Episode 312: Do You Really Need a Financial Advisor

Episode Summary

In this episode, Dr. Latifat breaks down one of the most common money questions high-earning women physicians ask: “Should I pay for a financial advisor?”

Here’s the honest truth — most people are paying thousands of dollars every year for work they could easily automate themselves. Data shows that a simple, low-cost index fund strategy (think Boglehead-style investing) often performs just as well as many actively managed portfolios — minus the hefty fees.

But this isn’t about villainizing financial advisors. It’s about empowering you to understand what you’re paying for and making sure you’re actually getting value in return.

If your financial advisor is helping you strategize, optimize, and grow beyond what you could do on your own — that’s worth exploring.
If not? It may be time to reclaim that money and redirect it toward your own wealth-building goals.

🩺 You’ll Learn:

• Why “boring” automated investing often outperforms high-fee strategies
• The real difference between investing with confidence and outsourcing without clarity
• When a financial advisor is actually worth it — and when they’re not
• How Dr. Latifat went from –$200K to 7 figures using simple, automated money systems

🧠 Quote to Remember

“If your advisor isn’t adding clear, measurable value — you’re paying for the same work twice.”

🔗 Resources Mentioned

• Done With Broke by Dr. Latifat Akintade- https://a.co/d/gY0WLmG
  – the guide that walks you from chaos to confident wealth.
• Automate your investments with trusted platforms like Fidelity or Vanguard. Check out our program which teaches women physicians to automate their six figures income to 7 figure networth. moneyfitmd.com/6to7

Join hundreds of women physicians l

You’re making six or even seven figures—and still asking, “Where did all my money go?” The problem isn’t your income—it’s that you haven’t learned how to have money left.

The Money Left Over program gives women physicians the tools to uncover 4–5 figures in extra monthly cash and finally let your money start working for you.

👉 Go to moneyfitmd.com/moneyleftover now and find out how.

You’re making six or even seven figures—and still asking, “Where did all my money go?” The Money Left Over program gives women physicians the tools to uncover 4–5 figures in extra monthly cash and finally let your money start working for you.

👉 Click here to find out how.

Connect with Dr. Latifat:
💡 Instagram
👥 Facebook Group
🔗 LinkedIn
📩 Email
☎️ Book a Complimentary Call
💸 Youtube

Free Resources for Women Physicians
🧳 Sabbatical Guide (Free Download)
🧠 Financial Starter Guide
💸 Money School for Women Physicians
🧬 Financial Personality Quiz

Books & Programs
🔑 The Power to Choose by Dr. Latifat
📘 Done with Broke (Amazon)

