Growth in financial advice is often measured through familiar benchmarks: assets under management, revenue, client acquisition and the size of the firm. For Sten Morgan, however, those numbers tell only part of the story.
Some of the decisions that shape an advisor’s career are more difficult to measure. They involve how advisors value their time, where they choose to invest, which assumptions they are willing to question and whether the business they are building still reflects their ambitions.
In this conversation, Derrick Kinney speaks with financial advisor, coach and author Sten Morgan about the choices that have influenced his approach to clients, leadership and business growth.
Morgan brings an unusual perspective to that discussion. He continues to advise clients while coaching other financial professionals, giving him direct insight into the pressures advisors face as their businesses develop. That experience has also led him to question some of the conventional thinking around compensation, professional development and what advisors should expect from the businesses they create.
The conversation examines how curiosity can influence professional growth, why advisors may underestimate the value of their work and how long-held assumptions can affect financial and business decisions. Morgan also shares the framework he uses to evaluate where to commit time and capital, including when investing in yourself or the business may produce value beyond an immediate financial return.
For advisors and business owners, the discussion raises a broader question about growth: how to make better decisions about the business, career and life that growth is intended to support.
Key Insights
- Growth begins with curiosity. Advisors who continually question assumptions and remain open to learning position themselves for long-term success.
- Your value extends beyond products. Building a practice around expertise, relationships and advice creates stronger client outcomes and more sustainable businesses.
- Mindset shapes performance. Overcoming self-doubt and limiting beliefs is essential to unlocking professional growth.
- Better decisions require a framework. Sten’s investment decision filter emphasizes evaluating risk, performance, fees, taxes and time before making financial decisions.
- Purpose fuels lasting success. Leadership, generosity and intentional business building create impact beyond financial results.
Listen to the Podcast
Transcript
Derrick Kinney
Welcome to the Derrick Kinney Podcast on Modern American Advisor. Each week we revisit one of my most valuable conversations to bring advisors practical ideas to grow their businesses, serve their clients, and make more money to do more good. You want to make smart financial decisions for your business, right? Especially to make sure it keeps growing and you have enough cash in the bank. But managing money feels complicated and confusing. So how do you make sure your next financial moves are smart and impactful? My guest today is financial advisor Sten Morgan.
Today, Sten is going to share how to transform your most confusing financial decisions into clear strategic actions. In this episode, Sten breaks down his framework for smart investment decision-making. And he talks about how to weigh important factors like account risk, performance, fees, taxes, and time. Plus, Sten shares how to invest in yourself and why that’s the best investment that you can make. You can turn your biggest financial uncertainties into your most strategic assets. Sten’s here to show you how. Sten, welcome to the Good Money Podcast.
Sten Morgan
Derrick, excited to be here. Thanks, bud.
Derrick Kinney
Great, great. Well, what I love about your mentality is, especially as a younger advisor, you just have a pulse on the industry today, and not just financial advisors. I just find anybody who is face-to-face with people can take your principles and I think be more successful tomorrow. So, you were a no-brainer to bring on the podcast. So, I’m really glad you’re here today.
Sten Morgan
Thank you. No, I appreciate it. I’m excited to dive in.
Derrick Kinney
Well, Sten, you have a dual role. You’re both a successful financial advisor there in the Nashville, Tennessee area, but you’re also a coach to elite advisors. And so, you’re playing both sides of the field here, which I think is especially useful. And so, I wanna ask you first off, as a financial advisor yourself, how can other success-minded advisors uncover their unique strengths and use them effectively in their businesses?
Sten Morgan
Whenever I’m asked a question like that, I kind of quickly go back to my story and journey. And I think I, I have a lot of compassion and grace for young advisor Sten, and I try to channel the different seasons I’ve had as an advisor as I talk to folks. And so stage 1, do people know that I don’t know what I’m doing? And it was this so much effort and a weight of I can’t come as I am.
I can’t not have every answer at every moment because of how that would be perceived, and therefore my success would be limited. I hung there for a while. I think that was— there was something in me as a competitive person. I couldn’t be fully curious because too much curiosity exposed my lack of knowledge.
Derrick Kinney
Oh, yes.
Sten Morgan
Which is— I say that now, and, you know, in the mindset I’ve been able to kind of develop and I’m still working on, that sounds like— how were you not aware that you were living in that headspace, that I had so much head trash about being valuable to clients that the posture I was taking was making me less valuable to clients. Not only from a posture of how am I best serving you, but also like, how am I connecting with you? Am I relatable? And I think about all different professions.
