Eight Principles To Attract The Clients You Want
We’ve all seen the headlines and ads claiming there is a secret to success, top tips promising they will grow your business and ensure financial gain. But nine times out of 10, these promises are empty gimmicks, or they involve more effort than they’re worth. In order to see any real results, you must buy a product or service, add more funds to your already tight budget, grow your team or learn a new skill. But what if you could grow your business without buying anything at all? In fact, what if you already had all the tools you needed to succeed? Every agent and advisor already possess the skills they need to be successful. It’s just a matter of looking within. In business, we tend to operate from the analytical part of our minds, not our hearts. If more agents and advisors would lead from their hearts, their businesses could change dramatically. If you’re doing the right things for the right reasons, the money will follow. Our motivation should stem from how we can positively impact others, be the best versions of ourselves and focus on serving our clients. So where do you start? These eight principles have transformed my personal life and my business, and I recommend them to all agents and advisors seeking more fulfillment in business. 1) Stay grounded First and foremost, it’s important to stay centered and grounded. In business, challenging issues arise that can trigger an emotional response. A difficult client, a stressful meeting, an impending deadline — all of these are examples of stressful situations agents and advisors face regularly. When an emotional reaction starts to arise, it can be difficult to get past it and see the situation for what it really is. Staying grounded and having a practice that helps you maintain a level of calmness allows you to not only diffuse the feelings of the moment, but it also allows you to remain levelheaded to make sound decisions and offer solid advice for your clients. A few simple ways to stay grounded? Slow down. Take deep breaths. Get some fresh air. Meditate. Exercise. These practices take only a few minutes but make a world of difference. 2) Practice a growth mindset Sometimes it’s all about perspective. Do you focus on the negatives more than the positives? If you could achieve anything, what would it be? Start focusing on what could be possible for your business rather than dwelling on the obstacles and setbacks. Practicing a growth mindset shifts the focus from scarcity to abundance. When you focus on immediate gain all the time, other possibilities may go past you unnoticed. Instead, look forward to what you want to achieve, and envision the clients you’d like to attract — even if it doesn’t seem possible right now. Leaders who have an abundance mindset focus on future possibilities and see everything as an opportunity. Refuse to settle for mediocrity. It is important to stay present and be able to visualize and feel as though you already have achieved your desired outcome. Read the full article here.
Stephani Lucas, Founder of The Annuity Consultants, Is Transforming the Insurance/Financial Industry
For decades, the insurance and financial planning industries have been pegged as stuffy and antiquated, or even worse, manipulative and calculating. When Stephani Lucas founded The Annuity Consultants more than a decade ago, she vowed to do things differently. Nearly 20 years ago, Stephani was putting herself through college and working at a real estate company when one of her clients recruited her to join their FMO (Field Marketing Organization) that specialized in wholesale annuities in the independent insurance channel. Although she enjoyed the work, she felt something was missing. So after a brief period, she left the company and posted her resume online, assuming that her career in the insurance industry had come to an end. However, the universe had other plans as is often the case, and her resume caught the eye of another FMO. She was hired by this new company, and over the next few years, she continued to hone her skills and fell in love with the marketing aspect of the insurance world. By 2008, she had graduated with a dual degree in International Business and Marketing, but the company she worked for was tanking along with so many others in the recession. Stephani decided to move on, and in 2010 she took a bold leap. She set out on her own and founded The Annuity Consultants. Prior to founding her own company, Stephani had worked in nearly every aspect of the business and had experienced a front-row seat to all the inefficiencies that plagued the industry. With all this knowledge of how not to do things, she approached The Annuity Consultants with a fresh perspective, and with the help of technology and social media, she set out to build something spectacular. Over the next 9 years, Stephani grew the business and experienced a series of highs and lows in her personal life that challenged, strengthened, and shaped her. Through the process of getting sober in 2013 and all of her deep inner work, she also found her passion for this industry. It was while traveling through Bali in 2019 that she was struck with the realization she wanted to build something that would deeply, positively impact people in the insurance and financial industry. “I