Advisor Spotlight
Clayton Taylor
Age: 27
First Year in Career: 2020
College: University of the Incarnate Word
We sat down with one of our advisors, Clayton Taylor, who joined the firm straight out of college to talk about his journey into financial advising and the path he’s taken to build a successful practice. The conversation covered everything from what inspired him to become an advisor to the habits that fueled his early success. Clayton shares how he navigated challenges, overcame skepticism as a young professional, and leveraged the advantages of starting his career at a smaller, independent firm. Below you will find the highlights from that Q&A session and the mindset that lead to his success.
Why did you choose to go into financial advising out of college?
I chose to become a financial advisor to help individuals and families in my community make informed decisions with their money that will not only help put them on a path to achieving their financial dreams and help lessen the burden of financial stress so that they can spend more time focusing on the things they love.
What do you think were the main factors to your success as a young advisor?
The main factors that have contributed to my success as an advisor have been faith and discipline. This is a very challenging career. It will not be easy, especially at the beginning. While it can be very rewarding and fun at times, there are days where it can be hard to keep a positive mindset. I had faith that if I stuck to Our Platinum Advisory Process and remained disciplined in my prospecting efforts I would eventually be successful. As with anything, difficult times pass, and new opportunities arise. If I had not remained faithful to the process during difficult times, I would not currently be enjoying the amazing career I have today.
Do you feel that some prospective clients are skeptical about working with such a young advisor?
If so, how do you overcome their hesitation? There will be clients that will be hesitant to work with a young/new financial advisor. Personally, I think it makes sense to get this stage of the career behind you before you are older, have a family, and other responsibilities that can make it more difficult to be successful in your career. You will find that walking clients through Our Platinum Advisory Process can help reduce many of the doubts they have in their mind as you show them that you have a systematic process to help them achieve their goals. As you perfect your presentations clients often are impressed with your ability to navigate conversations and will trust your expertise in financial planning.
Why do you believe a smaller independent firm like PWS is a better fit for someone beginning their career?
My senior year of college I interviewed with several major wirehouses, insurance companies, and large financial planning firms in town. What set Platinum Wealth Solutions of Texas and Michigan Financial Companies apart for me was the team spirit and support you get. I do not compete with other advisors here at my firm, I collaborate with them to build the best financial plans and investment solutions for the client and we help one another grow our businesses. PWS and MFC also allow you to run YOUR practice the way YOU want to run it. You will own your own book of business, can work with the clients you enjoy working with, and prospect the way you feel is most effective. I enjoy learning from other experienced advisors how they built their businesses and take bits and pieces from them to apply to my own practice.