If we are advice givers, leaders, without connection, people won’t take your advice. They may do business with you and transact with you because they have no other option. They need to do something. And as soon as I had some different epiphanies in our business as a young advisor saying most of the people are doing business with me because they don’t have another choice or they’re not taking the time to shop like it is, pure average activity is leading to average results. Then I had to step back and just question everything I was doing.
And as I coach advisors, I try to get all of us in that posture of like, are you willing to always question what you’re doing? Because if what you’re doing is great and you question it, it’ll come back stronger than it was before. And so for me, I think if all of us can just embrace every day— and this is what I love about your posture and your story — is curiosity, humility. I’m willing to be reinvented. Like, what was working before, or kind of working, I’ll abandon it if there’s something better for me, my family, and my clients.
And so, so that posture, I think, for every advisor and every advice giver, if we can find ourselves in this state of humility and curiosity constantly, we almost can’t help but grow.
Derrick Kinney
I like that. I wanna go back to a word you said earlier about relatable. And it was a struggle I had early on in my business that I felt like I needed to look a certain way, talk a certain way, act a certain way, and that’s how people would judge a financial advisor. And what I realized was there was a time where I forgot I had a volleyball game for my daughter that night.
So I went home, changed into my t-shirt and shorts, and clients came up to me more than I expected and say, Derek, it’s so fun to see you look relaxed. It’s fun to see you without a tie on.
Sten Morgan
Yeah.
Derrick Kinney
And Sten, in your words, it was an epiphany for me of, oh, people just wanna see that I’m real just like them. And ultimately, that’s how you build that true connectedness. I love the point you’re making. Now, I’m curious, in your experience, especially not just as a high-producing advisor, but as a coach, to other high producers, what are the common blind spots that you find advisors often overlook?
Sten Morgan
Probably potential.
Derrick Kinney
Potential, okay.
Sten Morgan
I think, I remember when I entered the business and I’d meet other advisors, what I thought I was capable of, the peak of the mountain was just what I saw around me. It’s all I knew. 16-year-old Sten told people, someday I’m gonna make $100,000 a year. And you’d say, where did you get that number? Well, it was probably the biggest number I’d ever heard at that point in my life, growing up in a small country town in Oregon called Elmira, which most people don’t even know where that is.
Derrick Kinney
That’s right.
Sten Morgan
But that is all I knew. That was my world. And all of us, whether we like it or not, will naturally spend a lot of energy holding so tightly to what we know. And there’s so much fear around, if I question what I believe to be true, is that a reflection on me as a person? And the most fascinating business owners I meet with are in this constant state of maybe there is a better way. Hey, this kind of worked, but hey, tell me what you’re doing. I listen to podcasts, I read books.
I’m more aware of my strengths and weaknesses than other people. The most successful people I know are the most aware of themselves. And for me, it was something to aspire to. It wasn’t something that came to me naturally. I was the opposite growing up, just trying to make my way in the world, you know, single mom, 3 sisters. It was just like survival mode. So, as I coach high performers, I really try to lean in and get aware as quick as possible. Does this person have a posture of, I want to do better?
That doesn’t always mean I have to sacrifice everything. I think some head trash sometimes is, Sten, I want to do what you’re doing or what Derrick’s doing, but then I have to work 7 days a week and give up everything.
Derrick Kinney
Right, right.
Sten Morgan
And then I’ll say, okay, back up. From this point forward, let’s assume that you can achieve that potential, not work weekends, take your kids to school in the morning, and be home by 5:15 every day. Right now, you may feel like those are opposing goals, but let’s imagine that both are possible and let’s operate within those boundaries.
Derrick Kinney
Mm-hmm.
Sten Morgan
And what that forces us to do, and the great— I love the book 10X Is Easier Than 2X because 2X-ing, which is what most of us are doing, Is I’m just going to tweak stuff and there’s going to be some organic growth. 10X is I have to rethink this entire problem in a totally different way. And I love solving problems I don’t have the answers for up front. But most of us want to say, here’s a goal, and I’ve probably already achieved most of it because it’s safer versus getting really uncomfortable.
And there was a study that I referenced in a book I wrote, The Seven Mindsets of Success. It was called the modern-day misogi.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
And a misogi is a Japanese ritual to where you would have to take on some physical, mental challenge that seemed so far beyond what you were capable of that once you completed it, it completely changed what you thought was possible for yourself. And there was this guy, Kyle Korver. He was a— I think he played for the Hawks in the NBA, and he went down this path, and I think he ended up running like a mile underwater while carrying a boulder.
Derrick Kinney
Wow, okay.
