Harp Sandhu, senior wealth advisor and portfolio manager at Sandhu Wealth of Raymond James Ltd.Supplied
In the Behind the Advice series, Globe Advisor asks advisors about their relationship with money from a young age, lessons learned over the years and how their experiences influence the advice they give clients. Season 3 of the Behind the Advice podcast is now out! You can find episodes from all three seasons here.
Harp Sandhu, senior wealth advisor and portfolio manager with Sandhu Wealth at Raymond James Ltd. in Victoria, talks about growing up in a small British Columbia lumber town, how he got into financial services, and why he thinks Mr. Miyagi of The Karate Kid would make a great advisor.
Describe your upbringing.
I grew up in Campbell River, B.C., the oldest of three sons born to parents who emigrated from India in 1970. My dad worked at the local lumber mill, and my mom stayed home to raise us kids. It was a fairly typical immigrant upbringing, struggling between being Canadian and the internal pressures of being Indian. My parents were pretty strict, with an emphasis on working hard and saving money.
What was your experience with money as a kid?
I started working in elementary school, with three paper routes starting in Grade 6. Then, in Grade 10, my dad got me a job at the sawmill where he worked, doing weekend cleanup. It was hard work. I learned early in life the value of money and how hard people work for it. It also made me realize I didn’t want to work in a lumber mill for the rest of my life. I wanted to pursue a post-secondary education and a higher-paying job, so I could enjoy the things I wanted in life.
When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up, and how did you get into financial services?
I thought I wanted to be a doctor for a little while. Then, I was thinking about a management job of some kind. After graduating with a degree in economics from the University of Victoria, I began my career at Royal Bank of Canada as a personal banker and later became a mutual fund specialist at the branch. I then worked at Edward Jones and, after a couple of stops at smaller independent firms, I started Sandhu Wealth at Raymond James in early 2014.
What is the biggest money mistake you’ve made and what did you learn from it?
In my mid-20s, I bought a speculative stock with about $20,000 from my RRSP and lost it all. It was during the dot-com crash. I learned early on not to treat the stock market like a casino.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received in your career?
A former manager once told me that being successful in this business isn’t about trying to triple your clients’ money every year. It’s about making enough money for them to live well in retirement. It’s about caring for your clients. That always stuck with me.
What advice do you wish had been shared with you early in your career?
It’s not hard to get wealthy slowly. Be boring. Buy and hold very good dividend-paying stocks.
What’s the hardest piece of money advice for you to follow?
Because my parents were frugal and I didn’t have many things I wanted early in life, I was looser with my money than I should have been early in my career. Perhaps I was trying to catch up on things I had missed earlier in my life. I made some big-ticket purchases that, in hindsight, were not the best ideas at that stage of my life and career.
I’m at a point in my life at which I’m blessed to have more of what I want, but what’s interesting is that I tend not to go after material things anymore.
I find that experiences are much more important now, such as travel. If I do want to make a more substantial purchase, I set goals to then reward myself.
A year ago, I purchased a new home after renting for almost nine years. It felt great knowing I worked hard to have it.
What advice do you have for someone who wants to enter your business?
Don’t forget that you’re a salesperson. It doesn’t matter how good you are at wealth advisory; you still need to sell yourself to the client.
Which famous person or fictional character would make a great financial advisor, and why?
Mr. Miyagi from The Karate Kid franchise. He was very even-keeled, disciplined and gave good advice. He also wasn’t afraid of people getting upset with how he did things. He was the expert. It’s the same with advisors.
Clients hire you for a reason. One of the things I say to my clients is, ‘We’re not going to co-manage your assets.’ I don’t want my name on a statement for investments I didn’t make. And, if I get it wrong, I will own that mistake.
This interview has been edited and condensed