13 Financial Advisor, CFP
What is it Like Being a Financial Advisor, CFP
On this episode of the Unboxing Careers Podcast, we unbox the career of a financial advisor, CFP with Mike Reynolds.
Guest: Mike Reynolds is a Financial Advisor and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) at Janney Montgomery Scott. As a Financial Advisor, Mike utilizes his Wealth Management experience to offer clients a truly tailored and unique experience, from basic investment strategy to ongoing asset management.
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What Does a Financial Advisor Actually Do Each Day? Inside the Career of a Financial Planner
When people hear “financial advisor,” they often picture someone picking stocks all day or watching market charts. In reality, the job looks very different. Much of the work revolves around conversations, planning life events with clients, and helping people make difficult financial decisions long before those decisions become urgent.
Financial advisors sit at the center of many parts of a person’s financial life. Retirement planning, insurance coverage, college savings, estate planning, and investment strategy all intersect in the same place. Instead of focusing on one narrow topic, advisors often act like the “quarterback” of a client’s financial world, helping coordinate decisions across taxes, investments, and long-term life goals.
The result is a career that mixes analytical work with relationship management. One hour might involve researching tax implications for a retirement plan. The next could be a meeting with a couple deciding if they can retire earlier than expected.
What Does a Financial Advisor’s Weekly Schedule Look Like?
Many advisors structure their weeks around client meetings and preparation time. In Mike Reynolds’ practice, the week is intentionally divided between meeting days and preparation days.
Tuesdays and Thursdays are typically filled with client meetings. Some clients meet once a year, others every six months, and some quarterly. Those meetings can involve reviewing investment performance, updating retirement plans, discussing insurance needs, or adjusting goals based on life changes.
The rest of the week focuses on preparation and follow-up.
On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, the work shifts behind the scenes. This might include reviewing financial statements, studying tax implications, updating financial plans, or researching solutions for new client situations. A single new client case can require five or more hours of research to understand their financial picture fully.
A typical week as a financial planner might look like this:
Monday
Prepare financial plans for upcoming client meetings
Research tax or investment implications
Review client documents and statements
Tuesday
Client meetings throughout the day
Discuss retirement plans, college savings, insurance coverage, or estate planning
Wednesday
Follow up on client meetings
Adjust financial plans and run projections
Additional research or client calls
Thursday
Another full day of client meetings
Friday
Final follow-ups from the week
Planning and preparation for next week’s meetings
The schedule is structured, but the conversations are not predictable. Every client brings a different financial situation.
What Kind of Work Happens During Financial Planning Meetings?
A financial planning meeting rarely revolves around a single topic. Instead, the discussion often moves across several parts of a client’s financial life. One meeting might focus on retirement readiness. Clients often ask a simple question that carries a lot of weight: “Can I retire yet?”
When an advisor can confidently say yes, it often becomes one of the most meaningful moments in the job. Seeing the relief and excitement on a client’s face when they realize retirement is possible is a common source of satisfaction in the career.
Other meetings might involve:
Planning how to fund a child’s college education
Reviewing investment performance during market changes
Adjusting savings goals after a career change
Discussing estate planning and inheritance planning
Preparing for unexpected medical or long-term care costs
These conversations often extend beyond money. Advisors end up sharing major life milestones with clients, from buying property to sending children to college. Over time, the relationship becomes long-term. Some advisors work with families for decades.
What Makes Financial Planning Stressful?
Working with people’s life savings carries a level of pressure that many outside the field do not realize.
Clients trust advisors with retirement savings, college funds, and financial security. That trust can feel flattering, but it also creates responsibility. Advisors know that mistakes or poor decisions could affect a client’s future.
Market volatility can increase that stress. For example, when markets decline, clients naturally worry about their investments. During difficult financial periods, advisors often spend much of their time communicating with clients, explaining the plan, and helping them stay calm. In those moments, the job becomes less about investment analysis and more about reassurance.
One of the most important parts of the role during uncertain markets is simply reaching out to clients. Calling them, explaining what is happening, and reminding them that the plan was designed to handle difficult periods can help reduce panic.
Even experienced advisors admit that the responsibility can affect them outside the office. Some wake up early thinking about client situations or potential risks they want to address.
What Personality Fits a Financial Advisor Career?
Financial planning sits at the intersection of analysis and relationships. Because of that, certain personality traits tend to fit better than others.
