Teamwork

Tuesday morning before work, I was out shoveling the driveway to remove some of the crusted snow that has been packed down by the cars, and I was struck by a thought I wanted to share with you.

What I realized is that this winter in Kalamazoo is equivalent to the Majestic Financial investment team.  Let me explain.  About 5 years ago, I had a decent snowblower and a pretty good shovel.  I was working for another firm and had a lot of flexibility in my schedule – I had a lot of time to make phone calls just to let clients know that I was working, because there weren’t too many changes in portfolios.  Don’t get me wrong, I made more changes than most advisors, but I was limited in what I could do.  Why did I pair snow removal with calling clients?  Please let me dive a little deeper.

5 years ago, if there was less than 4-5 inches of snow, I took the time to use the shovel and get really good exercise.  If we had more snowfall than that, I would use the snow blower.  Those were the only tools I used and quite frankly some days it took quite a while to get the job done.  But while I have always worked hard for my clients, I knew I had the time to shovel, so I would wait until my neighbors were awake and take care of the snow, then start to call clients.  Everyone seemed pretty happy with me as an advisor.  But I did notice that while I spent a lot of time on the phone and in the office with clients I had very few invites for dinner or to the lake house…

Fast forward to this winter.  I have the plow service that takes care of the neighborhood roads plow my driveway when they do the roads.  I have a much larger snow blower, 2 different shovels, and I have been using my leaf blower for at least 3 years to remove lighter amounts of snow.  I take care of the driveway around 7 am, and with this winter, often again at 6 pm.  Why the change?

Well, at Majestic Financial, we are running a tactical investment platform – meaning we don’t just buy an investment and hold it for 10 years while making phone calls to make you think we are working.  We actively manage your investments daily, weekly, and monthly.  Let’s be honest, this doesn’t mean we are trading every investment every day or even looking at every single portfolio every day.  Instead, we are following the market, the individual investments, and taking advantage of opportunities whenever we see them.  I use the word “we” because there’s simply no way for one person to do this effectively for a client base.  We have me, Brandon, Kendra, Mark and Max all working together on portfolios to make sure we are doing the best job we can for you.  Just like all the tools I’m using this winter, all of the advisors are critical to our success.

What sacrifices are being made?  Well, I don’t have the spare time or flexibility anymore.  So, I’m not worrying about waking up the neighbors, nor am I getting into the office late just to get a little more exercise with the shovel.  I also don’t have the time to make phone calls just to let clients know that I am working for them.  You see in the activity in your accounts how much time and effort we put into helping you achieve financial goals.  That doesn’t mean I don’t have time for clients – every day I am talking to clients, just by appointment to make sure that I have the time to take care of their needs.  And I still take time to get exercise with the shovel; it’s just happening after work hours and on weekends.

My message to you is please understand how important the team approach is to Majestic Financial.  It is not about Sean or Brandon not taking the time we used to with clients.  It’s that we would rather do the work and have you hit your goals than try to convince you we are busy.  It’s also why we do podcasts, blogs, newsletters and zooms.  We want you informed of how we are thinking and investing.
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So please feel free to contact us – I promise you we want to talk to you.  Just understand that it may be Kendra, Mark, Max, Brandon or Sean that calls you or sits down with you.  And we won’t be upset that you’re calling from the lake house without us.
 
Written by Sean Budlong, CFP®, AAMS, Chief Executive Officer, Majestic Financial, Financial Consultant, RJFS

*Disclosures: Any opinions are those of Sean Budlong and not necessarily those of Raymond James. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected, including diversification and asset allocation. Every investor's situation is unique and you should consider your investment goals, risk tolerance and time horizon before making any investment. Prior to making an investment decision, please consult with your financial advisor about your individual situation. There is no guarantee that these statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. This information is not intended as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any security referred to herein.