131. The Missing Piece of Financial Change: The Conative Mind Explained

You've given your clients the tools. You've shared the knowledge. They say they understand. They even seem motivated. But then nothing changes.

This is the knowing-doing disconnect, and in this episode, we're showing you why it happens.

In part one of this series, we talked about how more financial content exists than ever before, yet people are more financially stressed than ever. We walked through why financial literacy alone isn't enough to create lasting change. Today, we're introducing the missing piece that explains why people don't take action even when they know what to do and even when they feel supported.

This isn't theory. This is the psychology of financial decision-making, backed by data from working with real clients over nearly two decades.

In this episode, we're introducing the conative mind, the part of the mind that drives action, follow-through, and problem solving. Most financial professionals have never heard of it, yet it's the piece that determines whether clients actually do something with what you teach them.

Here's why this matters: your natural way of taking action as a financial professional is likely very different from your clients' natural way of taking action. We call this the instinct gap. And when your content or coaching is built around your instincts instead of theirs, you're unintentionally making it harder for them to succeed.

Listen in as we walk through the data, show you what the instinct gap looks like in practice, and help you understand why bridging this gap is the key to getting clients real results.

Links & Resources:

• Ultimate Growth Guide
• Join the Facebook group

Key Takeaways:

• The conative mind is the missing piece. If cognitive is thinking and affective is feeling, then conative is doing, and it's what determines whether people actually take action.
• Your conative mind doesn't change. A 20-year validity study showed that while you can grow your knowledge and your emotions can shift, your natural approach to taking action stays consistent throughout your life.
• 75% of financial professionals want detailed information upfront, but only 20% of clients do. This mismatch is making it harder for clients to take action because we're overloading them with information they don't need or want.
• 87% of financial professionals naturally create step-by-step plans, but only 20% of clients want them. What feels helpful to you can feel like a checklist of ways to fail to your clients.
• The instinct gap is why your content and coaching aren't sticking. When you build your approach around your instincts instead of your clients' instincts, you create friction to action.
• Clients aren't wrong for wanting to learn by doing. Four out of five clients prefer to dive in and figure things out rather than map everything out first. That's not a weakness; it's their natural strength.
• If clients are losing motivation or fizzling out, ask if they're bored. Many retention problems aren't about the content or the client's commitment. They're about a mismatch between how you're teaching and how they need to learn.