Sten Morgan
In, in like waters with sharks in it or something crazy to where it’s just like, why would you do that? But once you accomplished it, like you saw yourself so much differently. And so I think even for top performers, we can, we can get comfortable if people put us in that category versus saying, okay, how do I challenge myself to grow even more? Hmm.
Derrick Kinney
And one of the things that I know that you are really good at is helping people assess what their value is and how their clients perceive their value, specifically around fees. And I want to have you talk about, for someone listening right now that struggles with, I know I should be charging a higher fee, but I doubt if the client will pay it, or I doubt if I’m worth that. What would you say to them right now?
Sten Morgan
Yeah, I get a little fired up when this topic is brought up because it hits—
Derrick Kinney
I thought you might.
Sten Morgan
Yeah. And this is a drum we hit hard, that the industry still accepts a lot of things at a high level, a lot of average activity. But what me and you know is on the advisor level, it’s the trenches out there, right? Retention is super low. A lot of advisors are unhappy. And the carrot is, hey, just keep being unhappy and grinding for long enough, and someday you’ll be successful. And with my story, I just didn’t have the time to wait that long.
I was like, I cannot accept the average path, even though you’re telling me there’s this advisor that’s 55 years old and look at how he or she is so comfortable. I’m like, that’s 20 years from now. Give me somebody that’s 5 years from me.
Derrick Kinney
Right, right.
Sten Morgan
Maybe even 10 that I can be like, okay, that feels manageable. And so, as I got into the business, it was a business that said, here’s a suite of products that solve people’s problems. You are the means of getting the product to these people, so get really good at selling stuff. And that didn’t come natural to me. Like, I had a heart, I cared, and I think a lot of advisors do to serve people.
But if I wasn’t the most social person, I wasn’t the most connected in my area or the best just salesperson, I wasn’t going to do as well as the person who just sold the products better than me.
And so through my journey, and I bounced around broker-dealers trying to find the perfect spot, when I finally was open to the idea, and I resisted it, that I don’t have to sell products to make money in this business, like there are people that will actually pay me for my time and ideas, like that shook me to the core because it kind of in a way challenged everything I had been taught. That the head trash I had to fight was, then you’ve just wasted 7 years of a career doing it the wrong way.
And that’s not true, that it all brought me to where I was, and I was ready to kind of level up from there. The first time I charged somebody a fee, that I sat across from somebody and said, hey, you’re gonna have to write me a check for my value. It was a $1,500 financial plan, and I told them I’d work for them for a year, and I swore they were going to say no.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
At that moment as an advisor, and I think about all the other professions, you know, of your listeners that are attorneys and consultants and all these things, it’s like what they confidently charge for their time hourly and don’t question it. So many financial advisors, somehow we put ourselves in a different bucket. They’re like, no, we— the products, like we just have to sell the stuff. And so then I went down a path of saying, I’m going to explore this even though it’s super uncomfortable.
I’m going to start figuring out I’m not going to just charge people for the sake of charging. I have to now build a service model and build my value as an advisor so that when I tell somebody it costs $2,000, $5,000, $20,000 to work with us, that they would write that check with a smile on their face because they’re excited about what they’re about to go into with us.
And that— there’s so much to that, but we spend so much time teaching in our live events on that because once you break through understanding your value as an advisor, you sell less and your posture’s totally differently. And then, you know, you get the more clients that you always wanted. You just had to shake the system up.
Derrick Kinney
I like that. And as you talk about that term head trash, which I love, a lot of that is just taking out the trash, not just twice a week, but every hour of every day. You’ve gotta take the trash to the curb and let somebody else pick that up because there’s no time for that.
Sten Morgan
And I still have it. And I think for people, you know, that me and you are on podcasts and doing big stuff, I’ll be on stages in front of 1,000 advisors and I’ll be like, I’m bringing it today too. Like, I’ve had these thoughts walking up on stage, like, Sten, are you sure you should be the one teaching? And so I don’t think the goal is to ever, like, be immune from that. It’s hopefully those voices get quieter and that you take control of it.
Because I think it’s just, you know, part of the human condition is like they will never go away fully. Hopefully we just become more aware of it.
Derrick Kinney
Well, I like to call it just be a better trash manager because it doesn’t go away. It’s how do you manage the trash?
Sten Morgan
Yeah.
Derrick Kinney
To get you to the treasure. Now, you referenced your first book, and I wanted to touch on what I believe is your most recent book, which is called Wish I Knew That Sooner. Is that right?
Sten Morgan
Yes.
Derrick Kinney
Okay.
Sten Morgan
Yeah.
Derrick Kinney
Now, let’s talk about in that book some of the actionable tips that people can take to avoid financial regret.
