[quote=Butkus]Speaking of "Put/Newbie/Soon/Devil", one piece of his advice I have followed is to spend very little time on this forum. Instead I earned my AAMS in my 20th month at Jones (made segment 3 in my 18th month), and have enrolled in the CFP program. These are much more beneficial than the 'education' available here.[/quote]

Yeah, but you are still at Jones 

[quote=Greenbacks]

[quote=Butkus]Speaking of “Put/Newbie/Soon/Devil”, one piece of his advice I have followed is to spend very little time on this forum. Instead I earned my AAMS in my 20th month at Jones (made segment 3 in my 18th month), and have enrolled in the CFP program. These are much more beneficial than the ‘education’ available here.[/quote]

Yeah, but you are still at Jones 

Buttkiss, AAMS is a joke.  Did your BOA "proctor" your test for you?

I hate to tell you guys but the CFP is close behind. When I found out the board until this year would let a high school drop out earn the CFP, I lost all respect for it. Noone ever request that designation.

[quote=Devil’sAdvocate]

Are you saying that it's wrong for somebody to challenge your point of view, but perfectly acceptable for you to challenge theirs?

It's called discussion, debate, interchange.  If what you have to say can be successfully challenged by another, then what you had to say is nothing more than your point of view.

You're a recruiter.  That's fine but if I were managing an office there is no way I would pay to have you make an introduction to me.  If the guy or gal who wants to work for me can't make their own introduction why should I hire them--they're not going to have a mouthpiece when they get in the bullpen.

I know, I know--I'm too busy to deal with resumes over the transom and all that.  Well, that's what an assistant is for.

It actually amazes me that you and those of your ilk can make a living finding jobs for people who are seeking one of the most desireable jobs in all of sales.

[/quote]

I think it's great for others to have their opinion.  You have yours and I can respect that.  The only thing that I get irritated with (and it could just be my perception) is that it seems like you attack others and their levels of success vs. your levels. 

If someone is happy at their current level, then they should be proud of that.  It may be lower than the industry standards, but that's OK.

You are correct - I am a recruiter, however I don't recruit for wirehouses much anymore.  I agree with you that an FA can simply pick up the phone and call you if they are highly motivated to make a change - I don't go after those advisors.  When I do recruit FAs, it is the passive candidate I go after.  I tell a story, see if their business mix and philosophy meets that of other organizations within the marketplace.  I also do not post any of my open positions because that makes me nothing more than a paper-pusher and takes the recruiting piece out of things. 

I don't blame someone in your position for not wanting to pay a fee for someone simply passing along an introduction and waiting for that call to see if they are hired or not.  That's not what I do and not how I add value.  We finally agree on something!

[quote=ezmoney]I hate to tell you guys but the CFP is close behind. When I found out the board until this year would let a high school drop out earn the CFP, I lost all respect for it. Noone ever request that designation.[/quote]

OK, give me the name of a high school drop-out that earned the CFP.

No one ever asks you about it because they see it's not on your card and they pass you by...seems it's always the guys that don't have it, that put it down...hmmmm...

Yeah, I'd love to go to someone who uses a moniker like "ezmoney" vs someone w/a CFP...

[quote=ezmoney]I hate to tell you guys but the CFP is close behind. When I found out the board until this year would let a high school drop out earn the CFP, I lost all respect for it. Noone ever request that designation.[/quote]

Are you implying that only "College Educated" souls should qualify for CFP designation because of all that hard work put in learning 4 years worth of useless facts  and knowledge like Pythagorean theorem and Tabula Rasa?

I've got news for you, while you were throwing up jello shooters off of your frat house balcony people like my Rep (GASP a high school drop out) were working with real clients in real situations.

Designations don't mean anything to real people. Ask them sometime.

[quote=ezmoney]I hate to tell you guys but the CFP is close behind. When I found out the board until this year would let a high school drop out earn the CFP, I lost all respect for it. Noone ever request that designation.

Are you implying that only "College Educated" souls should qualify for CFP designation because of all that hard work put in learning 4 years worth of useless facts  and knowledge like Pythagorean theorem and Tabula Rasa?

I've got news for you, while you were throwing up jello shooters off of your frat house balcony people like my Rep (GASP a high school drop out) were working with real clients in real situations.

Designations don't mean anything to real people. Ask them sometime.[/quote]

DSA, I intended no insult with my return post...just figured that the number of "high school drop-outs" who'd had the intelligence and ambition to get the CFP would be very low to non-existent, and I stand by that.

I AM curious how your rep deals with any questions about education, assuming that comes up.  To be honest, I would think that the number of successful reps in this business who do not have a high school education would also be pretty low, again, due mostly to lack of intelligence/ambition.  Obviously, your rep doesn't have an intelligence/ambition problem, or she(?) wouldn't be in this biz very long.

[quote=Devoted SA][quote=ezmoney]I hate to tell you guys but the CFP is close behind. When I found out the board until this year would let a high school drop out earn the CFP, I lost all respect for it. Noone ever request that designation.

Are you implying that only "College Educated" souls should qualify for CFP designation because of all that hard work put in learning 4 years worth of useless facts  and knowledge like Pythagorean theorem and Tabula Rasa?

