Break out of your comfort zone to find real business success

Once people expand their thinking around what it takes to build their success, the benefits seem to flow.

So why do so many advisers — even the most successful among you — still settle for so much less than is possible?

The answer is mindset. I’ve written extensively about how our brains work to hold us back, how our views on the world are often fear-driven and lead us to seek the status quo, and how we’ve grown accustomed to being “uncomfortably comfortable.”

Our brains would rather have us stay in our comfort zones than strive for more, because the brain’s primary aim is survival. The problem is that not dying is not the same as truly living.

(More Stephanie Bogan: 7 things successful people do right)​

To illustrate, let me share some real-life examples of important shifts, and then highlight what made them possible.

Success example #1. Jane is a capable adviser who has struggled to charge financial planning fees that are commensurate with her experience, cost of delivery and value she delivers.

In our work together, Jane learned to truly comprehend the value she delivers, eliminate the belief that she wasn’t worth higher fees and gain the confidence she needed to charge fees in line with her value. She quoted $10,000 for a financial plan that she admitted she would have hesitated to charge $4,500 for in the past. Jane’s client happily agreed, and they are now engaged in work that will add value to both their lives.

Success example #2. Bob is a successful adviser with a $1 million-plus practice, but his time is consumed by his work, leaving little time to enjoy his success. He knows he needs to standardize his operations, but is concerned it will take away from the value he delivers to clients.

Bob re-framed his thinking about how he adds value, and realized that creating systems would better serve his clients and his practice. He has since re-segmented and tiered his client base, defined services and established fa ir fees for the value he delivers.

His team is ecstatic, as they now know who gets what, when and why and are happily launching the new client service model. Bob is in the process of meeting with all clients to shift them into the offering that is right for them and for his firm (both in terms of their needs and his economics).

Success example #3. Jack has been meeting with seminar prospects during evenings and weekends for years, leaving no time for a personal life.

As it turns out, Jack was giving prospects the option to meet outside of office hours. He re-framed his thinking to realize that he never signed up for having no life, and he eliminated the belief that if he didn’t see prospects outside of office hours they wouldn’t see him at all.

Jack refreshed his prospect intake, eliminating meetings outside of office hours. He now “has a life” and spends hours on the weekends doing the long runs he loves. Instead of being a slave to his practice, he’s serving clients who appreciate his value — and is living a life he loves.

Yes, each of these advisers relied upon best practices in practice management to execute changes to the “methods” in their practice. But these methods are just content. This is a column about mindset, which is the soil in which such ideas can be planted.

What each of these advisers learned is that the only limits we have are the ones we place on ourselves. I invite you to challenge your own limits, and embrace shifts that can expand your success.

Stephanie Bogan is the CEO of Educe Inc. and has spent 20 years helping advisers unleash their potential to build successful firms and lives they love. Contact her at [email protected].