You are a 27 year  old in the 4th year of your IFA business. You have just been introduced to a client who is 53 years of age and his portfolio has 5 ulip endowment plans, and 2 ulip pension plans ALL from the same company. He also has a bank fixed deposit of Rs. 12L and a car loan of Rs. 11L, and a Home loan of Rs. 133 lakhs.

You have understood that he has not invested very well, and you need to give feedback. How do you do it? Do you tell him: “Your bank has screwed you real bad, you need to work another 39 years to be able to meet your retirement goal? ”

No you do not.

You ask yourselves the following:

1. Am I his friend or relative: You cannot (need not) give feedback to your neighbor’s wife, right? Feeback is always given to people who are your friends or relatives. Even if they are friends, are you close enough to give feedback? do they really want it? Have they asked for it MORE than once?
2. Am I an expert that they have approached for a life style consulting, retirement planning, financial planning and what are they expecting from me?
3. Do I really know all the facts – is he supporting an ailing sibling, parent, or…and draining a lot of his money?
4. When I am giving a feedback am I really doing it with good intentions or with an intention to sell some of my products – like asking him to surrender Hdfc ulip to buy Icici ulip.
5. Is my intention genuine – and is it conveyed in my language and tone?
6. Am I smirking and making him feel bad about him being cheated by the bank?
7. In the first meeting do I want to sound like God with a man who is perhaps old enough to be my father?
8. Does he consider me competent AT THIS STAGE for me to give harsh feedback?
9. If I do not give this feedback, what will happen to his money?
10. If I do give this feedback, what will happen to his money and my relationship with him?
11. Do I need to give this feedback on day 1 without checking the products that he has bought? what if the ulips are not so bad?
12. What if the ulips are just 3 years from maturity? do I need to study them more?

So ask yourself all these …..and then decide…when to give your feedback, how, ….etc. There is no hurry.