I've got news for you, while you were throwing up jello shooters off of your frat house balcony people like my Rep (GASP a high school drop out) were working with real clients in real situations.

Designations don't mean anything to real people. Ask them sometime.[/quote]

DSA, I intended no insult with my return post...just figured that the number of "high school drop-outs" who'd had the intelligence and ambition to get the CFP would be very low to non-existent, and I stand by that.

I AM curious how your rep deals with any questions about education, assuming that comes up.  To be honest, I would think that the number of successful reps in this business who do not have a high school education would also be pretty low, again, due mostly to lack of intelligence/ambition.  Obviously, your rep doesn't have an intelligence/ambition problem, or she(?) wouldn't be in this biz very long.

[/quote]

I also imagine that there aren't too many reps in the business who haven't a high school diploma and most likely some college if not a degree.  As you know I haven't a degree since I quit college in my senior year about 30 years ago for personal reasons.  I'm not about to go back and finish up a degree if I don't have to, which is why I hope to Hell I pass this current CFP test.  And probably everyone by now knows my feeling on the ridiculous requirement to have a college degree for the CFP without any requirement that the degree actually have some relevance to the field.  My degree in Art with a Ceramics concentration, while very heavily weighted in the chemistry area, has nothing whatsoever to do with my ability to be a financial planner/advisor.

That being said, I think if someone can study for several years and successfully pass the CFP or CPA or any other designation, why not? and more power to them.  Designations DO mean something because they are relevant to the job we are doing, and people DO ask if you are a CFP or CPA because those are the most widely known.

No one has ever asked me about my education, where I went to college, what sorority I belonged to or any other similar type of question.  It has never come up. I don't start out an interview with "Guess what,  I'm not a college graduate.  But I slept at a Holiday Inn last night, ha ha ha."  What I do do, (I hate it when sentences turn out like this...do do)  is when I am in my initial interview with a prospect or client, I give them my work history, how long I have been in the business, where I worked before, what licenses I hold, what types of services I provide, what my philosophy on investing is and what I expect to do for my clients AND how I expect my clients to cooperate with me.   This seems to be sufficient. 

If I had someone who didn't want to do business with me because I didn't have a degree from Bodunk College, then I don't want to do business with them.   And, if I did complete my degree.....so effing what?  I can throw porcelain pots, calculate the frit needed to make a glaze that will stay on the pot, blow glass goblets and tell you what era and area Mesoamerican pottery shards and artifacts come from.  Big deal.  Really helpful in planning a client's portfolio, don't you think?

[quote=Indyone]DSA, I intended no insult with my return post…just figured that the number of “high school drop-outs” who’d had the intelligence and ambition to get the CFP would be very low to non-existent, and I stand by that.

I AM curious how your rep deals with any questions about education, assuming that comes up.  To be honest, I would think that the number of successful reps in this business who do not have a high school education would also be pretty low, again, due mostly to lack of intelligence/ambition.  Obviously, your rep doesn't have an intelligence/ambition problem, or she(?) wouldn't be in this biz very long.

[/quote]

I've known you long enough not to get my panties in a bunch by something you've said.  (how could you have meant any disrespect you couldn't have known)

My rep was a drop out because she unintentionally got pregnant at the age of 17. Getting married, and having a child at that age forces a certain level of maturity & ambition that isn't afforded you when you have time to ponder your strategy & goals during college.

Sure we have plenty of clients and potential clients ask about her education & she gladly tells them about her background. She's got nothing to hide and hasn't achieved her status of today, by pretending to be something she's not. Our clients appreciate her candidness and we've only lost one potential client because of her "background". 

We cannot be all things to all people.

[quote=Devoted SA][quote=Indyone]DSA, I intended no insult with my return post…just figured that the number of “high school drop-outs” who’d had the intelligence and ambition to get the CFP would be very low to non-existent, and I stand by that.

I AM curious how your rep deals with any questions about education, assuming that comes up.  To be honest, I would think that the number of successful reps in this business who do not have a high school education would also be pretty low, again, due mostly to lack of intelligence/ambition.  Obviously, your rep doesn't have an intelligence/ambition problem, or she(?) wouldn't be in this biz very long.

[/quote]

I've known you long enough not to get my panties in a bunch by something you've said.  (how could you have meant any disrespect you couldn't have known)

My rep was a drop out because she unintentionally got pregnant at the age of 17. Getting married, and having a child at that age forces a certain level of maturity & ambition that isn't afforded you when you have time to ponder your strategy & goals during college.

Sure we have plenty of clients and potential clients ask about her education & she gladly tells them about her background. She's got nothing to hide and hasn't achieved her status of today, by pretending to be something she's not. Our clients appreciate her candidness and we've only lost one potential client because of her "background". 

We cannot be all things to all people. [/quote]

Wow, someone actually makes sense around here.  I live in a college town and have many friends going to college...I'm not the least bit impressed with many of them (educationally that is) or with the 'benefits' that college confers (for most of these kids). 