Advisors who work directly with clients need to enjoy conversation. Much of the job involves listening carefully to people describe their goals, concerns, and financial habits. Someone who prefers avoiding phone calls or direct conversations may struggle with the relationship side of the role.
At the same time, strong listening skills matter just as much as communication. Advisors cannot dominate conversations. The goal is to understand the client’s situation first, then guide them through decisions.
The finance industry historically has been dominated by older white men, but that dynamic is shifting. Clients often want advisors they can relate to personally, which is creating more demand for professionals from a wider range of backgrounds and experiences.
Some people in finance prefer purely analytical roles, such as investment research. Financial planning is different. It requires consistent interaction with clients and the ability to explain complicated financial topics clearly.
What Are Common Misconceptions About Financial Advisors?
One of the biggest misconceptions about financial advisors is that they simply choose stocks. Many people assume advisors spend their days telling clients what to buy or sell in the market. In reality, investment selection is only one piece of a much broader process.
Financial planning often includes:
Estate planning discussions
Insurance coverage decisions
Retirement income planning
Education savings strategies
Long-term care considerations
Many of these topics have nothing to do with stock selection. Instead, they focus on preparing clients for major life events before those events happen. Because of this, a financial advisor’s work is often closer to long-term planning and coordination than active trading.
How Do People Break Into the Financial Advisor Career?
There is no single path into financial planning. Some advisors study finance or financial planning in college. Others discover the field later and transition into it after working in different areas.
Once hired by a firm, new advisors typically enter a training period that includes licensing exams. Common certifications include the Series 7 and Series 66, which demonstrate knowledge of financial regulations and investment products.
Many advisors eventually pursue the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation. The CFP involves extensive coursework and a rigorous exam covering areas such as taxes, retirement planning, estate planning, and investments.
Internships and networking are also important early in the career. Students interested in the field often benefit from reaching out to advisors, attending finance clubs, and seeking internships well before graduation.
What Is the Most Rewarding Part of Being a Financial Advisor?
For many advisors, the most rewarding moments happen when long-term plans finally become real. Helping someone retire comfortably after decades of saving is one example. Another might be helping parents fund a child’s education or seeing clients achieve major financial milestones they once thought were impossible.
Often, the reward is simple appreciation. A thank-you from a client who feels secure about their financial future can make the long hours and responsibility feel worthwhile. Because advisors stay involved in clients’ lives for many years, they often witness these milestones firsthand.
Career Snapshot: Financial Advisor
You may thrive in this career if you:
Enjoy talking with people about important life decisions
Like combining analytical thinking with relationship building
Are comfortable taking responsibility for long-term outcomes
Are willing to study continuously as tax laws and financial rules change
You may struggle in this career if you:
Prefer working independently with minimal interaction
Dislike discussing personal topics such as finances or family planning
Want predictable daily tasks with little emotional responsibility
Core tradeoffs of the role
Strong relationship building, but significant client responsibility
Flexible schedules but constant awareness of client needs
Meaningful long-term impact, but high trust and pressure
Financial Planner Career FAQs
What does a financial planner actually do each day?
Financial planners spend much of their time preparing for and holding client meetings. Conversations often focus on retirement timelines, education savings, insurance coverage, estate planning, and investment strategy. Outside of meetings, planners review financial statements, research tax implications, update financial plans, and follow up with clients to adjust strategies as life circumstances change.
Is being a financial planner stressful?
The job can be stressful because clients trust advisors with their financial security. Retirement savings, college funds, and long-term plans are often involved. Market downturns can increase that pressure because clients may feel anxious when their investments decline. Advisors often respond by increasing communication and reinforcing the long-term plan during uncertain periods.
Do financial planners spend most of their time picking stocks?
No. Investment selection is only one part of the job. Financial planners often spend more time helping clients think through retirement plans, insurance coverage, estate planning, tax considerations, and education savings strategies. The investment portfolio usually supports a larger financial plan rather than being the main focus.
What personality traits fit a financial planning career?
People who enjoy working with clients tend to fit well in this career. Much of the job involves listening to people describe their goals and concerns, then helping them make financial decisions. Advisors also need patience and the ability to explain complicated financial topics clearly so clients can understand the reasoning behind a plan.
How do students get started in a financial planning career?
Many students begin by pursuing internships with financial advisory firms or joining business and investment clubs in college. Networking with professionals and learning about licensing exams such as the Series 7 can also help students understand the industry before graduating.
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