to achieve generational success. A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, CSRIC®, and Certified Divorce Financial Analyst®, Sathya holds an MBA from USC and was named a 2024 Forbes Top Women Wealth Advisor Best-In-State.

Beyond her practice, she serves on the Long Beach Commission for Women & Girls, the MemorialCare Governing Board, and supports critically ill children through Miracle for Kids. A wife, mother, and mindfulness advocate, Sathya is unwavering in her mission: to inspire others to create not only financial abundance but lives of profound meaning and impact.

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AI in Financial Services: Unlocking Potential and Future Opportunities with Kevin Bishopp

AI in Financial Services: Unlocking Potential and Future Opportunities with Kevin Bishopp (Ep. 69)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson and Kevin Bishopp dive deep into how artificial intelligence is reshaping the financial services industry. From optimizing client communication to enhancing business efficiency, they unpack the immense potential AI offers to financial professionals. This forward-thinking discussion explores practical steps advisors can take to integrate AI tools into their practices and position themselves as leaders in a rapidly evolving landscape.

Whether you’re curious about AI’s role in wealth management, looking to future-proof your practice, or aiming to deliver an elevated client experience, this episode delivers actionable insights tailored for financial advisors.

Key Takeaways:

  • How AI can streamline operations and improve client engagement.
  • Practical ways to integrate AI tools into your financial services business.
  • Real-world examples of how advisors are leveraging AI to enhance profitability and scalability.
  • A discussion on the challenges and ethical considerations of adopting AI in financial services.
  • Insight into upcoming trends shaping the future of AI in the financial sector.

Resources:

Connect With Duncan MacPherson:

Connect With Kevin Bishopp:

About Our Guest:

Kevin Bishopp is a Vice President and Performance Coach for the Advisor Consulting Group at First Trust. His focus is the best practices and mission-critical strategies that propel professionals/firms to be truly unique within the industry. His insights into key metrics, resource allocation, team structure, marketing and client acquisition equip professionals/firms to make high-quality strategic decisions that can generate dynamic results. Prior to joining First Trust, Kevin spent 12 years with Russell Investments, where he held positions as Director of Practice Management, RIA Channel Head and Business Development Director. In those roles, he focused on coaching, content creation, sales management, national account management, and business development. Before joining Russell Investments, Kevin spent 5 years as a wealth manager for The Bishopp Group LLC, a family-owned wealth management practice. In 1994, he started his career in financial services as an associate for Principal Financial Group. Kevin holds an MBA from the Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington and a BA in Finance from Eastern Washington University.

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Aligning for Success: Choosing the Right Environment for Your Advisory Practice with Mindy Diamond (Ep. 68)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson sits down with Mindy Diamond, founder and CEO of Diamond Consultants, to explore the pivotal question every advisor grapples with: Should I stay or should I go? Mindy shares insights from her latest book, “Should I Stay or Should I Go?”, which isn’t merely a guide on moving firms but rather a tool to help advisors get crystal clear on their ideal work environment.

They dive into themes of loyalty fatigue, cultural alignment, and the significance of self-assessment to make informed, client-centered decisions. Mindy and Duncan also discuss how confirmation bias can limit advisors and highlight the importance of scenario planning for both growth and succession.

Tune in to gain clarity on your practice’s future, hear powerful success stories, and understand why every advisor should continually reassess their professional landscape, even if they’re content where they are.

Resources

Connect With Duncan MacPherson:

Connect with Mindy Diamond and Diamond Consultants:

About Our Guest:

Mindy launched Diamond Consultants in 1998, developing it into one of the leading financial advisor recruiting and consulting firms in the nation—transitioning more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in assets under management.

Drawing from her own entrepreneurial experience, Mindy fostered an approach that goes beyond recruiting. She and her team work with advisors years before they’re ready to move, educating them on trends, helping them evaluate economic models and understand their enterprise value, and creating a roadmap of options they might never have considered.

The goal: That every elite advisor finds exactly the right place for their business and clients to thrive, whether it’s at a wirehouse, regional, boutique, or independent firm—ultimately achieving what Mindy calls “Your Best Business Life.”

Mindy is considered one of the industry’s top thought leaders and is regularly quoted by national media such as The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, The New York Times, and CNBC, and is a guest author on industry publications including WealthManagement.com and Forbes. Her podcast series, The Diamond Podcast for Financial Advisors (formerly Mindy Diamond on Independence), has become what many consider their “go-to source” for education on the industry landscape.

Additionally, Mindy is the author of the Amazon bestseller “Should I Stay or Should I Go”  – a book for financial advisors that offers a strategic thought process and road map to professional self-discovery when considering change.

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Always On podcast

Elevate Your Practice – The Power of a Partial Book Sale with Ted Jenkin (Ep. 67)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In this episode of the Always On podcast, host Duncan MacPherson welcomes back serial entrepreneur Ted Jenkin, CEO of Oxygen Financial and President of Exit Stage Left Advisors. Together, they explore the powerful concept of a partial book sale and how it can help financial advisors grow upmarket by refining the client relationships they manage. They discuss why letting go of the “wrong” clients can be one of the most liberating moves an advisor can make—and how it often leads to growing deeper relationships with the “right” clients.