Sten Morgan
The purpose of that book and the title, I was, I worked with a guy that had been in the industry for like 35 years as we kind of workshopped it. I flew to Florida and met him at a Panera Bread next to the airport. And he was this mad scientist kind of finance guy. And we were sitting there having lunch. I was telling him about the book, the layout, like the idea. And I was like, I’m still working on the title. And he said, you’ve said the title about 4 times already in this meeting.
And the idea was I meet with clients so often that said, I wish I would’ve known that sooner.
Derrick Kinney
Oh, yes.
Sten Morgan
Because the idea is, and the challenge to us as financial advisors is, we usually get in a pretty set routine of we have AUM to offer, here’s some insurance to buy, I’m going to sprinkle some financial planning on the top, but we’re not bringing really creative, good ideas. We’re not setting time aside in our practice for R&D because things are always changing. Tax laws are changing. I think to take ourselves professionally, we have to say it’s part of our job is to always be curious about the changes that could help our clients and what information.
And that might be you as an advisor studying, that might be you paying other people to research and bring it back to you. Maybe there’s somebody on your team, you know, who, not how to get that information to you. But none of us want regrets, but we all have them to some degree. And as I say that, you know, hopefully everybody listening, they probably have one popping in their mind. You know, it’s a thing that like, I thought I was on the right path and then I found out I wasn’t.
And what I can never get back is the time spent on that previous path.
Derrick Kinney
Yes.
Sten Morgan
And so the goal is not like guilt and shame that you were on the path, but there should be some level of tenacity around getting off a path as quick as possible. And so the book hopefully positions the people like curiosity. Like the idea is, is it’s never gonna be perfect. You’re never gonna take advantage of every idea out there, but you also don’t have to settle for average. And I think about when I was young, Sten, when he was 12, I remember thinking, looking around and observing, like, I don’t think people are working harder than we are.
My mom works pretty hard, yet somehow their life seems easier than ours.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
And, you know, one route you go is like, the system’s broken and I’m just mad at it. Or it’s maybe they know something we don’t know.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
And so part of the book is, is there’s so much advice that does not make it to the consumer because the advisor is not incentivized or compensated to share it. And a benefit of being able to charge for your time and ideas is like you then are being paid to bring them something other than AUM and insurance.
Derrick Kinney
Yes. Yes.
Sten Morgan
And so, the book was essentially introducing to the consumers, there’s a lot of things out there you’ve probably never heard of. And it’s also a little overwhelming, but I hope it sparks some curiosity that there’s a better way.
Derrick Kinney
And it would’ve been nice if you knew about it sooner.
Sten Morgan
That’s right. I’m not gonna, yeah, I’m not gonna press on that, but like—
Derrick Kinney
Right, right.
Sten Morgan
But you wish you would’ve known, yeah.
Derrick Kinney
You know, prior to selling my business about 4 years ago, I would often tell people, think of me as like a wisdom wall, and that is, As you get seminar invitations and product offerings in your mailbox, I don’t pretend to know everything. So just simply bring those to our visits every quarter, and let’s see if maybe there’s something I’m learning that’s new that’s out there, because I want to make sure we’re only doing always what’s best for you.
And that may be through me, it may be through somebody else, but ultimately, you’re paying me to be the best version of an advisor to help you reach your goals. And so, people like that level of objectivity. So I think you hit the nail on the head. Let me shift gears a bit. And Sten, you know that I’m a big believer in having a cause that motivates you to make more money to do more good. It was the basis of my book.
And what I’m curious about is, what are some practical ways that you like to involve generosity or giving in your business, and how can other advisors do that as well?
Sten Morgan
I think there was a time in my story where I felt like I was in survival mode as a young business owner and advisor, that generosity felt like a luxury.
Derrick Kinney
Okay.
Sten Morgan
Because in my mind, it was big dollars. Like, I had to give money away. Time, well, I remember being challenged by, um, yeah, this was one of my closest friends growing up, and he said, Sten, I love how generous you are, um, with your money, but I don’t think you’re very generous with your time.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm, that’s convicting.
Sten Morgan
Yeah, and then another time, this was a young advisor I had hired. He might have been working here for like 6 months, and he said, Sten, do you know it really seems like you rush off the phone with clients? Could you guess what my initial reaction was that I wanted to say to the 24-year-old that said that to me?
Derrick Kinney
Probably, what do you know?