realized how many advisors approached insurance in the financial planning process from entirely the wrong way,” she explains. “Our motivation should stem from the ways we can positively impact others, be the best versions of ourselves, and do what we were put here to do.” Her 8-part Heart Centered Planning Series was born out of this inspiration. The series was created to help agents and advisors realign with their personal purpose and learn to love themselves, so that they can pour out the same love and compassion into the world and the people they work with on a daily basis. In her words, it’s all about “changing the industry from the inside out.” “When you have a full tank, you can give so much more to the other people in your life,” says Stephani. “This includes friends, family, and the clients you work with.” This series is especially relevant and needed now that the new DOL Fiduciary Rule has been finalized and will be rolled out in early 2021. . Regulations and suitability has plagued the industry, taking annuity applications from 1.5 pages to over 40 pages in the last two decades. This is due to agents and advisors doing business in a way that isn’t in their clients’ best interest. It’s unfortunate these changes are happening in the industry, but it’s all the more reason for Stephani to work diligently on spreading the word about the Heart Centered Planning series. The free 8-part series provides agents and advisors with a holistic approach to living their lives and doing business. They start by explaining the “Importance Of Being Grounded.” According to Stephani, “This is the foundation of it all; it’s all about community. We are all in this together. We need each other; we have to start by understanding why it’s important to do our own inner work.” From here, agents and advisors are lead through guides 2 and 3, where they learn how to “Create An Abundance Mindset” and “Nourish Your Personal Power.” The fourth guide, and perhaps the most related to the main theme of the series, addresses the impact of “Leading With Your Heart.” Stephani explains, “In business, we operate within the analytical part of our mind, not our hearts. If more people could come from the heart, the business could change. If you’re doing the right things for the right reasons, the money will follow.” The fifth guide encourages agents and advisors to “Speak Your Truth.” Stephani’s understanding of it is that, “This makes a huge difference in your business, even if it means having a difficult conversation, you’re being authentic to yourself, and that will attract the right kind of people.” Guides 6-8 teach clients on these topics: “Live Your Vision,” “Live Your Purpose,” and “Building Community.” Each guide includes a personal testimonial from a featured agent or advisor who has implemented the principles into their life and business. In addition to the guides themselves, the series also includes webinars with special guest speakers who share the many ways this shift in mindset has changed their lives. No matter what the years ahead hold for the financial industry, one thing is for certain: Stephani Lucas is dedicated to helping transform it for the better.
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 8: Building Community
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Building Community Heart Centered Planning | Guide Eight While this is the final guide in the Heart Centered Planning series, it is not the end of the conversation. If there is one lesson that has become increasingly clear throughout my career, it is this: meaningful success is rarely built alone. Over the course of this series, we’ve explored grounding, authenticity, personal power, leading with your heart, speaking your truth, living your vision, and discovering your purpose. Each of these principles matters. But none of them reach their full potential without community. The advisors who build lasting businesses rarely do it in isolation. They intentionally surround themselves with people who challenge their thinking, expand their perspective, and encourage them to continue growing—both personally and professionally. Community isn’t built by collecting contacts or attending more networking events. It’s built by cultivating meaningful relationships grounded in trust, generosity, and shared values. The right community creates space for honest conversations, fresh perspectives, and mutual support. It reminds us that leadership isn’t about having all the answers. It’s about being willing to learn, contribute, and grow alongside others. Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of working with extraordinary advisors across the country. While every practice is different, the most fulfilled and successful professionals share one common characteristic: they never stop investing in relationships. Because relationships are what sustain us. They strengthen our businesses, enrich our lives, and often become the catalyst for opportunities we could never have created on our own. Guide Eight is an invitation to be intentional about the community you’re building around you. Not the biggest community. Not the loudest community. The right community. The one that encourages you to lead with integrity, pursue meaningful work, and become more of who you’re meant to be. Because success is more rewarding when it is shared, and the most meaningful journeys are rarely walked alone. I hope the Heart Centered Planning series has encouraged you to approach your business—and your life—with greater intention, authenticity, and purpose. Thank you for allowing me to be part of your journey. Access the complimentary guide below and continue the conversation. Season One Discussion Featuring Aaron Houghton, creator of the Founders First Systems Watch the webinar Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 7: Live Your Purpose
