Episode Overview

Episode Title: What Every Advisor Needs to Know About Storyselling and Life Planning with Mitch Anthony
Podcast: Top Advisor Podcast
Host: Bill Cates
Guest: Mitch Anthony (author, speaker, consultant in financial services)
Air Date: October 8, 2025
Episode Number: #99

Main Theme/Purpose

The episode is dedicated to two transformative concepts in financial advising:

• Storyselling: Using stories and metaphors as powerful tools for engaging, educating, and moving clients and prospects to action.
• Life Centered Financial Planning: Moving financial professionals beyond transactional, number-focused discussions and into holistic, life-centered planning rooted in deep client relationships.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What is Storyselling and Why Does it Matter?

• Definition and Distinction:

  • Storyselling activates both the rational and emotional sides of the brain, engaging clients more fully than logic or charts alone ([04:49]).
  • Traditional financial conversations are often left-brain heavy (charts, logic, rationales), causing analysis paralysis.

• Quote:

  "When you feed that left side of the brain, the more it consternates...it gets bigger and hungrier and doesn’t get any closer to a decision."
  — Mitch Anthony [05:52]

• Historical Context:

  • Great communicators (Jesus, Ben Franklin, Aesop) used stories or metaphors to explain the unknown with the known ([06:21]).
  • Advisors often use industry jargon, alienating clients.

• Emotional Connection:

  • Stories make clients feel understood and empowered to decide, while jargon or linear logic triggers objections ([07:34]-[09:56]).

• Quote:

  "You’re getting objections because you’re using objectionable material."
  — Mitch Anthony [17:04]

• Practical Wisdom:

  • If a client can’t understand your language, “scrub it from your vocabulary.”
  • Example of “Yield”: Use everyday analogies, e.g., “How many apples did you get off the tree last year?”

2. The Power of Asking for the Client's Story

• Client Story First:

  • Open conversations by exploring the client's personal background and experiences, especially with previous advisors ([12:45]).

• Effective Question:

  "Have you had any experiences with any other financial professionals, either good or bad, that would be worth your time to tell me about?"
  — Mitch Anthony [13:25]

  • This approach often unlocks valuable stories, builds trust, and tangibly grows business.

• Monologue vs. Dialogue:

  • Many "sales processes" are deceptive, asking questions just to set up a pitch.
  • True dialogue is driven by real curiosity—the advisor asks questions they genuinely don’t know the answer to ([14:44]-[15:34]).

• Notable Technique:

  • Always explain the context behind your questions to avoid awkward moments and build rapport ([18:46]).

3. The Advisor’s Story—Types and Techniques

• Components of an Effective Advisor Story:

  • The kind of people I love working with.
  • The value I strive to bring.
  • "What I do is kind of like..." (developing a metaphor).

• Example:

  • A football coach-turned-advisor uses the analogy of offense, defense, and special teams to illustrate his comprehensive approach ([21:00]).

• Quote:

  "Use the language of the known to explain the unknown. Use the thing they get to explain the thing they don’t get."
  — Mitch Anthony [16:21]

4. Common Storyselling Mistakes & How to Avoid Them

• Mistakes:

  • Stories that are too long or complex.
  • Telling stories that aren’t instantly repeatable.

• Acid Test for Stories: ([25:55])

  • Simple
  • Clear
  • Repeatable

• Example:

  • Choose succinct analogies ("Would you rather be in a top floor condo with a view, or bottom for ease of escape?") to discuss risk.

5. Life Centered Financial Planning: Moving Beyond the Numbers

• Definition:

  • Focus on "Return on Life" (ROL) over "Return on Investment" (ROI).
  • Advisors as “wisdom merchants”—help clients get the best life possible with the money they have ([29:43]-[31:07]).

• Quote:

  "If you measure your progress against the Standard & Poor, you’ve got a very poor standard."
  — Mitch Anthony [29:55]

• Practical Application:

  • Find out what clients want from their money—not just the financial goal, but the true life intention.
  • Bring irreplaceable value through organization and accountability, not just investment returns ([33:52]).

• Notable Quote:

  "Comparability is the death of a value proposition...bring something to people that they know they need, but can’t be compared to anything else."
  — Mitch Anthony [32:47]

6. Implementation—How to Incorporate Life Centered Planning Efficiently

• No Added Time Required:
  • Most meetings waste time on small talk; replace with meaningful questions ([38:51]-[40:10]).
• Sample Questions at Different Stages:
  • Early Relationship: “Where are you from originally?”
  • Ongoing: “Has there been any major change in your life since we last spoke?”
  • Pre-retirement: “If you had all the money you needed, what would you do differently?” ([41:01])

7. Dealing with Advisors Who Resist a Relationship Approach

• “My clients just want the numbers.”

  • Resistance is often discomfort with emotional content, not client preference.
  • Relationships are built on shared stories; the amount known about each other defines the depth of relationship ([43:49]).

• Quote:

  "When someone says to me, 'I’m not in the relationship business, I’m in the...'—I just look at them and say, good luck."
  — Mitch Anthony [44:57]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "Let me tell you a story." ([10:52])
  — Six words proven by neuroscience to engage both hemispheres of the brain and spark decision-making.
• "Most people are walking around with post-traumatic advisor syndrome." ([12:45])
  — On the importance of learning a client's history with advisors.
• "The only reason we have objections is because you used objectionable material." ([07:44])
• "The advisor today needs to think of themselves as a wisdom merchant." ([31:37])
• "Comparability is the death of a value proposition." ([32:47])

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment / Topic | |------------|------------------------------------------------------------| | 04:49 | What is Storyselling? How is it different? | | 10:52 | The neuroscience behind storytelling | | 12:45 | Getting the client's story: Essential questions | | 14:44 | Monologue vs. Dialogue: How to build trust | | 16:21 | The power of metaphor and relatable analogies | | 18:46 | Context: Explaining why you ask deep questions | | 20:40 | The three-question formula for advisor "Why" stories | | 25:55 | Common mistakes in storytelling (keep it simple!) | | 29:43 | What is life centered financial planning? | | 33:52 | Unbeatable value: Organization & accountability | | 38:51 | How to implement life-centered planning without extra time | | 41:01 | Sample powerful client questions for deeper advice | | 43:49 | The danger of forgetting the human element in advice |

Resources & Next Steps

• Mitch Anthony’s Books:

  • MitchAnthony.com
  • "Storyselling for Financial Advisors"
  • "Life Centered Financial Planning"
  • "The Financial Professional Storybook"

• Return on Life Tools/Training:

  • roladvisor.com (free tutorials available) ([37:58])

• Bill Cates’ New Book:

  • "The Hidden Heist: Stop Robbing Yourself of Lasting Wealth"

Tone & Style

• The conversation is lively, candid, and peppered with humor and memorable analogies.
• Both Bill Cates and Mitch Anthony keep the atmosphere upbeat, practical, and focused on transformational improvement—not transactional sales.

For Advisors Who Haven't Listened

This episode offers a blueprint for elevating your client conversations—from rote, surface-level questions to engaging, story-led dialogues that build trust and long-term loyalty. Mitch Anthony provides actionable insight on both why and how to make your advice more human, memorable, and impactful, with techniques you can implement immediately to get better results for your clients and your practice.