Sten Morgan
That’s right. Who do you think you are? It’s like, and then I luckily, I was, have matured enough to kind of grab hold of that and just say, okay, what, there’s probably some truth in that. I grew up on the West Coast and something I’ve learned about moving to Nashville is like, it moves a little slower here. Like people do want to hear about your day where it’s like, I grew up, it’s like, hey, you got 20 minutes, let’s make something happen.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
And I feel that way when I work with advisors on the East Coast and West Coast. It’s like, hey, let’s go. You still want to connect with people, but it just looks different depending on kind of the market you’re in. And in Nashville, it might take 2 to 3 meetings to close somebody. You know, some markets it’s like, let’s get it on, we’re done. And so for me, I think it’s evolved over time to where I’m trying to balance now the time I give and then also the financial resources I give.
And so really practically, Legacy has a donor-advised fund that we contribute a percent of profits to. We used to just kind of send money out randomly for as requests came. And as a team, because I try to involve the team in this too, we decided instead of giving money to 20 things, what if we gave to 3 really intentionally and we measured the results and then we shared those results with our clients to kind of involve them? So, you know, that’s, that’s clean water projects, that’s feeding kids locally and then sex trafficking.
So it’s like we try to be really aggressive with that.
Derrick Kinney
Yeah.
Sten Morgan
There does come a point to where you’re like, I’m good. Like, I don’t need more money. And I see 2 things happen there. I see advisors start coasting, and I see this a lot, unfortunately, to where they’re like, I’m good. So, and I’m like, but what’s your potential though?
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
I don’t know. I’m comfortable. Do you want to change? I guess I don’t have to. And I’m thankful that in me, and faith’s a big part of my life, that yeah, I got to a place where my kids and I are safe and healthy and we have what we need. But that the fire didn’t go away though, to have impact. And so now within Legacy, we measure more of impact than dollars.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
And, and so I think for me, it’s, it’s something in me growing up, single mom, 3 sisters. There’s probably been times in my life where I’m too aware of others and I’m trying to save the world and be that guy. So I think there’s a healthy balance there. But I think to reach your full potential, and I see this in your story, you do have to tap into something that’s bigger than yourself. Because you will just have more nicer things. And I think that fire slowly goes away and you just start coasting.
Derrick Kinney
Yeah, it’s that temporary high that feels good in the moment, but eventually fades away. And I just find having a cause can continue to drive you to stay motivated.
Sten Morgan
I love that. Yeah, I had a mentor tell me a couple years ago that there’s no mission without margin.
Derrick Kinney
Oh, that’s good.
Sten Morgan
Meaning we need to run healthy businesses. My sister was a missionary in Honduras for 9 years, and she was boots on the ground living that life. And we’re not all called to that necessarily.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
But why full potential is kind of so important to me is that that’s within our control. And it’s probably never— the journey’s never over, but it’s like the pursuit of it. Someday we will all reflect on our lives, and the idea of, I wish I would’ve known that sooner, you know, that does apply to a lot of financial things, but also There are some very common regrets we all face or hear about. I wish I spent more time with family. I wish I would’ve, you know, read more and scrolled less.
And so for me, as I talk about in my first book, Future Self, somehow at a young age, that was really impactful to me of like, if I was sitting across from Sten 20 years from now, how would that conversation go?
Derrick Kinney
Hmm, that’s good. That’s good.
Sten Morgan
Would he just say, thank you for your hard work and your, you know, humility, curiosity, you know, desire to learn? Or would he want to grab me by the shirt and be like, what are you doing?
Derrick Kinney
You know?
Sten Morgan
And I feel like when I meet a lot of these advisors and we coach a lot of them, and you can have such a big impact in such a short period of time if you’re willing to like lean in in a kind way. And I think you could do both. There’s a great book called Not Nice, and the whole premise of it— and I don’t know if you’ve read a book before where you’re reading it and you’re like, have they followed me in my life? Right, right.
Derrick Kinney
They’re reading my email right here.
Sten Morgan
That’s right. And the idea was, is like, you, you don’t have to be nice, but you can be kind. And so, like, if you’re a business owner with team members, a nice boss or team leader keeps somebody around way too long because they’re worried that they’re not going to like them if they fire them.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
A kind leader says, this isn’t the best place for you. Let’s find somewhere where you’re going to thrive. And those are at times harder conversations. But those are things that I’ve tried to internalize over time because it can have such a big— those things ripple across your life.
Derrick Kinney
Yes.
Sten Morgan
And so for advisors, Here’s some practical ways to serve your clients better and make more money. Let’s talk about the head trash, the things that are holding you back. How do we unlock your full potential? Because once that changes, it can’t help but affect everything else.
Derrick Kinney
You know, Stan, if a listener right now who is hearing what you’re talking about, if they wanted to supercharge their career, what would be one thing you would tell them to do right now?
