Driving growth at Merrill Lynch's Charlotte office

While his title by profession is financial advisor, James Wolf considers himself a financial therapist.

“I have to deal with educating people,” he says. “They turn on the news, the world is coming to an end. When they check their account online, if the account is up, it's green. But if it's down one penny, and it's red, they’ll say ‘What?!’ so it’s really managing emotions.”

This is what he considers one of the biggest challenges as a managing director at the Charlotte, North Carolina-based Merrill Lynch Wealth Management location.

“It’s telling people that you really care about, 'you're making a terrible decision',” he added. “It’s coaching clients to not shoot themselves in the foot and that they have to make sure decisions are based upon facts, not emotions. That's probably the hardest thing is watching people make terrible decisions, because they're extra emotional.”

Wolf says he has overseen the Charlotte location within Merrill’s market through growth and client acquisition, resulting in him being among the top 3 offices in the country. This has led to his new title of managing director at one of the top wealth management firms in the world.

“To have the level of growth that I have, the level of production that I have, by doing it the right way, at one of the top markets and top offices in the country, to me, is satisfying,” he said.

Indeed, this is one of several reasons he’s being recognized as an InvestmentNews Awards 2024 Excellence Awardee, with the winners announced on June 20 at 583 Park Avenue, New York City in a glitzy, red carpet ceremony. Click here to register to attend.

Over the next year, Wolf hopes to grow his team so they can provide good service.

“Just because you're working hard doesn't mean you're working smart,” he added.

For more details about the InvestmentNews Awards, including a list of all finalists and details of how to attend, follow this link.