If you’ve been feeling like your current book of business is becoming a plateau rather than a path, this episode will guide you through the steps of creating professional scarcity, improving client engagement, and increasing your firm’s enterprise value. Learn why managing fewer relationships, but with a more exclusive focus, not only elevates your enterprise but also enhances client outcomes.

Ted shares insights into why specializing, rather than generalizing, creates professional contrast that attracts ideal clients—and why your next best move might be downsizing the number of clients you serve while maximizing your fulfillment and profitability.

Resources:

Connect With Duncan MacPherson:

Connect with Ted Jenkin:

About Our Guest:

Ted Jenkin is a serial entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience in building and selling successful businesses in various sectors, such as finance, media, insurance, bookkeeping, and technology. As the President at Exit Stage Left Advisors, Ted helps small and medium-sized business owners maximize their valuation and get top dollar when they sell their companies.

Ted has multiple credentials in the financial industry, including Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist, and Accredited Wealth Manager Advisor. He is also a national media personality, appearing on various outlets such as Fox, CNN, HLN, The Weather Channel, WSJ, CNBC, and more. Ted hosts a national entrepreneur podcast called The Shrimp Tank and a national small business television network called America’s Small Business Network. His mission is to empower and educate business owners and individuals on how to achieve the highest possible multiple when they sell their business.

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The Power of Personalized Gratitude: Building Client Loyalty with Cathi Durrell (Ep. 64)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, , , , , , , , , , ,

In this episode of the Always On with Duncan MacPherson Podcast, Duncan sits down with Cathi Durrell, co-founder of Lavish Cards, to discuss the power of personalized gratitude in building lasting client relationships for financial advisors. Discover how sending customized cards to clients can enhance your client retention strategies, foster loyalty, and increase client advocacy.

Cathi shares insights from her 12+ years of experience in helping financial professionals use hand-crafted greeting cards to make a lasting impact with clients.

Tune in to learn:

  • Why Thanksgiving cards can give your business an edge over competitors
  • How to make gratitude part of your daily routine to deepen client relationships
  • Real stories of financial advisors using gratitude to boost referrals and client advocacy
  • The BRAG method: How Belonging, Recognition, Appreciation, and Gratitude drive client engagement
  • A look at Lavish Cards’ One Card at a Time program designed for financial professionals

This episode is full of actionable strategies to humanize your client experience, foster stronger client loyalty, and generate organic referrals.

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Cathi:

 

About Our Guest:

Cathi Durrell, along with her husband Glen, who is a professional photographer, are the owners of Lavish Fine Art Cards, a company they co-founded 11 years ago. Lavish has grown extensively over the past 11 years and specializes in catering to the bespoke communication needs of their clients. The entire crew at Lavish are committed to creating and supplying the highest quality greeting cards. In her spare time, Cathi enjoys traveling and exploring “the back-roads” with Glen, in search of the next image for Lavish.

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Balancing Riches and Relationships: Family-Centric Wealth Management with Jeff Savlov

Balancing Riches and Relationships: Family-Centric Wealth Management with Jeff Savlov (Ep. 46)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , ,

It is very common for first-generation, self-made, affluent people to shield their children from hardships.

But that safety net can become a hammock of complacency…and entitlement!

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson joins Jeff Savlov, family business and wealth consultant, and the founder of Blum & Savlov, LLP. They discuss how to address family dynamics in wealth management — ultimately avoiding strained relationships among all future inheritors of wealth.

They discuss:

  • Why family dynamics play a crucial role in continuity and succession planning
  • Major challenges in family business succession (and how to address them)
  • Resources for financial advisors to help address family issues faced by affluent clients
  • How to engage families — including children — in the financial planning process
  • And more

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Jeff:

Promotions:

About Our Guest:

Jeff is the Founder of Blum & Savlov, LLP and consults with business families, legacy wealth families and the advisors who serve them. He brings more than 30 years of unique experience in sales and marketing, business ownership, entrepreneurial endeavours and family dynamics/psychological training, along with a common-sense style, to his consulting work with families. By integrating his diverse business background, extensive academic work and family dynamics/psychological training with his experience working in his family’s commercial printing business, Jeff helps enterprising families balance family and business/wealth so both will thrive for many generations.

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One Good Idea to Build Strong Client Relationships with Cathi Durrell

One Good Idea to Build Strong Client Relationships with Cathi Durrell (Ep. 45)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , ,

People are bombarded with hundreds of emails and messages daily.

In a world dominated by digital communication, you need to do something that stops your clients in their tracks. You have to snap them out of the trance… But how?

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson joins Cathi Durrell, owner of Lavish Cards, to discuss how to build intimate relationships through personalized, hand-made cards that your clients will treasure for years to come! Get ready to get at least one good idea to elevate your client experience.

