Not everyone needs a financial advisor. Do you?

Hiring a financial advisor is a big decision, and there are plenty of misconceptions that can make investors hesitant to take that step. Some people believe they have to hand over control of all their assets, commit to a long-term relationship, or pay someone to recommend the same investments they could choose themselves. Others question whether professional investment management is worth the cost at all.

After 21 years of working in wealth management, I’ve encountered many of these misconceptions firsthand. I’d like to address five of the most common myths about hiring a financial advisor and explain how I approach these issues at my firm.

My goal isn’t to convince everyone they need a financial advisor. It’s to help you make an informed decision about whether working with one is right for you.

Myth #1: You Have to Let Them Manage All of Your Assets.

Not at all.

I’ve had clients initially withhold certain assets because they didn’t want to pay management fees on everything they own. I understand that perspective, and I’ve learned to address it upfront. If you meet my account minimum, you are under no obligation to place all of your assets under my management.

I respect your decision to keep assets elsewhere, and I won’t pressure you to change your mind. I approach this as a business relationship built on mutual respect, not an opportunity to gain control over every dollar you own.

That said, in order to do the job you’re hiring me to do, it’s extremely helpful for me to understand your overall financial picture, including assets I don’t manage. The more I know about your financial circumstances, the better recommendations I can make regarding the assets I do manage.

For example, if your goal is to limit market exposure but most of your other investments are heavily invested in the stock market, that information matters. I need to understand your overall exposure before determining an appropriate investment strategy for the portion of your portfolio I oversee.

My advice: Be as transparent as you’re comfortable being. The more accurate the information I have, the better equipped I am to serve your interests. Ultimately, you’re hiring me because you want professional guidance and, in many cases, an objective perspective that can help you make better financial decisions.

Don’t worry if your financial picture changes over time, or if your estimate of your net worth becomes more accurate as we get to know each other. I understand that financial information is personal, and I respect your right to privacy.

I can’t speak for every advisor, but if you are paying for my advice, that advice can include assets I don’t manage. I have a background in real estate investing, and while I don’t manage real estate investments, I help my clients make decisions on theirs. I can help you make informed choices inside your 401(K) while it’s not under my supervision. You get the picture.

My job is to make managing this part of your life easier, not more complicated. I’m not your boss, and this isn’t a relationship where you have to justify every financial decision to me.

Do your best to give me the big picture, and I’ll do my best to take care of the details.

Myth #2: You Have to Stay With Them.

Absolutely not. If you’re unhappy with me, or any other financial advisor or paid service provider, I encourage you to make a change.

Don’t continue paying for a service that you don’t believe is worth the cost. Period.

There are nearly 300,000 financial advisors in the United States. There is no reason to believe that every advisor is the right fit for every investor. You should find someone whose philosophy, services, communication style, and fees align with your expectations. And if you decide you don’t need an advisor at all, that’s perfectly acceptable, too.

My goal is to earn your business continuously, not lock you into it.

I want you to stay because you believe the value I provide justifies the cost. If I don’t deliver that value, you’re free to find someone who does—or manage your finances independently.

Myth #3: They’re All the Same.

It’s true that many financial advisors offer similar investment products, mutual funds, and prepackaged portfolio strategies. I can offer many of those same investments to my clients, too.

But I believe there’s a meaningful difference between simply selecting investments from an existing menu and developing an investment strategy based on independent research.

I have spent 28 years studying investments and financial markets. Over that time, I’ve developed a proprietary framework for fundamental stock analysis that I use to construct portfolio models exclusive to my firm.

The stocks themselves aren’t exclusive. You can purchase them through virtually any brokerage. What is unique is the research and data-driven methodology we use to identify the companies we believe offer the most attractive growth potential relative to their risk.

Our framework evaluates a company’s fundamental characteristics, valuation, and potential growth trajectory using a formula I’ve developed and refined over many years. I’ve personally used this methodology to manage my own portfolio for more than a decade.

I built my firm, in part, to make the results of that research available to investors like you.

That doesn’t mean you have to own one of our proprietary portfolios. In fact, there are situations where I would recommend against making a change. For example, selling an existing portfolio that is already serving you well could trigger unnecessary capital gains taxes. If the potential benefit of switching doesn’t justify the tax consequences, keeping the portfolio you have may be the smarter decision. I can manage your existing portfolio as is and still apply our analysis to ensure your holdings are of quality.

As a fiduciary, my responsibility is to put your interests first. I have no financial incentive to recommend our proprietary models over other investment options. I recommend them because I believe in the research behind them and have confidence in the methodology.

Myth #4: It’s Cheaper to Do It Yourself.

It certainly can be cheaper to manage your own investments. But lower fees don’t necessarily translate into better financial outcomes.

The value of a qualified financial advisor extends beyond investment selection. Good advice can help you make more informed decisions about financial planning, tax strategies, portfolio management, and perhaps most importantly, investor behavior. This ties back into our research. Understanding exactly why you’re a shareholder in a company makes it easier to remain a shareholder when markets become turbulent.

Emotional decisions, poor timing, excessive trading, and a lack of discipline can be costly. An experienced advisor can help you avoid mistakes that may have a much greater financial impact than the advisory fees you pay.

Consider this: If an investor manages their own portfolio to save money but consistently underperforms an investor who receives professional guidance, the money saved on fees may be insignificant compared to the cost of those investment decisions.

The real question isn’t whether you can manage your own money for less. It’s whether doing so will produce a better financial outcome.

Myth #5: Warren Buffett Says You Should Just Buy Index Funds and Skip the Financial Advisor.

Ok Warren Buffett did say that, and it’s thrown in my face constantly, but Warren Buffett is capable of mistakes, and he’ll tell you that himself. Apple was once his most preferred stock, and he let his position in it swell to over 40% of his portfolio at one time, but he didn’t start buying it until 2016. Apple stock generated a 2300% total return with dividends reinvested over the decade from 2005 -2015, before he ever bought his first share of it. He admits that he bought it too late and sold most of it too early. No one is right all of the time.

Buffett has been a strong advocate of low-cost index funds for investors who don’t have the knowledge, time, or desire to analyze individual businesses and make their own investment decisions.

He has also claimed that much of the financial services industry charges investors for advice and investment products without necessarily delivering meaningful value.

I agree with the underlying principle: If you don’t know how to evaluate individual stocks, a low-cost index fund can be a sensible investment choice. And if an advisor can’t provide meaningful value beyond what an investor can accomplish independently, it’s fair to question the expense.

But my investment philosophy is different. I don’t rely on mutual funds or index funds to build portfolios. I conduct fundamental stock research and construct portfolios of individual companies based on my own fundamental analysis, just like Warren Buffett does.

My investment philosophy is simple: There are stocks in index funds that aren’t worth owning, based on their companies’ fundamental data and share price valuation. We identify which stocks those are, and we don’t own them.

I have no interest in making investing more complicated than it needs to be. My objective is to identify better investment opportunities, avoid those we believe offer an unfavorable risk-reward proposition, and build portfolios designed to produce better long-term outcomes.

A recent study conducted by Northwestern Mutual found that 74% of American millionaires work with a financial advisor. I’m not saying they’re millionaires because they consult with professionals; I’m saying Warren Buffett is only one man, and though he’s a very smart man, over 17 million American millionaires disagree with him, and some of them are probably pretty smart too.