Financial planners are trained to design technically sound recommendations, yet many experience frustration when clients fail to follow through. This presentation reframes so-called “resistance” not as client defiance, but as meaningful data about trust, anxiety, ambivalence, and readiness for change.
Drawing from financial therapy, behavioral science, and counseling psychology, Dr. Megan McCoy introduces practical tools planners can immediately apply in client conversations. Attendees will explore stages of change, cognitive dissonance, financial anxiety, trust formation, and common behavioral traps that undermine follow-through. The session also addresses couple dynamics, identity-based goal setting, and how to translate abstract financial objectives into emotionally compelling motivations.
Participants will leave with concrete strategies, including active listening techniques, anxiety assessment tools, motivational reframing methods, and behavior design principles. The focus is on helping planners reduce conflict, strengthen commitment, and build durable client relationships without abandoning professional boundaries.
Ideal for financial professionals seeking to deepen client engagement, improve retention, and confidently navigate emotionally complex planning situations.
Dr. Megan McCoy, Ph.D., LMFT, AFC®, CFT-I™ is acting Program Chair and an Associate Professor at Kansas State University’s Personal Financial Planning program. She teaches courses at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels focused on financial well-being, financial therapy, and couple dynamics regarding finances. She serves on the Financial Therapy Association's Board of Directors and was the past Associate editor of the Journal of Financial Therapy. She is currently co-editor for the Financial Planning Review. She was also a guest editor on a special issue on finances for Contemporary Family Therapy.
Dr. McCoy’s research interests focus on financial therapy, financial well-being, and financial communication, as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion issues. She has published over forty articles in top-tier mental health, family science, financial counseling, and financial planning journals. This year, her research has won awards from the National Council of Family Relations and the Financial Therapy Association. Dr. McCoy has been awarded grants from the Financial Planning Association, the National Endowment for Financial Education, and FP Canada to continue research on how to integrate client psychology topics into financial planning to foster trust and commitment with clients.