Sten Morgan
There was a study done, I think came out of Harvard, and there’s one a long time ago that said you are a product of the 5 people you surround yourself with. Really, really interesting read. The updated version of it said the 5 people you surround yourself with are responsible for a majority of the negative or positive things in your life.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
And there have been times in my career that I’ve been isolated. And financial advising is fascinating because you can be in an industry, go to conferences, and feel alone all the time. Once I started opening up myself and my practice to external input and community, that changed everything. And so immediately, there’s so many small tweaks and adjustments we can all make. We hear conferences, we get mass emails all the time. Like, our industry is just flooded. The self-help industry, the advice industry, it’s just so much content. Tomorrow, I would say find a mentor by group.
Find some community you can plug into. And part of the reason I launched Elite Advisor Network is I couldn’t really find one. That the offices I had landed at, I looked around and I was like, I’m not sure if I want to be like all these people. And I think that’s hard sometimes in our business is that you end up landing somewhere that’s a good place. It’s maybe not a great place. You learn some good things, but you start copying everybody around you.
That you need to find somewhere where it’s like, where do the people go that make me uncomfortable, that are accomplishing things I aspire to accomplish? You can’t help but have that affect you. If it’s like, I wanna be a runner and I just start hanging out with runners, what am I gonna do?
Derrick Kinney
You’re gonna start running and fall.
Sten Morgan
I’m gonna start running. I’m gonna eat differently. Like, it just ripples through your life. And so find the people you wanna be like. And start hanging out with them.
Derrick Kinney
Ah, such good advice. You know, Sten, we’ve talked about how our listeners can build their businesses, which whether you’re an advisor listening right now, a realtor, CPA, attorney, you’re an advice giver, Sten’s principles can be very effective for you. And I love that last point about joining a community. It’s so powerful. So now I wanna talk money and help our listeners build their wealth. And so question number 1, what is a money move that you’ve made that your 18-year-old self would be proud of?
Sten Morgan
The best investment I’ve made is myself. That’s good. Yeah. Yeah. Everyone’s story is different, but I think we all at some point were a product of our environment, whether we liked it or not. And aggressively investing in your own awareness of what am I really good at? And in our community, we call it superpowers. Like, what are the things that I’ve been wired to, created to do really well? Because a lot of us as business owners are generalists. And we try to do everything really well.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
And so, I love to read because I know I’m just being challenged all the time with, hey, I thought of it this way, but this person said it a lot better. And so, great books like Who Not How. The question’s not if Derek and Sten can do more things. That’ll never work. It’s who can help Derek and Sten do more things that are smarter than us, that have been there before us. A great book, Essentialism, learning the difference between good decisions and great decisions.
Derrick Kinney
Yes, yes.
Sten Morgan
And I find, I’ll work with so many business owners and I’ll be on a whiteboard in our conference room and I’ll draw this circle and I’ll put arrows going out in every direction. And our time and energy is limited and we decide how we spend it. And so instead of doing 7 things, imagine we did 1 or 2 really well and we put all the effort behind those 2 things. The becoming a student of the game—
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
Is necessary in any business. But with the people that come into our office on the legacy side, in a meeting in 45 minutes, and I’ve done enough now that I’ll guarantee it. If you spend 45 minutes with me in a room with a whiteboard, you will leave there slightly dazed and confused.
Derrick Kinney
Okay.
Sten Morgan
Because you would— you will enter that room thinking you know things, and, and you will leave thinking, I know very little. Which, which has some conflicting emotions that come with it.
Derrick Kinney
Right, right.
Sten Morgan
But the hope should be is that every once in a while where our system is shocked into being more open-minded about there could be a better way that maybe is actually quicker where I wanna go. It actually might not be as difficult and confusing. But most people, a lot of business owners, a lot of entrepreneurs like us are guilty of this, is we’ll defend our position at all costs and stay stuck versus being really open-minded.
Derrick Kinney
That’s good. We defend our position and stay stuck, or we’re open-minded. That line there—
Sten Morgan
Or we’ll lay it all on the line. I mean, I’ve done this. It’s like, there’s no chance, but I’m doubling down. I’m gonna die on this hill. And everyone’s looking around being like, does he know that? He doesn’t need to do that, that there’s a better way.
Derrick Kinney
Right. Does he know that’s the wrong hill?
Sten Morgan
That’s right, yeah.
Derrick Kinney
What is the biggest financial mistake you’ve ever made?
Sten Morgan
I have, um, made investment choices based on emotion.
Derrick Kinney
Yeah.
Sten Morgan
Um, and that’s hard to admit as an advisor.
Derrick Kinney
I’m right there with you, man.