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 1:24

How do you fire your advisor? Maybe you want to fire your advisor, maybe you should not fire your advisor. I'm Dr. Latifat, and in this episode today, I'm gonna answer the question that I hear from many women physicians, which is do I need an advisor? And also, how do I fire my advisor? Um, for those that are watching, welcome. I'm Dr. Latifat. I'm a physician and also the founder of Money FeedMD, which is a money and wealth building community for women physicians. Uh, the founder of the Wealth Village for Women Physicians, which we just renamed recently, which I'm so excited about. Anyway, so one of the women um in my world asked a question recently, and this is a question that has come up so many times. I've answered it many, many, many times. So I figured, you know what, if you're listening on the podcast, you may be curious as well. And I think it's information that probably will be helpful for many people. So let me just first of all just start by saying financial advisors are not bad people. They're, I mean, any field has bad people, right? But they're mostly good humans that want to do great in the world. And they chose this profession because they want to see people grow their wealth and all of that stuff. So this is not an episode bashing any humans or advisors, but like anything else, there are times when those services are appreciated, and there are times when maybe it's time to say goodbye. But many physicians, especially women physicians, get stuck in this relationship that actually ends up costing them a lot of money. If you've listened to my podcast at all, you know that spending is not something we demonize here. There's no shame in spending or all of that. However, one of the things that's important to note is that we like to spend in a way that's value-based. So anytime someone comes into the community and they're asking questions about advisors, they may already have an advisor. The question I usually ask them is one of the questions is how does your advisor get paid? But also what is the value that they're creating for you? Because that's how I decide everything. And one of the questions that I ask anytime for any spending is will I in six months from now, will I be glad that I spend this way or will I wish I had my money back? And I think it's a good litmus test in general that helps you not leave this frugal, I don't want to spend lifestyle, but instead you're spending in a way that aligns with your value. There was a woman physician who shared recently that um she had cut down on eating out because she's like, it's not even super healthy for me to eat out this much, but it's also a money leak. And she did that, and with the Delta, she was able to pay for her kids to come spend the holidays with her. Like that is spending richly, right? So the goal is not to spend less, the goal is to spend on things that add value. And if there are leaks in your life where your money is not working for you, why don't you fix the leak and let your money work for you? For many other people that are watching this podcast, this YouTube, you work hard, you spend time doing all of this stuff. There's no reason why your money should not be working for you, right? It's not your money or your life. We want both. The money and the life. We want both. By the way, that's a really good book, Your Money or Your Life. It's a, I think I for I read it a long time ago and I just remembered right now. So if you're looking for recommendations for book, definitely check that out. Check out our book, Done with Brooke, that's available on Amazon and also the power to choose as well. Those three books will change your game. Okay, so back to the stuff about the advisor. So, my own personal experience, I don't have an advisor right now. I don't have an active advisor, and I'll tell you how I think advisors can be used by many people. Um, not all, but many people. This may be where an advisor may actually be of a value in your financial life. Because I do think that a good advisor can be a great partner in your world, in your financial sphere. Um, the mistake to many physicians, especially women physicians, make is we think we're too busy, we delegate the same way, we delegate our lawn, like taking or whatever you're like, I don't want anything to do with. But our money is different because every single day we're making decisions that have direct and indirect consequences based on our finances. So if you're not at the pulse of your finances, if you don't know what's going on, you're making split decisions, multiple decisions every day, that if you're not careful, um, you would be making decisions without enough data. If you are not in the data yourself. So that's why, even if you have an advisor, I highly, highly recommend that you are knowledgeable about what is going on in your finances. Many women that come into the wealth village at the beginning, we have people that have been there for one year, two years, three years, and all of that. But many times when people are starting out, they're coming in from a place of like, oh, I may I have an advisor. Not everyone does, many do, because advisors usually try to, for lack of a better term, they they target people during their trainings towards the end of their training. So most fellows, most residents may think that having an advisor is the thing you do when you're trying to put on your big girl pants. That's what I thought, right? I was like, okay, it's time to adult, it's time to adult, it's time to adult with money, it's time to adult. So, what did I do? I got an advisor, and there was nothing bad in that. But the moment I started learning even the basics about money, I started to question some of the things that they were recommending. I realized that, you know, there are times when advisors are recommending products that may be of benefit to some people, but