by Brian Donohue

Created on: April 25, 2007   Last Updated: April 30, 2007

In the way of Nature, there are no masters, only guides. The term "guru" is an advertising slogan, meant to generate profit and promote dependency. There is no natural reason to slavishly follow any expert's advice, whether you are seeking spiritual enlightenment or material prosperity.

Thus, a financial planner is a guide. You hire an FP to help you with decisions that are ultimately personal to you. The FP you work with is (hopefully) an expert on money, law, taxes, and the various income vehicles (stocks, bonds, pension, IRA, mutual funds, etc.) that are available in the financial services marketplace. There may be some very compelling reasons not to follow an FP's advice, which can include:

-an emergent or personally critical priority that you know is paramount to any long-term or other considerations that the FP is recommending to you. You can always put an FP's advice on the back burner while you sort out more meaningful personal priorities in your financial life. You don't have to reject the FP's input, but sometimes it does have to be deferred.
-conflicting or incompatible bits of advice, as between a legal obligation and a personal one, sometimes have to be prioritized, and not always according to the FP's recommendation.
-financial planning, like health care, sometimes benefits from the "second opinion." Here, I'm not saying take Uncle Louie's advice over the guy from Merrill Lynch; but if you have a particularly thorny financial situation that may call for a broader array of guidance than one professional may provide, then go for a second opinion and weigh them carefully.
-an FP who is working with you may not have either the expertise or the awareness in the particular arena you're interested in, and that may take you in a different direction.
-a conflict of interest involving the FP himself. You have to be sensitive to this possibility: most planners are connected with a particular company, product, or line of services that they may have a vested interest in promoting. Be alert to this, and be ready to take advice that carries a hidden agenda with a grain or two of salt. This, by the way, is the time to look for that second opinion we talked about above.
-finally, life is dynamic, and events arise, situations change, and contingencies can appear that weren't around when you had your last appointment.

In general, you, and hopefully your FP as well, will observe the following high-level priorities in reviewing any financial plan:

1. Staying on the right side

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>