Episode 720 - Note from the Field

Elite performance is not a one-time achievement; it's the product of consistent, intentional development. Whether you’re training dogs or building a team of financial professionals, the principle is the same: greatness is earned, not assumed. In this episode, Phil shares reflections from a bird hunting trip with a seasoned guide and dog trainer, whose decades of experience highlight the power of discipline, patience, and lifelong learning. Drawing from their conversations in the field, Phil explores how the same mindset applies to leadership and professional growth, reminding us that success isn’t about quick wins or natural talent alone, but about the steady work of developing people over time.

Resources:

Please send Comments, Questions, and Feedback to: mojo@cannonfinancial.com

Please send First Friday Feedback submissions to: mojo@cannonfinancial.com

Transcript

Top performers in every field surround themselves with those who inspire them, who seek to build them up, and who push them to reach beyond their current limits. I am Phil Buchanan, executive chairman of Cannon Financial Institute. I designed Monday Morning Mojo to provide you with a weekly spark, a push and motivational insight to live your best life. Thanks for joining.

Hello Cannon Nation. It is Phil here with episode 720 of Monday Morning Mojo. Last week I had the opportunity to spend some time with a gentleman named Steve Grossman in a place known as Staples, Minnesota. Steve is a true dog whisperer. He is a developmental and training savant. He has been a bird hunting guide for over 40 years and has trained hunting dogs for much longer than that.

His passion is leading his dogs on hunts in places like Michigan, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and then letting folks like me tag along. During my conversations with Steve out in the fields and the hunt, I not only learned a lot about our quarry that we were going after Ruff grouse and woodcocks, but also about his dogs.

And how he goes through the process of development and training. It's a process that begins when the puppies are shortly out of the litter and truly continues throughout the dogs’ entire lives. He shared that you do come across a generational dog occasionally, but that the rest require consistent work again over their entire life.

Now, to him, a generational dog, and he said he has only had three in over 40 years. But they are dogs that have elite skills and instincts that no amount of training and teaching could develop in a lesser animal. For the others though, they require intentional development. I did ask him if some dogs were just too much trouble.

“Absolutely” was his response. Knowing when to call is important, he said. Some dogs, even with significant work, aren't going to produce the right results. He went on to add. It doesn't mean that they aren't right for another role, like maybe a pet for a family, but they'll just never make good hunting dogs.

Now, naturally, wherever I am, my mind always comes back to the wealth management business, and this trip was no different. It caused me to think about the fact that every leader wants elite professionals on their team, but that requires tremendous commitment and ongoing development. Back when I first got into the business, almost every organization had a dedicated developmental process for new professionals entering the business.

And through that process, some individuals made it and other individuals didn't. Today, more and more organizations are focused on recruiting experienced professionals versus developing their own talent to be sustainable long term. I truly believe businesses need a healthy mix of recruiting and development.

But see, it's in how we view development that the key to the whole process has to take place because development has to take place over the entire professional's career, not just for new to industry hires. Brand new hires do require a different developmental plan and process than that for experienced professionals.

Oh, absolutely. But to not have robust and ongoing development for experienced professionals is both shortsighted and actually limiting to the organization. Now, imagine for a moment that you have a 20-year professional in your organization. Think back to what that individual has experienced in their own lives since joining your firm in 2005, they have exchanged their pager, flip phone and Blackberry for the newest iPhone.

They've gone from taxi cabs to Ubers. They no longer call in lunch orders and go out to pick them up. Rather, they place an order on an app and have their lunch delivered. Who is traveling by plane. They no longer use paper tickets and driver's license but use facial recognition software to clear security and board the plane.

Amazon now delivers seemingly everything to their door in a day or less. There is no longer a need for them to drop rewound VCR tapes and DVDs at Blockbuster, they just go home and binge watch their favorite series on Netflix. Then of course, they keep up with the world through Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X.

They're able to follow the thoughts and ideas of both their friends and the famous on a minute-by-minute basis. Their world, our world evolves and at a faster rate, along with that, comes client expectations evolving as well. See, it's these and the thousands of other quantum leaps that now require financial professionals to not only keep pace, but to do it in a position that allows them to thrive when engaging with clients and prospects.

I have said for years that the worst words in business are when a client says, “I didn't know you did that”. A client normally says, I didn't know you did that when they've just done what they didn't know you do with another organization or professional. I still think those to be the worst words in business, but a close second is when a professional in the wealth management business says, “I just don't get it”, whether it's about cryptocurrency, the Gen Z generation, artificial intelligence, a prospect choosing to go with a different firm or different strategy or a myriad of other things. I have recently heard professionals lament that they quote, unquote, just don't get.

We all want our professionals to be personally curious people. But too many leaders are treating their entire teams as generationally elite, when in reality only a select few truly are. I certainly don't fall into the generationally elite category. So, for me and for most everyone else, there is the absolute requirement of ongoing professional development.

So, as you're making plans for 2026 and beyond, I challenge you to dig into your own intentional development process and the process for your team, your group, your organization. Whether you lead a small practice or, or the CEO of a large multinational, you cannot sustain long-term growth without constantly elevating your team of professionals. That requires intentional, ongoing training and development.

Back to Steve Grossman, the celebrated hunting guide. As I was thanking him for what was truly a great hunt, he smiled and said, it wasn't what we did on this trip that caused it to be a success. Rather, it was all the training, scouting, and development over the years that culminated in these perfect days. It's funny what you can learn and pick up from the strangest places, the most interesting people, wherever in the world you are.

Monday morning Mojo is a production of Cannon Financial Institute; executive producer of Monday Morning Mojo is Sarah Jones. Editing and mixing is done by Danny Brunner. Until next time, I'm Phil Buchanan reminding you to be a force for good.

Have a great week and thanks for being part of the Mojo community.