they're recommending it to the wrong people. There is no reason why a physician that has like multiple six figures in debt does not know how they're gonna pay off their debt, does not have anything in retirement account, when the first thing that's been recommended is like whole life. Like that should not be happening. That is a product that could be a value to a small subset of people, but it is not a value to most physicians. So for me, if your financial advisor is like from the get-go, you're starting out and all they're doing is like peppering you about whole life, literally, that's their way of saying I care more about my pocket than your pocket. Many, some people may disagree, but that's been my experience. And so for me, when I started learning about finances, I started to realize that okay, I how is this person getting paid? Right? What percentage are they getting paid? Do I pay that percentage when the economy is good? Do I pay that economy when pay that when the economy is bad? And I believe everybody should get paid for the value that they give, but that is the key. It has to be the value that they give. If someone is not giving value, why are you paying them? And yes, I am a coach. People pay me to get learn from me, people pay me to get coached by me. So I am very pro people getting paid. I believe that money is a it's a way of saying thank you. But thank you for what? Thank you for doing nothing, right? So if you're paying someone who is doing the same thing as your money could do it when if it's passively invested in the stock market, why or why are you paying all of that money? Right. And so again, that's my experience and that's many people's experiences. The other thing that I've found to be true is that when women physicians start learning about money, they understand that number one, it's not even that hard to do. It's not hard. It's actually not. It's not that hard at all. It's easier, I should say it's simpler than every renal pathway you've ever learned. And literally, one of the things that I teach women physicians is how to manage their finances in one hour a week. One hour a week can save you a lot of money. And what I find is that there are different pay structures that different advisors charge. Some will pay you uh assets under management, some will pay flat fee. I'm a better, I'm a fan of flat fee. I want to know how much I'm paying. Number one is I want to know how much I'm paying, flat fee. I want to make sure that the decisions that you're making is of benefit for me and not primarily of number one benefit for you. I have had conversations with people that wanted to join the money school or the wealth village, and I'm like, I don't think we're the right fit for you. I think this is what you need, and I will send them to what they need. I'm not telling you that so that I can be like, oh, Dow at Holy. No, none of that. But I'm just telling you the truth. So if they paid me, yes, it would be, I would be getting paid, but is that actually helping them? Is that actually serving them? Will I be able to stand and with authenticity say, like, I, you know, I want to be honest too, right? Because I'm accountable to God in the decisions that I make. So that's the question because ultimately, if someone is getting paid to refer you, and that's the only reason why they're choosing this product, then that system is flawed. That system is flawed. And again, I'm seeing that as someone that partners with people. We've had sponsors, um, people that have organizations or companies that have sponsored our event that would do wealthy you life. So I'm not against like commission, I've been affiliate. But there has to be a principle. I don't affiliate for something that I have not been referring to. Usually when I'm affiliating for things, it's because I've been recommending it. I'm like, wait a minute, I've been telling everybody and the mama about this. Let me be an affiliate for it. And I believe that's how it should be. If I'm getting a partner, I'm looking at like what resources am I already using in my own life? What am I already paying for? And I'm like, hey, I want more women to be able to benefit from this, right? Um, so there's nothing wrong in getting paid to refer, but that cannot be the number one thing. So if an advisor is referring you to products, to funds, because they get a commission from it, that is a flood system. And I don't like the idea that an advisor is getting paid 1.5% of assets under management, even when the economy is not doing good. I want them to get paid. That's why I like flat. Let me know what I'm paying from the get-go, as opposed to percentage under of assets under management. And some of you guys are paying 1.5% and you don't even know it. That means that for every million dollars that your advisor is managing, they are getting 15 grand for it. Again, nothing bad in the amount that they're getting paid, but are you getting value for it? The way that I think about it is if someone is investing in themselves through me, through our coaching programs, I'm in my mind, to be honest, and this is like my own parameter, I'm looking at the ROI they would get if they invested in the stock market. And I want every woman physician that invests inside of the money school through Money FeedMD in themselves, I want them to get an ROI that is at least 10%. Because that for me is value, right? And I we've been able to do that. I remember there was a woman physician who on a, I was interviewing her like on a seminar that I was doing. She was there, she raised her hand, and I was like, have you gotten any ROI from what were you doing here? And at that point, she was in our community for like less than a year or so. And I think she said she had, was it, it wasn't 10%. It was, I think she said she had like 4x what she invested. And what you mean by 4x, that's like 400%. So what that means is if you know, for example, when she