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Money can be a difficult topic for many people, no matter what their financial needs are. Especially for those looking to align their money with their values, it is easy to feel uncertain about the first steps. Finding the right advisor is about more than just picking someone - it’s about finding a person who you can trust with the resources you have. At the end of the day, your relationship with your financial advisor determines how comfortable you feel allowing them to make decisions you can feel good about.
Before moving forward, just remember, you aren’t alone in this process. Ellen, a ValuesAdvisor user, found herself looking for a new money manager after her current one announced his retirement. Empowered by the ValuesAdvisor tool, she felt confident diving into the database knowing that she had all the information needed to find the right advisor.
How do you get started finding a values-aligned advisor to fit your needs?
Get Grounded
Before jumping into the search for a values-aligned advisor, take some time to reflect on the things you already know. No matter your knowledge level about finances, you will likely already have some opinions on the things you care about.
For example:
- What social issues do you care about?
- How much capital do you have to invest?
- What financial goals do you have?
- What are your hesitations about working with a new advisor? What makes you nervous?
ValuesAdvisor’s “Advisor Search Worksheet” can be a helpful tool to guide this process. The Worksheet includes a list of priorities that might be important in your search, as well as a space to add notes on your preferences. Later in your search, you’ll be able to return to this document with notes about advisors you are considering.
Having these notes before researching and meeting with advisors will help ground you during the search process, especially when you feel overwhelmed. Remember, this is your journey, and the things you value are important.
Begin Searching
Once you have outlined your priorities, you’re ready to start researching potential advisors. If you have an existing advisor, you don’t have to say goodbye just yet! It’s perfectly normal to take your time researching and meeting with potential advisors before making a decision. You can take as much time as you need to feel confident about your choice of advisor.
How do you know what qualifications and specialties advisors have to fit your needs? If you’re using the ValuesAdvisor Platform (login information below), profiles include the firm and advisor’s qualifications, including their professional degrees, certifications, licenses, and affiliations. Regardless of specialty, ensure that the financial advisors operate under a fiduciary duty to their clients, which means they have a legal obligation to prioritize their client's interest over their firms.
Additionally, to be added to the ValuesAdvisor platform, advisors must be recommended by peer investors, a member of one of our partner investor networks. Once recommended, advisors are still required to have an established record of values-aligned investing and existing trusted relationships. As you start reviewing these pre-screened advisors, begin to filter by what’s important to you, such as firm leadership diversity, impact themes, or even affinity group affiliation.
Start Reaching Out
Even though ValuesAdvisor makes it easy to reach out to advisors directly through the platform, taking that next step can be nerve-wracking. To narrow down the list of firms to contact, it can be helpful to return to your Priority Worksheet to see how the advisors stack up. Remember that reaching out does not signal any commitment on your part. They want to hear from you, so feel free to meet with anyone who piques your interest!
You can always talk through your thought process with someone you trust with financial topics, or you can meet with a ValuesAdvisor team member who would be happy to help.
Prepare for an Advisor Meeting
Once you’ve set up your first meeting, there are a few things you can do to feel more confident before and during the meeting.
This is a great time to review both your initial grounding document and your Priority Worksheet. Are there areas you still have questions about? Topics you’d like to dig deeper on? Make a note of your initial thoughts on what you’d like to discuss. What are the most important things you need to know to feel confident making a decision?
➡️ Look at the ValuesAdvisor Interview Guide
ValuesAdvisor offers a guide with potential questions to ask an advisor when meeting. There are lots of questions in there, but you don’t have to use them all! Compare the questions to your Advisor Search Worksheet. What are the most important things to cover that will help you feel comfortable with this advisor?
➡️ Practice!
Practicing your questions with a friend or family member can be a great way to feel confident before meeting with an advisor. Or, sign up for a complementary 15 minute meeting with a ValuesAdvisor team member to practice your questions.
➡️ Ask about fees
Don’t be afraid to ask about fees, how the advisor charges for their services, and confirm that they are a fiduciary. Not only is this good information to have but their level of transparency about cost can be an important indicator of future transparency.
Decide if you need additional meetings to make your decision. There is no right timeline for how long it takes to find the right values-aligned advisor, so take as much time as you need to choose.
Choosing an Advisor
Deciding on an advisor may feel like a big leap of faith, but remember all the work you’ve done up to this point has prepared you to make an informed decision. Trust the research you’ve done, and your gut, to take the plunge. The process can be a lot like choosing a doctor. Half of your choice is determined by their professional competence, and the other half is determined by how you feel about the relationship. No matter how good a doctor is, you aren’t going to want to visit when you’re feeling your worst. An advisor is someone that you need to trust and feel comfortable turning to during times of stress, transition, or the unexpected life events.
You have a lot of power and flexibility as an investor, and you shouldn’t be afraid to go in with a trial mindset. There are many reasons you might decide to make a change even after choosing a new advisor, whether that means exploring other advisors within the same firm or deciding to look for something different altogether. Whatever decision you make, it doesn’t have to be forever. You only need to stay with an advisor as long as they’re working for you.
No matter where you are in your advisor discovery journey, the ValuesAdvisor team can be a helpful resource. Feel free to join their complementary Office Hours or reach out to a team member with any questions.
ValuesAdvisor is a nonprofit platform that features financial advisors who specialize in values aligned investing. It partners with membership based groups to offer free access to the platform.
To access the platform: If you're a member of one of our partners and don't know your free login code, email us to receive it or anyone can sign up here for a subscription.
