Carl Richards on Sketches, Conversations, and the Future of Advice

The Advisor's Fuel Podcast with Adam Koos

Adam Koós welcomes Carl Richards, speaker, author, and creator of the Sketch Guy column in The New York Times.

Carl shares the story of how a simple whiteboard sketch changed the trajectory of his career, leading to books, speaking events, and his new release, Your Money: Reimagining Wealth in Simple Sketches. Together, Adam and Carl explore the intersection of money, meaning, and communication, and why advisors must focus on presence, listening, and guiding clients through uncertainty.

From "conversation grenades" to the sketch advisors use most ("Less Wrong Tomorrow"), this conversation is packed with insights for advisors who want to connect deeply with clients and build lasting impact.

Episode Timestamps: 02:00 – How a desperate sketch in a client meeting changed everything 06:00 – The email that landed Carl at The New York Times 09:00 – Luck, persistence, and increasing your "luck surface area" 11:00 – Why Your Money is really a "conversation grenade" 13:00 – Carl's favorite sketches on risk and uncertainty 14:00 – Shifting from being "slightly better" with money to seeing it differently 17:00 – "Less Wrong Tomorrow" and how advisors can use it with clients 22:00 – What separates transformative advisors from the rest 24:00 – Presence, listening, and watching for the "crunchy bits" 26:00 – Why clients abandon plans (and what advisors might be missing) 30:00 – AI, self-driving money, and the evolving value of advisors

Key Takeaways: 💡 Simple sketches can transform complex financial conversations. 💡 Advisors must shift focus from jargon to meaning and presence. 💡 Clients abandon plans when they don't feel truly heard. 💡 "Less Wrong Tomorrow" is a powerful sketch for guiding clients. 💡 AI may automate money—but human guidance remains irreplaceable.

Key Quotes from Carl Richards: 🗣 "What if you're not bad at money—what if you're just asking the wrong questions?" 🗣 "The best advisors are deeply present and attuned to their clients." 🗣 "The most powerful sketch? Less Wrong Tomorrow." 🗣 "Self-driving money is coming—but someone still has to tell it where to go."

Connect with Carl Richards: Website: behaviorgap.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/thinkingcarl/ https://x.com/behaviorgap https://www.instagram.com/behaviorgap Book: Your Money: Reimagining Wealth in Simple Sketches (available October 21)

The link to pre-order Carl's book on Amazon, or folks can head to their favorite local bookstore

The link to place a bulk order of Carl's book.

Listeners can save an additional 5% by using the code YourMoney5 at checkout.

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