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Live Your Purpose Heart Centered Planning | Guide Seven Purpose is one of those words that gets used often, yet rarely explored deeply. It’s easy to mistake purpose for a career, a title, or a milestone. We begin to believe that once we achieve enough, earn enough, or accomplish enough, purpose will naturally follow. In my experience, the opposite is true. Purpose isn’t something we arrive at. It’s something we choose to live each day. Throughout my career, I’ve met advisors from every stage of business. Some managed large practices. Others were just beginning. What separated the most fulfilled professionals wasn’t the size of their firm or the assets they managed. It was the clarity with which they understood why they did the work in the first place. Purpose has a way of bringing everything else into focus. It shapes the decisions we make, the clients we choose to serve, the relationships we invest in, and the legacy we hope to leave behind. When your work is aligned with your values, success becomes more than a destination. It becomes a natural expression of who you are. Living your purpose doesn’t mean every day is easy. It doesn’t remove challenges or uncertainty. What it does provide is something far more valuable—a reason to keep moving forward with intention, even when the path isn’t perfectly clear. I’ve come to believe that meaningful businesses are built the same way meaningful lives are built: one intentional decision at a time. Guide Seven is an invitation to pause long enough to reconnect with what first inspired you to do this work. Not because purpose changes. But because life has a way of pulling our attention toward urgency instead of significance. When we reconnect with our purpose, we often rediscover the clarity, energy, and conviction that first set us on this path. Because the most meaningful measure of success isn’t simply what we’ve built. It’s who we’ve become while building it. I hope this guide encourages you to reflect on the work you’re creating, the lives you’re impacting, and the purpose that continues to guide both. Watch the discussion below and access the complimentary guide to continue the conversation. Season One Discussion Featuring Amy McIlwain Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 6: Live Your Vision
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Live Your Vision Guide Six In an industry often focused on production, constant movement, and external expectations, it can be easy to lose connection with the deeper vision guiding your work and life. This guide explores what it truly means to live your vision — not simply through goals or business strategies, but through clarity, intentional leadership, and aligned decision-making. Vision requires more than ambition. It asks for awareness, discernment, and the courage to move toward what feels meaningful, even when the full path is not yet visible. The strongest advisors are often those who create businesses that reflect not only what they do, but how they want to live, lead, and serve others over time. Living your vision creates greater alignment between personal values, professional success, and long-term fulfillment. It allows advisors to build with greater intention while remaining connected to what matters most. This installment of the Heart Centered Planning series explores how clarity, purpose, and aligned action can support a more meaningful approach to business and life. Watch the discussion below and access the complimentary guide to continue the conversation. Season One Discussion Featuring Stephani Lucas, Founder & CEO of The Annuity Consultants Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 5: Speak Your Truth
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Speak Your Truth Guide Five In an industry shaped by expectations, performance, and constant noise, it can be difficult to communicate openly while remaining fully aligned with who you are. This guide explores the importance of speaking your truth — not as reaction or resistance, but as a grounded expression of clarity, integrity, and authentic leadership. The strongest advisors are not simply those with the loudest voice. They are the ones who communicate with honesty, confidence, and the willingness to lead in a way that reflects their values. Speaking your truth creates stronger relationships, deeper trust, and a business that feels more sustainable over time. It allows advisors to show up more authentically in their client conversations, leadership, marketing, and everyday decision-making. This installment of the Heart Centered Planning series explores how aligned self-expression can support both personal fulfillment and professional success. Watch the discussion below and access the complimentary guide to continue the conversation. Season One Discussion Featuring Carol Campos Watch the webinar: Season Two Discussion Featuring Robin Hanover Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 4: Leading With Your Heart