For those who make the most of college (the minority in my experience) fine...but it's still the same for he/she who makes the most out of their work/freetime.  I am far more competent to give investment advice and earn business than any fresh college graduate (except maybe a 
Wharton MBA ).  I don't have a college degree.  Why would it be bad for me to earn a CFP if I can comprehend and apply the curriculum (as well as pass the tests)?  Wouldn't my expertise be just as valid as the guy who went to college? 

I think anyone who can demonstrate competence in the subject matter should be given a chance, but then again I'm biased.

Not having a college degree is a sign of failure because you failed to have enough sense to know that in this country a college degree is a minimum standard of accomplishment.  MBAs are becoming so common that they too will soon lose their panache.

The only people who talk about how unimportant having a degree is are those without a degree.  Losers reassuring each other that they're not really losers.

So by your standards, not having enough money to attend college is a sign of failure.  Being in a car wreck and becoming physically disabled and having to drop out of college is a sign of failure (not my situation, but one of someone I know) even though that person goes on to establish a business that employs over 20 people and pays millions of dollars in salaries.   Having an unintended child and dropping out of college to actually earn a living is failure?

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are failures?

You are a bigoted idiot.

[quote=babbling looney]

So by your standards, not having enough money to attend college is a sign of failure.  Being in a car wreck and becoming physically disabled and having to drop out of college is a sign of failure (not my situation, but one of someone I know) even though that person goes on to establish a business that employs over 20 people and pays millions of dollars in salaries.   Having an unintended child and dropping out of college to actually earn a living is failure?

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are failures?

You are a bigoted idiot.

[/quote]

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are the exception to the rule.  99% of people who drop out of college are failures because they failed to realize the importance of not dropping out of college.

There is no such thing as not having enough money to go to college--loans are readily available.

Having a car wreck and not being able to finish is too bad, but the failure to finish is still a failure.

Having a baby you cannot afford is among the biggest causes of failure in our society.

[quote=babbling looney]

So by your standards, not having enough money to attend college is a sign of failure.  Being in a car wreck and becoming physically disabled and having to drop out of college is a sign of failure (not my situation, but one of someone I know) even though that person goes on to establish a business that employs over 20 people and pays millions of dollars in salaries.   Having an unintended child and dropping out of college to actually earn a living is failure?

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are failures?

You are a bigoted idiot.

[/quote]

You didn't know that Putsy is a bigoted idiot?

[quote=Devil’sAdvocate][quote=babbling looney]

So by your standards, not having enough money to attend college is a sign of failure.  Being in a car wreck and becoming physically disabled and having to drop out of college is a sign of failure (not my situation, but one of someone I know) even though that person goes on to establish a business that employs over 20 people and pays millions of dollars in salaries.   Having an unintended child and dropping out of college to actually earn a living is failure?

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are failures?

You are a bigoted idiot.

[/quote]

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are the exception to the rule.  99% of people who drop out of college are failures because they failed to realize the importance of not dropping out of college.

There is no such thing as not having enough money to go to college--loans are readily available.

Having a car wreck and not being able to finish is too bad, but the failure to finish is still a failure.

Having a baby you cannot afford is among the biggest causes of failure in our society.

[quote=Devil’sAdvocate]MBAs are becoming so common that they too will soon lose their panache.

[/quote]

What will you do with your time then Newbie? How will you distinguish yourself from the crowd? How will you stand out from the rest? How will you let every one of your friends, co-workers and colleagues know...I - NASD NEWBIE am DIFFERENT, am SPECIAL, am DISTINCTIVE, am ONE OF THE FEW, THE PROUD....

Your need for attention reminds me of my  quirky15 yr old cousin who has dyed her hair hot pink and wears safety pins in her ears and t-shirts that say "FIGHT CONFORMITY".

At the end of the day, all that matters is whether or not we can get our clients where they want to be.  All the rest is just so much talk.

[quote=joedabrkr] [quote=Greenbacks]

[quote=Butkus]Speaking of "Put/Newbie/Soon/Devil", one piece of his advice I have followed is to spend very little time on this forum. Instead I earned my AAMS in my 20th month at Jones (made segment 3 in my 18th month), and have enrolled in the CFP program. These are much more beneficial than the 'education' available here.[/quote]

Yeah, but you are still at Jones 

[/quote]

Hmmm...let's take a look at the fact pattern here....

1.)  He still works at Jones.

2.)   He thinks "AAMS" is a certification that investors actually care about.

3.)  He finds Put Newbie Advocate's advice to be valuable.

Are these the actions of an intelligent person?
[/quote]

I earned the AAMS because it was a prerequisite for the CFP with my firm. I will put it on my business card on my next order. I feel confident it will not hurt. On the other hand, with 2363 posts here under your current screen name, we might conservatively estimate 10 minutes per post, including time spent reading other postings, for a total of 394 hours. This was substantially more than I spent on the AAMS and would put a big dent in the CFP studies (at least for me). Of course you could introduce yourself to potential clients as 'Joedabroker', famous on the Registered Rep online broker forum for piling on, with others, a retired broker with various screen names because he keeps getting kicked off, and dispatching the occasional Jones broker with the effort of waiving away flies. Perhaps you could print off these exchanges and show them to your clients, and put Joedabroker on your card. It's your career.