Excellence WorkAT THE SUMMIT, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO
EXCELLENCE WORK
Become a Financial Advisor
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Learn the advisor's side of the desk by doing the work: see what personal financial advisors do and earn with May 2025 BLS pay and the 2025 to 2035 outlook, tell a broker-dealer from an investment adviser and decode the titles on a business card, apply the fiduciary duty of care and loyalty and Regulation Best Interest to real cases, name the conflict behind each way of being paid, map the SIE, Series 7, 63, 65 and 66 and who registers firms and people, earn the CFP mark's four E's on paper, tap the conflict on a drawn Form CRS, run CFP Board's seven-step planning process, rebalance a portfolio, answer a client who wants a guaranteed 10%, compute what fees cost over years with exact arithmetic and a calculator, and stop a wire to a scammer before it leaves.
3h 14m5 constellations
01Explain what advisors do and earn, and tell brokers, investment advisers and planners apart
02Apply the fiduciary duty and Reg BI, and name the conflict behind each way of being paid
03Map the SIE, Series 7, 63, 65 and 66, state and SEC registration, and the CFP mark
04Read Form ADV and Form CRS, and run CFP Board's seven-step planning process
05Show fees in dollars over years, refuse to promise returns, and spot fraud early
Every lesson of Become a Financial Advisor
15 lessons in 5 levels, about 3 hours. Level 1 is free.
Level 1The Job and the TitlesFree · 3 lessons
- What Financial Advisors DoKnow what personal financial advisors do, where they work and how they are paid.12 min
- Broker, Adviser, PlannerTell a broker-dealer from an investment adviser, and read the titles and letters after a name.12 min
- Checkpoint: Pay, Outlook and the Way InKnow the pay range, the outlook and how new advisors enter the job.13 min
Level 2Whose Interest Comes FirstMembership · 3 lessons
- The Fiduciary DutyExplain an investment adviser's duty of care and duty of loyalty, and the limit of disclosure.13 min
- Best Interest and SuitabilityKnow what Regulation Best Interest and suitability require of brokers, and how they differ from a fiduciary duty.13 min
- Checkpoint: Conflicts of InterestSpot the conflicts built into how advisors are paid, and handle them.13 min
Level 3Licenses and DisclosuresMembership · 3 lessons
- The Exams: SIE, Series 7, 63, 65 and 66Know which exam qualifies you for what, and what each one takes.13 min
- Who Registers YouKnow who registers advisory firms, brokers and their people, and what the CFP mark adds.13 min
- Checkpoint: Form ADV and Form CRSRead a relationship summary, find its conflicts, and know what Form ADV discloses.13 min
Level 4Work With ClientsMembership · 3 lessons
- The Seven-Step Planning ProcessWalk a client through CFP Board's financial planning process, starting with what you must learn about them.13 min
- Risk, Time and DiversificationMatch a client's mix to their time horizon and risk tolerance, diversify it and rebalance it.13 min
- Checkpoint: The Guaranteed-Return ClientAnswer a client who wants a guaranteed return, honestly and within the rules.12 min
Level 5Fees, Fraud and the Final TestMembership · 3 lessons
- Compound Growth and Fee DragCompute compound growth and the long-run cost of fees, and explain both in dollars.14 min
- Fraud Red Flags and Protecting ClientsSpot investment fraud, check anyone on BrokerCheck and IAPD, and protect older clients.13 min
- Final Test: A Week at the DeskBring duties, licenses, disclosures, planning, fees and fraud together on real decisions.14 min
AFTER THE CORE