They discuss:

  • The emotional impact of receiving a surprise card
  • Real-world examples of greeting cards serving as a bridge for referrals and advocacy
  • Simple yet incredibly effective ideas for lumpy mail
  • The use of AI in enhancing the card-sending experience
  • Why greeting cards are a great way to connect with the next-generation
  • And more

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Cathi:

Promotions:

About Our Guest:

Cathi Durrell, along with her husband Glen, who is a professional photographer, are the owners of Lavish Fine Art Cards, a company they co-founded 11 years ago. Lavish has grown extensively over the past 11 years and specializes in catering to the bespoke communication needs of its clients. The entire crew at Lavish is committed to creating and supplying the highest quality greeting cards. In her spare time, Cathi enjoys travelling and exploring “the back roads” with Glen in search of the next image for Lavish.

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Entitlemania with Richard Watts (Ep. 25)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , ,

Legacy planning is much more than transferring money from one generation to the next. It’s also about transferring values. If you simply “give” the money to your children, they might lack the wisdom, grit, and satisfaction of accomplishment that only struggle and adversity can bring.

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson joins Richard Watts, author of Entitlemania: How Not To Spoil Your Kids, And What To Do If You Have! Having been the wise counsel to many of America’s wealthiest families, Richard shares how you can help your clients prepare their children for the real world, instead of spoiling them with free money.

Richard discusses:

  • How to prompt wealth transfer conversations that your clients might not like
  • Why first-generation earners should not deprive their children of experiential learning
  • Real-life examples of families who have adopted the “tough love” approach
  • How to take your relationship management to the next level
  • And more

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Richard:

Promotions:

About Our Guest:

Richard Watts, lawyer, author, columnist, speaker, and problem solver, is the wise counsel to many of America’s wealthiest families. They rely on him to guide their families and journey through the rapids of life. From behind these castle walls, Richard provides the wisdom and counsel to avoid the pitfalls of excess and entitlement. The founder of Family Business Office ® (“FBO”), Richard was admitted to practice law in 1982 and is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School. He has appeared on numerous television programs and authored articles as an expert on how money often complicates the “simple life”. Author of Fables of Fortune: What Rich People Have That You Don’t Want, and Entitlemania How Not To Spoil Your Kids, And What To Do If You Have!



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Thriving through Market Volatility with Chris Jeppesen (Ep. 24)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , ,

When the markets are soaring high, most advisors might do well. But it is during times of high volatility that elite advisors set themselves apart.

They create a professional contrast and an exceptional experience to meet the current demand of clients and prospects, even during a downturn!

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson joins Chris Jeppesen, chief of advisory practices at First Trust, to discuss strategies for alleviating your clients’ anxiety amidst current market turbulence and the progression and evolution of top financial professionals today.

Chris discusses:

  • How to restore your clients’ confidence in you using the ECA framework (empathy, context, and action)
  • How to maintain relevance as financial services get commoditized
  • The much-needed shift from transactional salesmanship to directional stewardship
  • Sneak peek into the new book “The Blue Square Method” (and how it will benefit fee-for-service professionals)
  • And more

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Chris:

Promotions:

About Our Guest:

Chris Jeppesen is the head of advisory practices at First Trust, a firm known not only for its robust investment product line which includes UITs, ETFs, SMAs, and VAs (to name a few) but also for its commitment to the growth of financial advisors. First Trust has dedicated many years to finding (and investing in) creative ways to help financial advisors grow their practices. Chris’ goal over the last 18 years has been to give financial advisors the tools to develop an efficient business model focused on building long-term client trust and loyalty. Chris is also the co-author of The Advisor Playbook.



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Lavish Your Clients With Service with Cathi Durrell (Ep. 23)

Advisor, Education, Finance, Financial, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , ,

Aside from a prospectus, product brochure or statement, your business has become extremely virtual and complex. Adding tangible tools to your approach helps remind both your affluent clients and your prospective clients that there are two types of advisors – salespeople and consultants – and what the differences between the two are.

In this episode, Duncan MacPherson joins Cathi Durrell, owner of Lavish Cards, to discuss how one of the best strategies a fee-for-service professional can do to take their relationship management to the next level.

Cathi discusses:

  • Actionable strategies that lead to client loyalty, client engagement, and client advocacy
  • How greeting cards reinforce your image as a goal-based professional
  • What to do if you can’t find the time to send out personalized greeting cards
  • Unconventional card ideas to improve your branding
  • And more

Resources:

Connect With Duncan:

Connect With Cathi:

Promotions:

About Our Guest: Cathi Durrell, along with her husband Glen, who is a professional photographer, are the owners of Lavish Fine Art Cards, a company they co-founded 11 years ago. Lavish has grown extensively over the past 11 years and specializes in catering to the bespoke communication needs of their clients. The entire crew at Lavish are committed to creating and supplying the highest quality greeting cards. In her spare time, Cathi enjoys travel and exploring “the back-roads” with Glen, in search of the next image for Lavish.

 

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