Sten Morgan
Yeah. What I’ve learned with business owners, athletes I work with, people in the music industry, whenever there’s like cash sitting around or liquidity events, somehow we get really loose, a little bit reckless, and we just want to start throwing money in things. And so a system I developed for our clients years ago is what I call the investment decision filter. And this is something we all need. And so for every listener, write this down, take it, use it. There’s definitely layers to it, but at a high level, it still helps.
Before you ever make an investment choice, you need to think about these 5 things: risk, performance, fees, taxes, and time. And I had to develop this for myself ’cause it helps me pause and say, okay, do I understand all of these things?
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
Every decision should run through this whole filter. And what most people do sometimes is they focus on past performance. Well, this person said it’s done great, and a friend of mine said it was good, so I’m just gonna put money into it. Or they say fees. I don’t want to pay fees. I’m just going to go for the cheapest thing. Would you pay twice the fees for something that gave you 10X return?
Derrick Kinney
There you go. Yeah.
Sten Morgan
Of course you would. So what you’re telling me is that fees are not the only consideration. Taxes. What if we had an investment that had low tax impact, but the risk was twice what you wanted and the fees were really high? Well, I probably wouldn’t make it. And so we all need some kind of system to keep ourselves accountable. And so we teach that to all of our clients. Like, this is something that when you bring up an idea or we think about something, we’re not gonna stay stuck and bury it in the backyard ’cause that’s not wise as well.
Derrick Kinney
Right.
Sten Morgan
But we’re also not gonna get overconfident and reckless. And there’s times where, you know, crypto could be in that bucket to where a lot of us were like, oh, that sounds cool and people are making money in it. I’m just gonna throw money at it. Maybe it worked out for you, maybe it didn’t, but did you maybe put too much money in it? And then what regret comes with Wow, I was kind of reckless with money that could have done something more for my family or myself.
And I’ve had a few of those things that are, you know, 6-figure mistakes that you’re just like, how do I avoid that? And so, for me, I just needed to have a system to keep me accountable to that.
Derrick Kinney
Well, Sten, you get the last word. What’s one thing you want to leave our listeners with today?
Sten Morgan
I would say that everything you’re doing now, you’re doing good. Keep it up. The idea or the pressure that it’s never enough. But I also want to say that I know you’re capable of more. And I think as I coach people, I want to hold both of those things true at all times, is that as you hear this podcast, if you feel that you’re in this state of like, I’m not good enough, I have to do more, and it’s an anxious feeling, you know, you’re on it, you’re on a path, you’re on a journey. Sit in it.
But I also wanna say, but I know that you’re capable of more.
Derrick Kinney
Hmm.
Sten Morgan
And so if we can learn to sit in tension, that’s helped me be a lot healthier. And what’s amazing is the success you want and you think you’re gonna get when you operate at this high level of like aggression and competition all the time, you know, I don’t surf, but I can imagine if you fight the wave, it doesn’t go as well as if you just kind of give into the process of it. And so, if you’re listening to this podcast, you’re already doing it.
Like, you’re curious and willing to learn, but try not to get swept away in that because I’ve worked with enough business owners and advisors that if you get too aggressive and too intense and aren’t kind to yourself in the process, you’ll regret it. But I also hope that everybody listening knows, yeah, but I think I can do more.
Derrick Kinney
I love it. What a great way to end this episode. Sten, before we let you go, how can our listeners connect with you?
Sten Morgan
So on the advisor front, we’d love to hang out with you, jump on one of our calls, come to one of our live events. That’s eadvisornetwork.com.
Derrick Kinney
Okay.
Sten Morgan
eadvisornetwork.com.
Derrick Kinney
Okay.
Sten Morgan
Yep. And then on the legacy side, you know, I get to still work with clients and we love that. That’s investlegacy.com. So if anybody listening is like, man, the way he talks about his practice feels different and I want to get uncomfortable and have him lean in, we’d love to talk to you too. Great.
Derrick Kinney
Sten Morgan, thank you for being on the Good Money Podcast. I have really enjoyed our conversation together.
Sten Morgan
Thanks, my friend. We’ll talk soon.
Derrick Kinney
At the end of each podcast, I give you a roadmap to help you get into the top 1% of your field. You know, Sten said something very interesting. 10X is easier than 2x. And as I really process that concept, so many people get wrapped around what would it take to double my business? But they really forget that actually it’s the same level of energy it would take to grow it by 10 times. And when you’re thinking 10 times down the road, as opposed to 2 times down the road, you’re making bigger, bolder, more strategic, specific decisions.
