Why Storytelling Matters in Advisor-Client Relationships

When most people think about financial planning, they often picture numbers, charts, graphs, percentages, and projections.

But while I love those numbers and get energized by the math and the data behind building wealth, over the course of my career, I’ve learned something that changed the way I work with clients: Numbers alone don’t connect with people. Stories do.

I’ve spent years in Toastmasters, competing at a high level in public speaking, and watching world-class communicators that have shown me that the speeches that win and the messages that stick are the ones rooted in narrative.

You can show a crowd all the data in the world, but if there isn’t a story connecting that data to why it matters, people won’t remember it. They won’t feel it.

Painting pictures

With clients, storytelling bridges the gap between what we’re doing and why we’re doing it. Instead of explaining why money should be moved into a particular account or allocated into a certain portfolio, I can paint a picture.

I can say to a client, “here’s how someone like you stayed calm during a market dip and how their patience paid off” or “here’s how another family set their kids up for success because they started planning early.”

Years later, clients won’t recall the exact rate of return on Fund XYZ, but they’ll remember the story about the teacher who retired early thanks to disciplined planning.

Growing your story selection

Early in my career, back in 2007 when I first started as an intern, I didn’t have any stories of my own to share with clients, because I hadn’t lived through client successes or struggles. But I borrowed stories from more seasoned advisors to provide real examples of how planning had helped others retire, protect their families, or make smart decisions when life threw unexpected curveballs.

As I gained more experience, my own library of stories grew. I’ve now had somewhere around 10,000 one-on-one meetings about people’s personal finances, their fears, their dreams, their families, their goals. Those real experiences have shaped me and given me tools that spreadsheets alone never could.

Of course, storytelling isn’t one-size-fits-all. A high-school classroom learning financial basics needs very different examples than a family managing generational wealth. That’s where knowing your audience comes in, whether it’s a nervous new investor who just inherited wealth or a seasoned one who understands the markets better than most.

Timing matters

When volatility hits and nerves spike, the right story—like what we experienced in March and April of 2020—can be grounding. It shows that uncertainty isn’t new, and resilience has a track record. But storytelling can be overdone. Clients don’t want to hear about me for 45 minutes. They should be talking the majority of the time. Stories should serve their clarity—not my ego.

New advisors often ask me how to get better at storytelling. My advice is simple:

• Borrow stories from colleagues until you have your own and be transparent about whose experience you’re sharing.
• Learn from resources designed for advisors. Mitch Anthony’s books on “storyselling” were huge for me.
• Pay attention to the stories unfolding around you—every meeting is another chance to learn and help someone else later.

A couple of years ago, I co-authored a book with 28 other advisors called More Than Money: Real-Life Stories of Financial Planning. Each chapter shares a client journey, with names changed, of course, to show that financial advice is about transforming lives, not just portfolios. It’s the exact philosophy I bring into every meeting.

In the end, while financial planning involves math, strategy, structure, and discipline, what truly resonates and what motivates action, is the human element.

Stories help clients see themselves in the future they want and they help people understand why they’re doing the hard work today to create a better tomorrow.

Money is just a tool. Stories show what that tool can build.

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