‘Let go of identity' to adapt, says AFA

In a speech to advisers at the AFA's National Practitioner Roadshow in Sydney yesterday, Mr Fox addressed the challenges of adapting to societal change.

“You’ve got to adapt to societal expectations,” Mr Fox said. “The difficulty of adapting is you’ve got to let go of some part of you.

“If you’ve been a successful risk specialist for 30 years, and you’ve charged upfront commissions all the way through, that’s part of your identity.

“If you’re an adviser that has always used a built-in commission product in the superannuation investment space, maybe that’s part of your identity or part of what it means to your success,” he said.

Mr Fox noted that while it is difficult to change established adviser behaviour, it is important to challenge it in order to move forward and progress as an adviser.

“Adaptive change is about taking the best that you have now and blending it with the best that you need for the future,” he said.

“It is hard to disrupt that, but it is essential that we challenge it – about whether it is the right thing we need to go forward.”

Adrian Flores

Adrian Flores is a deputy editor at Momentum Media, focusing mainly on banking, wealth management and financial services. He has also written for Public Accountant, Accountants Daily and The CEO Magazine.

You can contact him on [email protected].