Do you feel like this when it comes to working with clients in grief?

Do you feel like this when working with a client in grief?

Patience with Grieving Clients

I would like to share a story with you in the spirit of patience with your clients.  I was reminded by a good friend of mine recently how easy it is to take patience for granted. 

In the fall of 2018 my home fell victim to a damaging hurricane.  The timing could not have been any worse as I was in the beginning stages of my financial practice.  I happen to be in my office and realized the wall looked peculiar.  I touched the area in question and my finger went through the wall like a knife slicing soft butter.  As I dug deeper into the wall, I realized the hurricane was not the culprit of the damage.  As I opened the wall, I was able to see outside.  I assure you that was not a good thing.  We had a roof put on in 2016, which was done incorrectly.  The shoddy work resulted in at least four exterior holes in the stucco of my home.  Two years of water intrusion caused some significant mold.  I was displaced from my office and my son was displaced from his room for over eight months while the repairs commenced.  We had full mold remediation.  We also had a full remodel to the exterior of the front of the home as well as the affected rooms.  The extent of the damage was roughly $75,000. My oldest son had to sleep with his younger brother while this got resolved.

The contractor that performed the corrective action asked why I did not seem to be upset with what transpired. I shared with him life grief journey and put this minor life inconvenience into perspective. The house got fixed and it was better than before. My sons enjoyed the bonding time. No one was injured and this was an eight month blip in life. The roofer also owned up and paid for the damages. I try not to sweat the small stuff. We are all human, but it takes effort to be patient, especially when factors are stacked against us.

I share this story with you as a reminder that as bad as things may seem to get, someone always has it worse.  Try not to sweat the small stuff and try to remember that your grieving client is going through far more than someone cutting you off on the road or that TSA agent making you late for your flight.  To learn more about how we prepare advisors to work effectively, efficiently and patiently with clients in grieve click the button below.