Stop the Victims and Survivors Syndrome (Published on IFAonline 20-04-07)
Jim Constable's Talking Point
A couple of years ago Iain Dowie, then manager of Crystal Palace football club, coined the word “bouncebackability”.
But why do some people bounce back more than others? Published research from Harvard Business Review into the fundamental characteristics of personal and organisational reliance identified three elements:
- The capacity to accept and face down reality
- An ability to find meaning in some aspects of life and values, including value systems at companies, are just as important as meaning
- The ability to improvise and to solve problems without the usual or obvious tools
IFA firms and individuals who have thrived and/or survived have had to be resilient in order to cope with the endlessly changing environment within which they have given advice and transacted business.
Environmental changes have ranged from commission disclosure to stakeholder pensions and now Wraps. These have been driven by a mixture of, amongst other things, consumer demand, legislative changes, regulation and innovation through competition.
If you believe that the more it changes, the more it stays the same, then IFAs are increasingly going to have to show their resilience once more.
Sometimes environmental changes can result in a victim mentality. You can hear this in others when they refer to third parties as “they” or “them” and are talking about the regulator, the employer, the life office or whoever i.e. those other people who are determining their direction or strategy. Whoever “they” are, “they” get the blame. The trouble with anyone feeling like a victim is that they can end up with a survivor approach. And the survivor rarely ends up doing anything more than that.
True, the opportunist survivor may get lucky. Presented with opportunities that, if spotted and acted upon, may result in growth and development.
In the past many resilient IFAs have survived by evolving an adapting, but some have always been more reactive in the way they do this, i.e. changing only when absolutely necessary. In the meantime, working harder and by following top end commission rates, they have been able to survive and run businesses on that basis.
Yet others refuse to be victim or survivor. They prefer to set their own strategy, control their own destiny as far as possible and create their own outcomes. Motivated by frustration or the thought that there might be a better way, these IFAs embrace change, always check out an opportunity and are quick to learn. They take the time to understand what is happening and are quick to act when the time is right.
Those in outdoor survival situations sometimes use the acronym STOP: Stop, Think, Orientate, Plan. For the IFA who is merely surviving, is on the commission treadmill or perhaps is more than surviving but feels there might be a piece of the jigsaw missing, STOP is a useful acronym to apply to the business.
(Of course there are even examples of huge success stories who have remodelled what they are doing in order to seek improvement in performance and better results. Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods are sporting examples of those initiating change at the top of their game.)
However each step of the STOP process presents a potential challenge:
Stop – the chances are that if you have read this far this doesn’t apply to you. You are already the sort who is capable of investing even a few precious moments to pause in your search of success. Though not classic entrepreneurial business speak it was Appolinauire, the French philosopher who said that “sometimes in our pursuit of happiness we should stop and be happy”.
Think – thinking is sometimes an underrated quality in today’s fast paced world. Not speed of thought, or idea generation, (though both have a part to play in true survival situations) but thinking. For some this means quiet contemplation and for others having someone to bounce ideas off. Some prefer to discuss with a like minded individual and others to debate with someone of a contradictory viewpoint. Thinking however is not optional but a necessity to prevent blind decision making. The truth is all business owners and advisers think about their business all the time but not always in a structured, positive way.
Orientate – not always easy in a world of so much data, information and opinions. A good place to start is what you can see and hear with your own eyes and ears? What are your customers telling you? What do they like that you do? What don’t they like? Honestly? Another way to quickly orientate yourself is to get a bigger picture than that from your current perspective. In the outdoors height always enables you to see more. Climbing a hill or getting out of the woods often provides insight and clarity. To do this in business you need to first take yourself out of the business or get a view from someone external that you trust
Plan – this means set targets and goals, set short term targets, equip yourself, gather the tools and know-how you need and set-off with all the confidence you can muster.
Being resilient is not just a survival thing. It can just as much be a forward looking approach in anticipation of change and growth. But you might just have to stop and think about it.
Jim Constable is senior consultant at FP Advance.
The views expressed are those of the author and not those of the company he represents.
This article was first published by IFAonline