And don’t forget that whether you’re in any type of advice business, whether you’re an attorney, a realtor, a CPA, any job that our listeners have where you’re face-to-face with a prospective client, That’s how you want to be thinking, is big and long-term. Many people tend to set goals that are within their comfort zone. The comfort zone has been the zone that has held more people back than almost anything in business. What I find is if you want to be successful, you have to accept being successful at being uncomfortable. That is the key. They want to achieve incremental growth.
They want to grow 1 times, 2 times, but when you’re thinking bigger, You know, I watched the movie The Founder recently, how McDonald’s was started, and they talked about the big vision they had of taking over the entire country. It wasn’t just, let me establish one restaurant and put all my energies there. They wanted to perfect their systems and structures and processes, just like a franchise model, so they could replicate it easily and scale it. Imagine if you had to rethink every single McDonald’s all around the country. We’d probably have 5 of them right now.
Instead, there’s been billions of burgers sold because one person well thought one concept and replicated it. That’s how you achieve 10X scale, and every advice giver listening can achieve that. You know, but if you think in terms of 10x, it requires you to step out of your comfort zone. And that would be the takeaway I have for all of you listening right now. And here’s a personal challenge that I give myself every day. What can I do to be uncomfortable and do the hardest possible thing that I need to do to grow my business before noon every day?
There’s nothing worse than procrastinating, doing what you know you need to do and waiting until 5 o’clock to do it. You’ve procrastinated and it’s gotten worse the entire day. But if you get up, get on the Peloton bike, hit the gym, go for the walk, have a great cup of coffee, and then you crush whatever is the hardest thing, the most uncomfortable thing you need to do, you will feel so good the rest of the day. It’s like eating your favorite dessert all day. Focus on uncomfortable. Long-term, it’s the best way to become comfortable.
Thanks for listening to the Derrick Kinney Podcast on Modern American Advisor. Do you want to attract more $3 million to $10 million clients and grow your business? Then check out successforadvisors.com. That’s successforadvisors.com. And remember, if you want a business that’s booming, focus on the human. We’ll see you next time.
About Sten Morgan
Sten Morgan is a financial advisor, advisor coach and author dedicated to helping financial professionals and business owners unlock their full potential. Based in the Nashville area, he leads Elite Advisor Network while continuing to serve wealth management clients through Legacy. Through his coaching, speaking and writing, Sten challenges advisors to embrace curiosity, recognize their unique strengths and build businesses centered on long-term value rather than conventional industry practices.
He is the author of Wish I Knew That Sooner, Future Self and The Seven Mindsets of Success, where he explores leadership, mindset, financial decision-making and personal growth. His work equips advisors with practical frameworks for making better decisions, strengthening client relationships and creating lasting impact.
Books Mentioned
- Wish I Knew That Sooner – Sten Morgan
- Future Self – Sten Morgan
- The Seven Mindsets of Success – Sten Morgan
- 10X is Easier Than 2x – Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy
- Who Not How – Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy
- Essentialism – Greg McKeown
- Not Nice – Aziz Gazipura
FAQs
Who is Sten Morgan?
Sten Morgan is a financial advisor, advisor coach and author who helps financial professionals build stronger businesses through intentional leadership, continuous learning and practical decision-making frameworks. He also leads Elite Advisor Network while continuing to serve wealth management clients.
What topics does Sten Morgan discuss in this conversation?
Sten discusses advisor growth, leadership, mindset, client value, fee-based advice, professional development, generosity and his framework for making more informed financial decisions.
What is Sten Morgan’s investment decision framework?
Sten encourages advisors and investors to evaluate every financial decision through five key considerations: risk, performance, fees, taxes and time. Rather than focusing on a single factor, he emphasizes balancing all five to make more thoughtful long-term decisions.
Why does Sten Morgan emphasize curiosity?
Throughout the discussion, Sten argues that curiosity is one of the defining characteristics of successful advisors. Remaining open to new ideas, questioning assumptions and continually learning helps professionals adapt, improve and create greater value for clients.
What can financial advisors learn from this episode?
The conversation offers practical insights into advisor growth, communicating value, overcoming self-doubt, making better financial decisions and building a business centered on long-term impact rather than short-term results.
Continue Listening
This conversation is part of Modern American Advisor’s ongoing Derrick Kinney Podcast series, featuring discussions with industry leaders, entrepreneurs and business strategists on the ideas shaping the future of wealth management.
- Jeff C. West — Understanding client objections and building stronger advisory relationships.
- Ted Moser — Why platform thinking is becoming essential for modern businesses.
- Lisa Lutoff-Perlo — Leadership, transformation and building high-performing organizations.