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Leading With Your Heart Guide Four In an industry often driven by pressure, performance, and constant demands, it can be easy to lose connection with the human side of leadership. This guide explores what it truly means to lead from the heart — not as emotion without structure, but as a more intentional way of building trust, communicating clearly, and creating meaningful relationships with clients and colleagues alike. The strongest advisors understand that leadership is not built through production alone. It is built through presence, integrity, empathy, and the ability to remain grounded while supporting others through important financial decisions. Leading with your heart does not weaken your business. It strengthens the way people experience working with you. Watch the discussion below and access the complimentary guide to explore how heart-centered leadership can support more meaningful success in both business and life. Season One Discussion Featuring Whitney Yarnall Watch the webinar: Season Two Discussion Featuring Scott Robinson Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 3: Nourish Your Personal Power
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Nourish Your Personal Power Guide Three Personal power is not about ego, performance, or external validation. It comes from clarity, self-awareness, confidence, and the ability to lead from a place that feels authentic and aligned. In the insurance and financial services industry, advisors are often taught to follow rigid expectations around success, communication, and growth. Over time, this can create disconnection from the very qualities that build meaningful trust and lasting relationships. This guide explores how personal power influences leadership, visibility, communication, and the way advisors show up within both business and life. When advisors operate from authenticity and a strong sense of self, they create deeper connections, more intentional businesses, and a more sustainable relationship with success. The Heart Centered Planning series was created to support advisors seeking to build successful businesses without abandoning themselves in the process. By applying these principles, advisors can cultivate greater confidence, clearer messaging, stronger client relationships, and a business that reflects who they truly are. Season One Discussion Featuring Bradford Scott Walton Watch the webinar: Season Two Discussion Featuring Brittany Anderson and Bryan Sweet Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 2: Create an Abundance Mindset
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Create an Abundance Mindset Guide Two Abundance is not simply about financial growth — it is about approaching business and life from a place of clarity, possibility, confidence, and intentional leadership. In the insurance and financial services industry, advisors are often conditioned to operate from pressure, scarcity, and constant comparison. An abundance mindset creates space for more meaningful relationships, sustainable growth, and a healthier relationship with success. This guide explores how mindset influences leadership, decision making, client relationships, and the long-term vision we create for both our businesses and our lives. The Heart Centered Planning series was created to support advisors seeking to build successful businesses without abandoning themselves in the process. By applying these principles, advisors can cultivate greater alignment, stronger client trust, and a more intentional approach to growth and fulfillment. Season One Discussion Featuring Jennifer Spor Watch the webinar: Season Two Discussion Featuring Ellen Tyler Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide:
HEART CENTERED PLANNING Guide 1: The Importance of Being Grounded
HEART CENTERED PLANNING The Importance of Being Grounded Guide One It is time we change the public’s perception of the insurance and financial services industry. True leadership begins from within. When advisors operate from clarity, balance, and intention, they create deeper trust and more meaningful outcomes for the people they serve. This guide explores the importance of being grounded — not only in business, but in the way we lead, make decisions, build relationships, and navigate growth over time. In an industry often driven by pressure, production, and constant performance, grounding creates space for greater clarity, sustainability, and intentional success. The Heart Centered Planning series was created to support advisors seeking to build meaningful businesses without abandoning themselves in the process. By applying these principles, advisors can cultivate stronger client relationships, more aligned leadership, and a business that supports both professional success and personal fulfillment. Season One Discussion Featuring Hass Sadeghi Watch the webinar: Season Two Discussion Featuring Raj Jana Watch the webinar: Access The Complimentary Guide Fill out the form below to access the complimentary guide: