Greetings, Carl Richards here. 

Join the 350+ other Real Financial Professionals in The Membership, and together we'll help each other become better humans.

There are a bunch of programs out there for financial advisors and planners to get better at the work they do. There are coaching services, mastermind groups, seminars, conferences, and training.

This is the only group that focuses on helping you become a better human.

Each month, I get on a call with Members from around the world to discuss a topic that affects us all as Real Financial Professionals.

 I usually invite a guest to join us.

• I talked with James Clear about how to apply his work on habits to ourselves and our clients.

• I talked with Seth Godin about how financial professionals should position themselves in the market.

• I talked with Jennifer Garvey Berger about navigating complexity and making decisions in the face of uncertainty. 

• I talked with Morgan Housel about creating creative content and doing public work.

• And many others you may not have even heard of that contributed to some of the most valuable time we've spent together.

Who am I going to talk to next? You'll have to join to find out.

I also occasionally lead workshops as the monthly meeting where we've covered topics like One-Page Financial Plans, Statement of Financial Purpose, First Meetings, and much more.

What you get when you join The Membership:

• A monthly 90-minute meeting that features guest speakers and workshops.
• A detailed Resource Guide corresponding to each meeting.
• Group chat and Q&A during each meeting.
• Access to a community of like-minded financial professionals.
• An archive of every single past call recording and Resource Guide.
• A Members-only weekly email from me, highlighting new information and helpful insights.
• Occasional special access to new projects I release.
• Access to The Society of Advice podcast.

What Members Have to Say:

"Joining The Membership is a way to surround yourself with like-minded people who care about their clients as much you do about yours. Members want to encourage and challenge each other to be better at their craft every day. The access to dynamic thought leaders from different industries is the icing on the cake of membership. If you're like me and ever felt lonely or overwhelmed in your work, then this is right for you." –Micah Dorr, CFP®

"The Society helped me see the value of what I provide. Where I would undermine (and underprice) myself in the past, I've realized how valuable my work is." –Frank Murillo, CFP®

"Carl's support and the collaboration of this group of Real Financial Advisors is priceless to me." –Chuck Rose

"Thank you for our last session. It was spectacular!!! I mean they all are, but this one really hit some great points for me and the speakers were so inspiring!" –Deneen Cunningham CFP, CLU, CH.F.C., CHS

“What The Society of Advice does for me is it allows me to construct a business that is optimized for the happiness of the owner.” –Christy Raines, CFP®, AIF®

"New Member here! I have been diving into archived material and it is all outstanding." –William P. Avril, CLU, Financial Advisor

"Keep up the phenomenal work with The Membership. It is the most impactful content that I engage with on a monthly basis. It was another phenomenal call for The Membership yesterday!" –Richard Shore, CFP®, CFA®

"One of the things I appreciate the most about The Membership is that the first question on anyone's mind is not how much AUM or how many lists or how many awards someone has gotten, but how big a difference have we made in helping people truly LIVE their life to their fullest and best purpose. The conversation is uplifting, and having the insights of other advisors on how they help clients along this path is very valuable." –Liz Whitteberry, CPWA®, RMA®, CFA®, CIPM®, ChFC®, AIF®

"This monthly meeting is like the single best keynote I could attend, and I get to attend 12 of them a year!" –Ashby Daniels, CFP® and Financial Advisor

"Carl Richards is the best mind to lead a better generation of advisors." –Paul W. Brown, MBA, CRPC®

"Carl's voice has been extremely impactful. He brings a special combination of vulnerability and value, and I appreciate his generosity in sharing his experience with the world." –Chris Bowman

"We count it not as an expense but a privilege and great fortune finally to find someone with a message that resonates with what we hold more than important, but actually essential to becoming fully who we want to be." –Paige Peterson

"As a solo advisor, mentorship can be a bit hard to find—much of the influence I received prior to launching my firm was more of a testament of what not to do. This community and the relationship with you has been a sort of mentorship for me. Again, big thanks—it’s been a monster year for my conviction in the work we do..." –Adam C. Harding, CFP®

Today’s session was exactly why I joined The Membership—to be pushed into uncomfortableness and wrestle with ideas that nobody else is talking about. This month’s session was worth an entire year’s fee. I’m grateful to be here and I’m hopeful there’s more uncomfortable situations to come.” –Timothy A. Franklin, CFP® CKA® CWS® AIF®

"I really can’t overstate how much value I get from these monthly calls with you and the rest of the gang. The work you do with us radiates out into the work we do with our clients, which then radiates out into the world more broadly. The leverage inherent in this is truly remarkable." –Andy Baxley, CFP®, CIMA®, MSFP

Someone once told me, "thank you for creating a place like this for people like us."

When I heard it, I knew exactly what that meant.

And maybe you do, too.

Sometimes, being a Real Financial Professional can be lonely. We're not sure where we belong. We're not sure if there are other people like us.

That's one of the reasons I created The Membership.

The Membership is a "community in a container" where we come together for 90 minutes a month to gain information, inspiration, ideas, and connection.

The Membership is for people who want to define the success of their planning business on their own terms, not anyone else's.

It's for people who want to find clients they actually enjoy working with.

It's for people who want to clearly communicate the value they provide.

It's for people who want to make sure the fees they charge match the way they feel about the work they do.

It's for people who want to stop being afraid of doing this work differently than the rest of the “industry.”

It's for people who want to make a massive difference.

Frequently and Infrequently Asked Questions

I’m a brand new financial professional. Is this a good fit for me?

Yes! If you’re new, that means you are still forming habits and foundational practices around how you do business. The newer you are, the easier it will be for you to implement what you learn.

I’m a seasoned veteran. Is this a good fit for me?

Yes! My friend, if you’ve been around a while, you KNOW how deeply problematic it is to sell financial products instead of the process of financial planning. It’s never too late to change… and if you don’t, you know what will happen. Someone else will, and your clients will find them.

I don't give financial advice for a living. Is this for me?

Friend, my work at The Society of Advice is for those who consider themselves Real Financial Professionals. If that's not you, then I recommend signing up for my Weekly Letter or checking out my latest favorite project, Behavior Gap Radio.

What exactly is the Resource Guide?

Each monthly meeting comes with a Resource Guide—15 or so pages packed with timeless content: the key points from the call, highlights from the chat, ideas for further reflection, and curated recommendations for additional reading, watching, listening, or general investigation. You can see a redacted version of the Resource Guide here.

How easy is it to cancel my seat in The Membership after I sign up?

When you sign up, there’s no commitment required and no fee to cancel. If you’re not getting a lot out of The Membership, we actually want you to leave so someone else who will benefit from it can have your spot!

Carl, my main goal is to find and retain clients. How will this help me do that?

Anything a human can do, a computer can do better… right? Wrong! Computers can’t empathize, they can’t calm, and they can’t guide people through scary times. The job that we have as Real Financial Professionals is rapidly changing. What can be automated, will be (or already is). What can’t be automated is an opportunity for you to thrive. The Membership is intentionally built to help you improve in all those human areas that make you better than a machine. This is the way to differentiate yourself from other financial professionals who sling products. The Membership will help you become indispensable to the clients you already have and irresistible to the clients you don’t already have.

If I miss a meeting, did I just waste my money for that month?

No! There are 350+ Members now and, of course, some of them will miss each call. We record all the calls and make them available to Members specifically for this reason. You get access to the entire archive of past meetings and Resource Guides, even the ones from before you joined!

When can I get access to past meetings? And for how long?

You get access to every past meeting as soon as you join The Membership, and you keep that access as long as you are a Member.

What's the time commitment?

The monthly meeting of The Membership is 90 minutes long. 

If you sat down to review the entire archive of past meetings of The Membership, it would take more than 40 hours to get through.

I don't recommend doing that! But I do recommend getting familiar with the treasure trove of resources available to you there. You'll find meetings with smart people like Jack Butcher, Pilar Gerasimo, and Christine Benz. You'll find workshops on first meetings, One-Page Financial Plans, and marketing. And you'll find amazing conversations with others in the industry doing amazing work! Not to mention the resources that go along with each conversation.

So, the time commitment is 90 minutes a month to join the live meeting. The time you spend reviewing the resources from past meetings is up to you! 

Is this a community?

The sense of community is very real and very important. During the meetings, people routinely connect in the Zoom chat function. However, this isn’t another Slack channel or Facebook group because those are often hiding places. We are all about impact and doing real work. I like to think of this as a "community in a container" because we come together for just 90 minutes a month, and then we go back out into the world to do the work!

Is there really a strong international component to The Membership?

Yes! And that’s one of the things that is so exciting about it! We have Real Financial Professionals from all over the world—the U.S., the U.K., South Africa, Australia, India, New Zealand, and more. This is an international movement, and we are redefining the financial services industry all over the world.

How much does this cost?

A seat in The Membership is $147/month. The price of The Membership has gone up in the past and will likely go up again. But don’t worry—once you’re in, you’re locked at whatever price you got in at for life. Think of that as a discount for seniority and commitment.

Do you offer discounts or a money-back guarantee?

My friend, The Membership is a community of the committed. No discounts here. Not for you and not for any of the other paying Members. 

And no, there is no money-back guarantee. Money-back guarantees are hiding places. If we give you your money back, it takes the burden of doing the hard work off of you. We want you to hold yourself accountable. The whole point is to change the industry, and the world, by first changing ourselves.

That said, you can cancel your seat in The Membership at any time. If you're on the fence, I encourage you to sign up for one month to see if it's a fit!

I'm not ready to join yet. What should I do instead?

Request your invitation to The Society of Advice here to find out more about what's happening on the inside.