joined the tuition for joining the wealth village was$10,000 a year. So at that point, she was saying that she had gotten like 40, she had made like at least 40k. And that was even in that moment. She has gone on to renew. Now, I believe it's her second year, she's still getting more ROI. And I know that with time, the ROI she's getting is only going to compound, right? So that's the way that I think about value. Yes, not all value can be financially measured. For example, if you're investing in your marriage, you're investing in like your mindset, your your in therapy, in a psychiatrist, in a marriage coach, in marriage counseling, you're getting your kids like uh a tutor. Like there is there is no immediate ROI that you can measure in terms of numbers, but those things do matter significantly because it affects your wellness, it affects your sense of wealth. Um, so yes, not every ROI can be monetarily managed or calculated, but there has to be an ROI that's worth that for you. Imagine if you're someone that, like, okay, this is a great example. You just have a newborn that is not sleeping at night because that's when you're born too. And now you're investing in having like a night nurse that can help you watch the kid, feed the baby so that you can get some sleep before you go to work the next day. Like, what's the ROI on that? It's hard to put a dollar amount, but you know that you're gonna get return on the investment, your rest, your peace, the fight that you're not having, the divorce you're not gonna have, that's gonna cost you more money, the patience you're not gonna yell at because now you're like grounded, right? There is ROI that's not always measurable. And I'm trying to make this episode as fair as possible, right? Because again, we should not be demonizing a whole field. We should not be saying it's wrong to get paid, but it has to be preceded with value. Sometimes that can be measured numerically, but other times it cannot be. So essentially, what value is your advisor adding to your life? So the questions that I like to ask is number one is how is your advisor getting paid? Many people don't know that. You want to know. You want to know. Number two is what value are you getting in return for this? There is data that shows that if you invested in a born for fun, boglehead, um, non-active investment like that, that the ROI, excuse me, the return that you get on that is not less in most times than if you actually were paying a human to like, you know, guess about what's going on in the stock market, right? And so, in that regard, if I can invest in the stock market, automate it without high fees, because if I do it directly through Fidelity, through Vanguard and whatever, whatever, the fees may be low. And now I'm not paying that 15 grand a year for the same work, and I'm emphasizing for the same work because if your advisor is adding additional value, then that's something you want to understand, and then you cannot make the decision of whether it's worth what you're paying them or not. I will say for most people, and for what I've seen them do, for most people, it is not worth it. I'm just gonna be honest with you. But again, there's some that will be. If your um your assets get complicated and all of that, I do want to add that there are times when advisors can be helpful, and I will tell you how I think that is. I think for if you listen to this podcast, you're a woman, physician, or a woman that wants to learn more, you want to educate yourself, you want to be empowered, you're interested in learning. And maybe you've read my book, Dawn with Broke. Um, if you haven't, go read it. Literally takes you to the journey of how I went from negative 200k to seven figures. And if you follow that path, for most people, just if you follow the path, it will give you probably give you the results. I cannot guarantee anything, of course, but you will get value from reading the book. So you've probably read the book. If you haven't yet, go read the book. Some of you guys, you may be, you may want someone to teach you, and that's why we created a program called Six to Seven, which literally walks you through weekly with videos that are beautiful, engaging, fun, short, perfect for busy women physicians, and how you can take your six-figure income to seven-figure net worth using like simple automation. And when I say automation, I'm not talking about like crazy AI. I've been teaching this before AI became like crazy, but it's like simple automation you can do starting today. You can check out moneyfinangy.com forward slash sixto seven, like number six, like that, to seven. We'll make sure the link is in the show notes so that you can check it out. But those are things that you can do to educate yourself, to empower yourself. However, even with that, you may still decide that you want an advisor. And I will tell you how I've used an advisor for many years. I was like, I will I will get an advisor and just have them look at my investment portfolio. Is it diversified enough? Are there any weak spots? Give me their advice or suggestion, and then based on that, I can decide what I want to do together, right? I'm the CEO, they're part of my board members potentially. And then a couple of years ago, I realized, I think it was last year or the year before, um, I use Fidelity for a lot of my investments in the stock market. And I realized that one of the strengths that Fidelity has is they have a lot of educational content as well. And I met with one of their advisors that they had, I talked with them, and this is what I do, y'all. This is literally my job. My job is to sniff out good people in the world. Ain't nobody gonna be perfect but decent people in the world. And so many times people don't know that I have a community of the wealth village for women physicians, the money school, and the things we do. Many people don't know that. Um, and so many times