Boring. We all know it when we see it — and when we feel it.
Sometimes, a little calm is welcome. But for most of us, especially in our work at the Financialoscopy team, what we really crave is engagement.
Engagement means feeling like you are part of something — not just part of a “system” (a word that already sounds boring), but a place where people are paying attention to you and your goals. Our focus is on making sure you achieve as much as possible with the resources you have. And we don’t mind getting creative to keep things interesting.
Sometimes that creativity comes in the form of something like my small box of googly eyes. Yes, googly eyes. I’ve been known to send a handwritten note to a client with a pair attached, just to say, it was nice to ? ‘see’ you. If it’s been a while, I’ll still send the note to say, I haven’t ? ‘seen’ you in a while.
Confetti is another favorite. When there’s a milestone to celebrate, we break out the poppers. Our office manager, who ordered the confetti in the first place, luckily doesn’t mind cleaning it up afterward. She knows celebration is part of who we are. This is just another day in the office.
And in our large conference room — or “The Lab” — we have a disco ball hanging from the ceiling. It’s there for the moments that truly deserve it, like when someone has the freedom to truly transition from working to retirement. That’s not just a change in life stage. It’s the freedom of never having to clock in again, and we think that’s worth a little sparkle.
It’s not just clients we keep engaged. Recently, I did a continuing education course on Zoom. I could have chosen the standard pre-recorded sessions — the ones with the same material that I’ve heard year after year in my 38 years in the industry. They’re filled with regulatory and tax updates, important but often painfully dull. Instead, I joined an interactive session, where the instructor would often look to me for practical application of the information, and yes, maybe even a little fun.
That’s the same approach we take with clients. We never want meetings to be “the same old thing.” We want them to be engaging, informative and yes, sometimes entertaining. Because if you’re not engaged with what we’re sharing — and we’re not engaged with what you’re telling us — no one’s getting the most out of the conversation.
We listen closely to make sure we’re moving in the right direction together. If your circumstances change, we want to know so we can pivot and adjust our approach. It’s about more than numbers, though of course we review them thoroughly before you walk through the door. It’s about making the process personal, energizing and worth looking forward to.
That might mean confetti. It might mean the disco ball. Or it might just mean a handwritten note to say, “We appreciate you,” because we truly do.
We know we’re not like every other firm. And if you’ve experienced that difference, we hope you won’t keep it to yourself. Don’t let your friends, family or colleagues have the fear of missing out — FOMO — on an experience that’s engaging, thoughtful and even a little bit fun.
After all, life’s too short to be boring.
