When you think of a stereotypical financial advisor, a few qualities likely come to mind: friendly, gregarious, never met a stranger. In other words, an extrovert.

But given that approximately one-third to one-half of the world population are introverts, it’s likely a meaningful percentage of financial advisors also carry those personality traits. And some MDRT members who are self-described introverts believe that while their natural introverted tendencies can present some challenges, overall, their status as an introvert is an advantage, not a bug.

Swiss psychologist Carl Jung first theorized about the difference between introverts and extroverts in 1910. But whereas today, we often reduce it to a simple shy vs. outgoing dichotomy, his original theory asserted that “introverts prefer solitude and find energy in alone time, while extroverts thrive on social interaction and seek external stimulation.”

“In financial services and sales, in most people’s mindset, you have to be someone who is very sociable and who is an extrovert who relates easily to people. But I’m just not like that,” said nine-year MDRT member Johan Fanggara, CFP.

Similarly, Se Hyuk Lee, an eight-year MDRT member, says that when he started in the financial services profession, his supervisors thought he would quit within six months due to his introverted personality. But rather than forcing himself to become an extrovert — a task that likely would fail — he instead decided to capitalize on the unique strengths of being introverted, particularly his ability to observe and study people. Rather than meeting 10 clients in a short period of time, Lee chose to meet with a single client 10 times to get to know them and build rapport, which led to closing more cases and bigger contracts.

“Without curiosity and interest in clients’ lives, it’s impossible to find answers about how to help them,” Lee said. “My approach has yielded substantial benefits such as strong client relationships, better policy retention and valuable referrals from satisfied clients.”

Choosing a new perspective

When eight-year MDRT member Tommy Khoerniawan, another introvert, entered the financial services field as an expatriate with no sales experience, he felt like the odds were stacked against him. But rather than give up before he even got started, he decided to focus on his strengths.

“I told myself that I was good enough and sufficient with my current strengths, and I’ve achieved my goals that I set,” he said. “So, I began to focus on amplifying my strengths, such as listening skills and asking the right questions.” 

Thirteen-year MDRT member Timothie Sy took a similar approach when it came to his introverted tendencies.

“Talking to clients was a big challenge,” he said. “To prepare, I memorized scripts with flow charts of possible situations. I practiced by talking to myself in front of a mirror. Despite my efforts, I didn’t close a sale for the first two months.”

With his meager resources as a recent university graduate, Sy decided to purchase insurance for himself so that he could better connect with prospects.

“It actually worked!” he said. “Whenever they asked me what I got for myself, I was able to convey that insurance is not about making money, it’s about helping my family be financially capable should I ever be in an accident or be gone, and it can the same for other families.” 

‘Meeting a friend’

Xumin Zhang, RFC, a 14-year MDRT member, struggled at first with being an introvert in financial services, even questioning if it was the right field for her. She especially disliked the task of cold-calling, knowing that rejection was highly likely. So, she decided to focus on the big picture, rather than the individual, often unpleasant, rejections.

“Perhaps 90 of 100 people will say no, but there will always be those 10 who are willing to engage in conversation. From those 10, you might meet with all of them, and one or two could become clients,” she said. “Understanding the law of large numbers makes you more willing to make those calls because you know that after a certain number of nos, you’ll inevitably hear a yes.”

She also reframed her in-person meetings with prospects to keep herself from feeling nervous.

“I would tell myself, ‘I’m going to meet a friend.’ This simple reframing helps reduce the psychological distance between me and the prospect. I then created a mental script: I envisioned having an enjoyable conversation about interests, work and life, which naturally led to them asking about financial solutions.”

For Fanggara, this approach also has been helpful.

“I’m not someone who’s really good with objections, so instead of going head-to-head with their objection, I’ll share a story or illustration that is relevant to them,” he said.

Highly sensitive advisors

Fear of rejection was also a challenge for four-year MDRT member Jiajia Ji. In addition to being an introvert, Ji is also a highly sensitive person (HSP), a classification developed by psychologist Elaine Aron in the 1990s. HSPs, often mistaken as simply shy, make up about 20% of the population and are marked by “increased emotional sensitivity, stronger reactivity to both external and internal stimuli — pain, hunger, light and noise — and a complex inner life,” according to Psychology Today.

“I feel rejection more intensely, experience stronger frustration and typically struggle more with negative self-talk,” Ji said.

She had to actively remind herself that when prospects said no, they were rejecting the product, not her. She also began to nurture her natural strengths, using her innate emotional intelligence and sensitivity to connect with clients, particularly through storytelling in videos and on social media platforms.

“This approach has also made my image as a consultant more three dimensional and complete,” she said. “I can fully utilize my strengths — listening attentively, managing details and expressing empathy — through one-on-one offline interactions, which allows me to keenly identify clients’ true needs.”

So, while the stereotypes may tell us otherwise, it turns out that there is no one-size-fits-all for financial advisors. Introvert or extrovert, highly sensitive or not, there’s room in the profession for all kinds. It just takes a willingness to adjust your thinking, discover your gifts and 100% be yourself.