Mike Lodes: 4DY Builder Course Summary
Excerpt from Opening Remarks 2019
“People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”
What is 4DY and who is it for?
This class is different than anything you’ve attended in the past. For starters, it’s all about you. Branch Office Managers (BOA’s) I mean you in particular because so many times we come back from the field with what we (FA’s) think you should do. We value your opinion and all that you do for us, and that is why we all do the same prework – the lessons and takeaways are universal.
Prework is the first step in becoming a better version of yourself. Over the two days of the course, we need and want everyone’s opinion and help. You might be a little out of your comfort zone, but we’re asking you to do it anyway, because this is how we can find out what matters most to you.
Becoming the Best Version of Yourself
This class is about being the best version of yourself, which will allow you to be the best versions for others including those who matter most to us: our family, our friends, our spouse, and our co-workers. It is all about finding out your unique strengths, your values, and your purpose.
If you can use your strength and values and purpose that are unique to you, and you build that into your business, that’s how you can become a better version of yourself. This is the reason we created this class and it is the 11th or 12th one we’ve done.
What makes this class unique?
- There is no sales training in this course. We have plenty of that at the firm – no space for that here. But, that does not mean you can’t grow your business exponentially, especially if you redefine what you call growth in your business.
- All speakers today are walking their talk.
- We are asking you to hold yourself accountable during this course. We use words like “required,” which is not common. You’re “required” to do the prework. We are “requiring” you to spend these next two days working out of your comfort zone and digging into what matters most to you. We’re going to tell you it’s required to do the post work…hopefully for the rest of your career. And, follow this class weekly accountability meetings.
- This class is not for the masses. It’s for the few people like you who are willing to be aware, intentional, accountable to do what matters most to you. You’re already great branch teams. 4DY just adds structure and clarity to your purpose.
Revolutionizing Client Relationships
When you can gain clarity with yourself, you can be asking clients to gain clarity for themselves. Then, you’re being the best version of yourself because you’re asking the serious questions: the “why.” Why does this matter?
We are hoping this is the future for our firm. When you ask these questions, clients aren’t used to it. But these questions will push your clients to also give the best version of themselves. You will feel that change. I think, frankly, we’re not that great at asking hard questions. We ask things like, “When are you going to retire?” Then, we build a financial plan around it.
In this class, we get really good at asking and answering hard questions. The clients are not going to be very good at answering them at first because they don’t expect us to care about this. But, quickly, they get really good at answering the questions. This builds sustainable motivation that I’ve been doing for years. It is so exciting to get up and go to work every day, knowing that that you’re going to make that difference.
If you ask the 4DY Builders about this program, they will say it has nothing to do with money, which is interesting. If you can find out what matters most to someone (i.e. your client) and if they are being honest with themselves, the answer is usually emotional. That’s where the magic happens in this job. And that’s where you want to get up the next day and do it again.
New Measurements of Success
Being a better version of yourself is not about getting more done each day. You already have more than you can get done in a day. Then tomorrow is yesterday’s work, plus another day that you can’t get it all done. To be clear, I don’t have a fix for that. There’s no elixir for that.
But, what if during the day, you can take the energy that you have and focus it on slowing down and asking questions like, “Is this the most important thing that I can be doing for my clients?”
It’s not about getting rid of work. It’s just about doing the most important work based on a renewed set of values and knowing what matters most. Instead of having a day that felt like you never got it all done, you can have days that you measure success by asking yourself if you made a difference to someone. The answer is you did, and you already do, but we need more intention and conscious awareness.
Swapping Lag and Lead Indicators
Oftentimes, we understand revenue and assets under our care as “lead indicators” which does not feel good to me. Instead, our lead indicator should be working on what matters most, like understanding what matters most to our clients. When we push them to dig deeper, you start to see a shift in them. Continuing this discussion grows into sustainable motivation. What results is a deeper sense of trust, support, and belief in each other. This should be our lead indicators; revenue and assets should be our lag indicators.
So, it’s just about changing the order–not the amount of work you do–but why you do it.