LISTEN | The Advisor Institute

Hi. I’m David Richman with Eaton Vance Advisor Institute.

Prospective clients and clients alike often might recognize that making a change is in their best interest, yet many fail to do so. It’s understandable. Change is hard, maybe one of the more difficult things for any of us to need to confront. This can be where the 3 Dynamics come into play – communicating empathically, collaborating consciously and inspiring action. Collectively, these dynamics can provide a genuine approach for having conversations that inspire prospects and clients alike to take actions that you believe are likely to be in their best interests.

Now, some advisors we interact with on this are eager to embrace the paradigm and have asked, “What’s the best way for us to master these dynamics? For example, should we tackle them one at a time or should we try all three at once?” Others have asked whether they need to deploy all three dynamics or if they can rely on just one or two of them.

Here are my thoughts. The 3 Dynamics can serve as guideposts for you as an advisor to chase positivity and minimize the gravitational pull of inertia. They can work hand in hand which makes it valuable to deploy all three to chase positivity effectively. So, what’s the best way to integrate these approaches more deeply in conversation? The short answer is step by step, one dynamic at a time.

Think about any extracurricular activity you might want to learn how to do and do well that requires, say, two hands. For me, that has been learning to play the piano. I’ve been taking online piano lessons. It’s a lot of challenging fun and the teaching approach I find fascinating. It focuses on learning to play with each hand separately and then putting them together to attempt to play a musical score.

When thinking about the 3 Dynamics, your first steps might be to focus on building your skills on the first dynamic, communicating empathically, and then on the second, collaborating consciously. Communicating empathically actually means starting your conversations by seeking to understand the other person’s point of view focused on leading with genuine curiosity and active intent listening.

Next, the next dynamic, focusing on collaborating consciously, this means making certain that in each and every conversation with a prospective client or an existing client, you are intentional about working together. Collaborating consciously helps minimize any objections either overt or hidden that could divert your attention from inspiring action.

Now, keep in mind, for you to inspire action, a prospective or existing client must believe you understand them, you are validating their feelings and thoughts, and you’re genuinely interested in forging a partnership with them. That’s why these two dynamics - communicating empathically and collaborating consciously - at some level are mere table stakes in your quest to help someone overcome inertia. They work together hand in hand like playing the piano to place you in a potential position to inspire action.

Now, think about it. Have you had experiences where you felt you were clearly being empathic and really collaborative, yet somehow unable to help the person overcome their inertia? That’s where the third dynamic can kick in. That is the idea of inspiring action. See, this dynamic helps you loosen the grip of inertia by attempting to create these pivotal moments for a prospective client or an existing client’s virtual light bulb to go on, inspiring them to take action.

As an advisor, certain words, certain phrases you use in conversation can help increase the likelihood of these pivotal moments or what we call “moments of inflection” actually occurring. Taken together, these 3 Dynamics provide a genuine approach for having better conversations that inspire someone to act. Let’s face it. Your ability to create these motivating environments where people feel more at ease and receptive to listening rests in your approach to conversation. 

We encourage you to first take the time to learn how to better communicate empathically and then collaborate consciously. Next, reflect upon the actual words and phrases you are using as you continue to refine your approach to inspiring action. Words matter. 

To learn this approach of how to deploy the 3 Dynamics in conversation, we urge you to explore all of the resources that are available on eatonvance.com/ChasingPositivity. We at Eaton Vance are committed to helping you build stronger, deeper relationships with clients, team members, and with your prospective clients.

Until next time. Wishing you all the best.