Dedicating your career to helping others is a virtuous and rewarding path to follow. And there are many ways to help. One such way can be found in the career of a Financial Planner (aka Financial Advisor). Increasing complexities, limited time, limited resources, competing life priorities…all increase the likelihood that an individual can benefit from the services of a Financial Planner. But why then is the failure rate of Financial Planners so high? A recent study (April 2026) paints a grim reality, noting that “between 72% and 90% of new Financial Advisors fail or leave the field within their first three to five years.” The causes are varied. From experience, some common trends are: unfavorable compensation models, unrealistic production expectations, inadequate training and support, and lack of transparency.
At Better Pockets Financial (BPF), we are trying to change this by bringing on Financial Planners who align with our organizational values and are seeking an entrepreneurial experience where your success is defined and created by you.
Our goal is to help you overcome these statistics and become a successful Financial Planner. It starts with proper expectations; it can take 3-5 years or more to grow your business into a full-time paycheck. If you don't have a plan to pay your bills for that time, then you're likely to join the others in an early exit from the field.
But beyond proper expectations, how you go about serving your clients has to align with your goals and values. Many new advisors and planners are taught the best way to provide financial is through insurance and other produce sales, rather than focusing on comprehensive financial planning. After getting through their list of 100 friends, they are left searching for the next sale to avoid becoming an industry statistic.
At Better Pockets Financial we are different. We engage clients through ongoing service models, allowing you to build a long-term relationship with your clients while building future revenue for your practice. This removes the need to sell insurance or an investment to provide any sort of financial help, allowing you to work with a wider variety of clients.
Transparent client fee structure: The fee we charge clients is straight forward…a refreshing change for both clients and Financial Planners. For clients who don't have significant investable assets, we offer a monthly subscription. Once their assets grow, we move to the traditional AUM fee structure. That’s it! We do not receive commissions, kickbacks, referral bonuses, etc. Your clients pay you for the work you do; a refreshing simplification of the client-planner relationship.
Compensation Model: Straight forward…no salary or benefits as you are in a contractor (1099) role and after covering your expenses, you keep 70% of the revenue you bring in. You make your schedule and you work with who you want.
Training and Support: Being a Financial Planner can be lonely and isolating. Couple this with the pressure of making specific recommendations about financial wellness on critical matters, and it can be overwhelming. This is but one reason we strive to foster a collaborative environment for Financial Planners to thrive. Weekly Team Marketing meetings – because we can learn a lot from each other about what works and what doesn’t. Weekly Team Meetings – professional development, case scenarios, learning/teaching together, and diversity of knowledge all come together here. As a team, we commit to shadowing experiences, collaborating on client calls together, and finding useful training sessions from outside professionals. Furthermore, if there’s a way we can improve training and support, we want to know it so we can adjust!
Production Expectations: No quotas! Quotas are a hidden conflict of interest that is rarely talked about transparently to either clients or Financial Planners. That, and quotas can result in biased advice to clients, which isn’t supported by our Fiduciary stance. We don’t care if you have 1 client or 1,000 clients…because we pass the expense (tech, compliance, registration, etc…) of being an associate with BPF on to you. While we cheer you on and provide support, we’re helping you achieve your definition of success…not an arbitrary quota.
Here are some other resources to look into as you consider the next steps in your Financial Planning career:
LinkedIn Business Page
Our ADV
We understand that planning the next step in your Financial Planning career can be tricky, overwhelming, and intimidating. As such, we keep all communication between you and us as confidential and do not communicate with your current (or previous) employer during this exploratory phase.*
When you would like to talk further about what your career looks like at Better Pockets Financial, use this calendar link to schedule a discreet discussion with one of our founders – Josh and Clint:
We’re here to answer your questions and discuss if we are a good fit for each other. Whether you have clients that will follow you or if you are working to find clients (or somewhere in between), we’d love to have an exploratory conversation with you.
*If you are subject to a Non-Disclosure Agreement, Non-Compete Clause, Non-Solicitation Clause we suggest consulting with a qualified attorney to understand your limitations and remedies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Congratulations on pivoting into a new career! It’s not easy, and you would be in good company. The majority of our Financial Planners did not start their career in the financial services industry. Amongst former professionals in law enforcement, consumer credit, and social work…you’re welcome here where the diversity of your career is seen as an asset.
Yes! We are registered in a handful of other states and have no hesitation to request registration in your state.
There are a number of agreed upon qualifications that regulators will accept. They are: Series 65 examination, Series 66 examination, Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Personal Financial Specialist (PFS). These must qualifications must be active and in good standing in order to count.
We use a host of modern technology solutions. Currently, the core of client-facing tech consists of: RightCapital, WealthBox, Hazel, PreciseFP, Holistiplan, fpPathfinder, MyRepChat, Calendly, Zoom. There are more tech on the back-end that is used for operations.
The cost changes periodically but will include an initial registration fee and your monthly technology expenses. In order to remain accurate, we’re happy to share this information during a call with you. Use the calendly link to schedule a time for us to chat!
We are not affiliated with a broker-dealer. We are a fully independent firm. But, we do custody our investments through Altruist, AssetMark, and Schwab.
No. We have a strict no-commission stance and will require that you cancel all insurance registrations upon joining BPF. For some this is a deal-breaker, and that’s okay. But generally, we find most are relieved to step out of the insurance world entirely by placing both feet firmly in planning and investments.
We understand this. When scheduling a time to talk with us, be sure to use your personal email address and personal phone number. We have no need to talk to your current firm. Change is hard and sometimes talking with an attorney about what you can/can’t do will calm the anxiousness.
Yes. We will complete a background check with relevant jurisdictions. An entry on a background check is not automatically a disqualifier, but we will talk about it.
No, at this time we cannot sponsor visas or support immigration requirements of any type. Furthermore, as a Financial Planner you must be a resident of and reside in the United States.
Yes, the majority of our financial Planners start out by working from home and then decide if moving to a shared workspace or dedicated office makes sense for their practice and budget. We primarily meet with our clients virtually, allowing each planner to establish the best work environment for themselves.
We are passionate about effective and dynamic employee retirement plans too! Yes, we have the capability to design retirement plans, start new retirement plans, and transition existing retirement plans…all while emphasizing responsible plan design and support of employee financial wellness.