When I was a rookie financial advisor in my 20s, I probably would have wanted to write about “The Superpower of Arrogance.” Arrogance as in “knowing it all,” telling the client, with complete conviction, exactly what they should do. Back then, I aspired to be that kind of advisor.
But with over 30 years of experience in financial services and a few gray hairs, I’ve discovered some of the best financial advisors, the ones I would hire for myself, are the epitome of humility.
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Why Humility Can Matter in Investing
Why would I hire the humble financial advisor over the know-it-all advisor?
While I might feel initially comforted by the know-it-all advisor’s confident veneer, this person tends to be less eager to ask good questions, to see complex situations in new ways, and certainly less open to hearing the client’s ideas. In contrast, a humble advisor, such as an Abacus financial advisor, can help bring shoshin: a Buddhist concept meaning “beginner’s mind” and reflects an approach that is receptive, curious, spacious, creative, and attuned to the client’s insights.
As Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki Roshi wrote in his book Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.”
The Real Benefits of Working With a Financial Advisor
Choosing to work with a financial advisor, humble or otherwise, first requires acknowledging we need help. This is itself an act of humility, one that can pay dividends.
Working with a financial advisor isn’t about deferring responsibility or giving up control. Rather, it’s about gaining a thought partner, someone who helps you make better financial decisions with more clarity, confidence, and discipline than you could on your own.
Specifically, I see three potential benefits from hiring a financial advisor versus doing it yourself:
- Objective perspective. It’s nearly impossible to be objective about our own financial decisions. We’re too close (and sometimes emotional) to see clearly.
- Accountability. An advisor can help you turn your intentions into action.
- Experience. You gain access to a financial advisor’s hard-won wisdom from guiding many clients through similar situations.
It took humility to recognize that these benefits were relevant to me, too. That’s why I hired my own financial advisor, despite having over 30 years of experience in the field.
Humility may also improve long-term investing outcomes. Research reveals investor overconfidence is often linked to excessive trading (often due to knee-jerk reactions to short-term events) and lower net investment returns. On the flip side, in my experience, humble people are more likely to admit they don’t have a reliable crystal ball to tell them the future direction of the stock market, and they tend to take a more patient approach, guided by historical data rather than by emotion or ego.
A Personal Lesson in Overconfidence
Many of us make mistakes with our finances, but those mistakes are often magnified when we don’t share our intentions with others. For example, when I wanted to invest in a privately held tech company, I didn’t want to tell my friends, colleagues, or even my financial advisor because I felt this was a sure thing. I didn’t want them to talk me out of investing or suggest that I should invest less than I had in mind. This was a tell-tale sign of arrogance.
Five years later, I lost my entire investment. But I learned something valuable: Sharing is an act of courage, not weakness, and it often helps to protect our money. Today, I share both significant investment and spending intentions with others, including my financial advisor, before moving forward. That takes humility.
Practicing Humility With Your Next Financial Decision
Humility doesn’t mean doubting yourself or giving up control. It means recognizing the biggest financial decisions are rarely best made alone.
I recommend that you talk through financial decisions you’re contemplating with your spouse, an impartial friend, or your financial advisor. And that you look for a financial advisor who has humility. Find someone who has the ability to ask you catalytic questions that uncover your most important life, family, and work goals and values. Someone who listens to you as if you’re the most important person in the room. That takes humility.
Before your next major money decision, whether it’s an investment opportunity, a career change, a liquidity event, or a shift in your long-term goals, pause and ask yourself these questions:
- Who else should be part of this conversation?
- Am I making any potentially wrong assumptions?
- How would this decision look five or 10 years from now?
Then, share your thinking with someone you trust: a spouse, a thoughtful friend, or a financial advisor who listens first and leads with curiosity rather than certainty.
A Financial Advising Firm That Leads With Humility
At Abacus Wealth Partners, humility isn’t just a personality trait, it’s our whole way of doing things. It shows up in how we listen first, ask questions second, and build plans that respond to your real life, not a theoretical model.
If you’re looking for a financial advisor who values thoughtful collaboration over false confidence, we invite you to start a conversation with an Abacus advisor. Sometimes the most powerful financial move you can make is simply choosing not to go it alone.