I'm having conversations like a consumer, but I'm actually kind of interviewing them, to be honest with you. So I met this person on Zoom, I talked with her, I interviewed her for probably an hour. She probably thought I was crazy, but whatever, I don't care. I'm there to like sit out with people. And over the last year or so, I've actually referred many people to her. And yes, there they have a vested interest. Their interest is they want people to keep their money with fidelity, but there's nothing wrong with that as long as they're doing a good job. They don't force you to manage for you, they can partner with you and be your educational partner, and I've found that to be very helpful. And women in that are part of the world village, we've connected them and they found really they've found a lot of value from that. And so, if you are someone that you're you're getting more knowledge, you're now feeling more comfortable, and you want someone to lay their eyes on your numbers, that is what I believe an advisor can do. Unfortunately, most advisors are not knowledgeable about things outside of the stock market. There's some that are, not all. Um, and that's something that you need to keep in mind. Like, make sure that if you're trying to pick an advisor, you pick the right person. If you are, the fees have to be transparent, how they get paid, any commission, all of that. Is there any contract or commitment? All of that needs to be very, very clear from the get-go. But if you're someone like many of the women that in my world that are building wealth and creating freedom, you want to ask them like, are they like, what do they know? Like, do their clients invest outside of the stock market? Uh, how do they like what's their role in that? And there's some advisors that are like they have their pulse on you know properties and strategies and people they'll refer you to, that they've worked with, that they've trusted. Again, ask and be just ask how do you get paid? That's just as simple as that. That way, it's not so that you can judge people, but it's so that you can decide how much weight to give into their recommendation. Okay, so if you're not someone that has decided that, okay, Latifat, I get it, that's helpful. I now know like how an advisor can be helpful and all of that. And you're like, but I don't think I need an advisor. I'm gonna just give you a cheap sleep, sleep, whatever, cheat, shit, on how to find your advisor. And this is it, it's pretty simple. Number one is you don't need official permission from your advisor to leave. And for many physicians, women physicians that have been groomed to people please, that's one of the issues we have. We're like, oh my god, we don't want to disappoint. What's gonna happen? Blah blah blah. Like, that's okay. This is business. They understand that this comes with business. Most advisors are salespeople as well. This is part of the territory, they'll be fine, they'll survive, and you'll be fine as well. I have had experiences where people have had conversations because now they're more educated and they're having conversations with their advisors, and their advisors really like flips on them and becomes like I've had someone literally say that an advisor was like, you want to manage it yourself, you can't like that, right? And I think a better advisor would have said, Well, you know, if you're interested in managing yourself, I'm happy to walk you through and come up with a stepwise plan of like, why don't we de-escalate over this time? Like they can, like that's someone that actually cares about you and cares about your business. Um, but if you're like, okay, I'm done, we want to switch, this is what you're going to. Number one is you want to make sure that you have the skills, you have the tools on how you want to manage it, or you're transferring to someone else. You can talk to the person you're transferring to, which could be Fidelity, could be Vanguard, could be another advisor, and you could say, you know, you can let them know this is what this other person is investing in. Can we transfer in kind? Right? Which means you can move things over without changing anything. You can, when I move from my advisor, I literally sat down on the phone with Fidelity and I they walked me through like step by step how to do that migration. I do think it's kind to let your prior advisor know. And the way you do that is just send an email. An email like, hey, thank you so much for your work over the last couple of years. It really has been a pleasure uh working with you. Um, for various reasons, I've decided to move my investments in a different direction. Uh, it's not personal. Um, thank you very much. They will be in touch with you about the transfer process, and I just wanted to make sure that you're not shocked when you get the alert. I appreciate your help during this transition. Pull stop, signed love, Dr. Latifat, or your name, right? That's it. Literally, that's it. An email, but make sure that you have a plan. For a lot of women in our wealth village, they know that they're supported. Um, again, you can use an advisor, just make sure that you know exactly what they're doing. Make sure that you're doing more than maybe one time a year and then getting charged, you know, 1.5% of assets under management. Um, like, how are they compared with the SP 500? Like, how is the return compared to that? Right? Again, there has to be value that's been added. Value has to be added. Payment is what you get in exchange for value. And if someone is not adding value, you have my permission to say goodbye. I hope this episode has been helpful. If I can be of support, reach out, dr. Latifat at moneyfitmd.com. Go in the show notes, you can learn more about our programs and how we're serving women physicians and helping them create more wealth, more freedom, more money, and life on their terms. See you in the next episode. Goodbye.