AXA Advisors or Northwestern Mutual or?
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[quote=iceco1d]I agree and disagree at the same time with deekay.
I find many insurance guys do a better job with hollistic "financial planning" than a wirehouse rep might do. At the same time, deekay may find my knowledge and implementation of insurance planning "pathetic" (which is why I outsource it to an insurance-only professional), while at the same time I might/probably find his knowledge of investment management equally "pathetic." Too many "jack-of-all-trades" going on industry-wide IMO. (btw deekay, I used you for an example only - I have no knowledge of your expertise, or lack of expertise, in the investment arena...just adding on to your point).[/quote] Well put, Ice. You're right - I couldn't tell you what the alpha or beta was on some fund, or the P/E is on KO. However, I can put together an asset allocation for a client, or show them the pros and cons of a VA vs. fixed annuity. That alone makes me as qualified an investment specialist as 95% of the "financial advisor" community (not referring to you - you're in the 5% IMO). Like you, I farm out the other stuff (investment management) because I don't have the resources a fund/SMA/VA manager has at their disposal. And I definitely don't want to become a "Jack of All Trades/Master of None". Frankly, I think we'd all make a lot more money if we just said what we did instead of obfuscating the truth with fancy terms like "financial advisor" or "wealth manager" or whatever. Damnit, I'm a Life and Disability Insurance specialist and proud of it!Since I make my living photographing other people's art, my first advice to artists who want to do it themselves is to seek
professional help. We photographers have the right equipment and lots of experience to get it right the first time. Anyone
who has ever tried to photograph their own work will know that its a rigorous challenge in the best of circumstances, and a
downright waste of time and money if not done correctly.
If you must do it yourself, though, there are a few tips I can offer that will make the experience of shooting your own art
more likely to succeed. I'll focus on photograph paintings and other 2D media in this
discussion. Sculpture is another story entirely. I'll also stick to tips for showing work on the web, but the basics of the
acquisition of the image applies to print as well.
Thanks
JSR Solution
[quote=Anuj Sharma]
Since I make my living photographing other people's art, my first advice to artists who want to do it themselves is to seek
professional help. We photographers have the right equipment and lots of experience to get it right the first time. Anyone
who has ever tried to photograph their own work will know that its a rigorous challenge in the best of circumstances, and a
downright waste of time and money if not done correctly.
If you must do it yourself, though, there are a few tips I can offer that will make the experience of shooting your own art
more likely to succeed. I'll focus on photograph paintings and other 2D media in this
discussion. Sculpture is another story entirely. I'll also stick to tips for showing work on the web, but the basics of the
acquisition of the image applies to print as well.
Thanks
JSR Solution
[quote=deekay][quote=iceco1d]I agree and disagree at the same time with deekay.
I find many insurance guys do a better job with hollistic "financial planning" than a wirehouse rep might do. At the same time, deekay may find my knowledge and implementation of insurance planning "pathetic" (which is why I outsource it to an insurance-only professional), while at the same time I might/probably find his knowledge of investment management equally "pathetic." Too many "jack-of-all-trades" going on industry-wide IMO. (btw deekay, I used you for an example only - I have no knowledge of your expertise, or lack of expertise, in the investment arena...just adding on to your point).[/quote] Well put, Ice. You're right - I couldn't tell you what the alpha or beta was on some fund, or the P/E is on KO. However, I can put together an asset allocation for a client, or show them the pros and cons of a VA vs. fixed annuity. That alone makes me as qualified an investment specialist as 95% of the "financial advisor" community (not referring to you - you're in the 5% IMO). Like you, I farm out the other stuff (investment management) because I don't have the resources a fund/SMA/VA manager has at their disposal. And I definitely don't want to become a "Jack of All Trades/Master of None". Frankly, I think we'd all make a lot more money if we just said what we did instead of obfuscating the truth with fancy terms like "financial advisor" or "wealth manager" or whatever. Damnit, I'm a Life and Disability Insurance specialist and proud of it! [/quote] Well, I think that pretty much sums up what I said. Pick your area of expertise and pursue it...[quote=Hank Newbie][quote=deekay][quote=iceco1d]I agree and disagree at the same time with deekay.
I find many insurance guys do a better job with hollistic "financial planning" than a wirehouse rep might do. At the same time, deekay may find my knowledge and implementation of insurance planning "pathetic" (which is why I outsource it to an insurance-only professional), while at the same time I might/probably find his knowledge of investment management equally "pathetic." Too many "jack-of-all-trades" going on industry-wide IMO. (btw deekay, I used you for an example only - I have no knowledge of your expertise, or lack of expertise, in the investment arena...just adding on to your point).[/quote] Well put, Ice. You're right - I couldn't tell you what the alpha or beta was on some fund, or the P/E is on KO. However, I can put together an asset allocation for a client, or show them the pros and cons of a VA vs. fixed annuity. That alone makes me as qualified an investment specialist as 95% of the "financial advisor" community (not referring to you - you're in the 5% IMO). Like you, I farm out the other stuff (investment management) because I don't have the resources a fund/SMA/VA manager has at their disposal. And I definitely don't want to become a "Jack of All Trades/Master of None". Frankly, I think we'd all make a lot more money if we just said what we did instead of obfuscating the truth with fancy terms like "financial advisor" or "wealth manager" or whatever. Damnit, I'm a Life and Disability Insurance specialist and proud of it! [/quote] Well, I think that pretty much sums up what I said. Pick your area of expertise and pursue it...[/quote] You may have said that, but you never defined what a "financial advisor" is. If I only sell insurance products, am I not a "financial advisor"? If I only sell investments, am I a "financial advisor"?Wow Thanks for the animated responses- ! I met with the Northwestern Regional Manager and wasn’t too impressed with him , but I do have to agree that since I’ve been a policyholder for so long- that’s a rather compelling point. I found out that I’d have to split commisions on any other Financial Planning products since I wouldn’t be qualified to write it. I’ll still pursue Northwestern, but the timeline with them is a few months out and AXA already offered me a position via a pretty non binding agreement. They’ll provide study materials ( we split the cost ) and sponsor me for the series 7 and 66. At least I could get started down the path . I do believe NWML is a superior insurance company and if they offer me a position , I’ll really have to consider it. I could see myself specializing in Long Term Care …
If you want to work for an insurance company, that's fine. If you don't want to work for an insurance company, that is also fine. What doesn't make any sense, though, is working for an insurance company that doesn't have competetive products. This business is hard enough as it is.
My point is that if you want to sell insurance, AXA isn't the best place to do it. If you don't want to be an insurance salesperson, AXA isn't the place to do it.