In recent conversations with investors, I have been struck by the level of skepticism many feel about whether their advisor's and firm's interests are truly aligned with theirs.What's especially interesting is that the majority of these investors haven't fired their advisors - but are simply looking at the advice they're receiving with a much more jaundiced view.

An article in the May issue of Atlantic Magazine, titled "Why I fired my broker" does an excellent job of capturing the broad sense of being unsure who to trust that many investors today share.This article is not a rant, far from it. Rather it presents a rational recitation of some of the elements that have caused reasonable investors to become skeptical (and in some cases cynical) about the advice they've received in the past and are getting today.

Five of the key messages in the article:

1. Like many, this writer and his wife feel shell-shocked by last year's downturn. "I took a random walk down Wall Street and got hit by a bus."

2. Investors are interpreting messages about the need to focus on the long term as being a cop- out on the part of the financial industry. What the writer hears is "Give up - you're not going to make money for five, ten or twenty years, get used to it."

3. Many investors are paralyzed because of the level of uncertainty we're all operating in. A Nobel prize-winning economist says "You no longer know the world you live in - it's unclear what rules apply."

4. This writer, like many investors, is unsure who to believe and who to trust. Bill Gross, America's best known bond manager, says "The system is rigged against average investors." The writer goes on to say "My crucial mistake was believing that brokers, wealth managers and the cable-tv oracles who make up the financial services industry complex had my best interests at heart."

5. Despite the title of the article, he says "I didn't fire my broker - he fired me, when I haven't heard from him since before September."

Consider taking twenty minutes this weekend to read this article - and think about whether some of your clients might be feeling the same way that this writer does.

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/print/200905/goldberg-economy?x=23&y=2

The good news is that he is not giving up on investing or on working with a financial advisor. In his concluding remarks, he writes "Our main job right now is finding someone to advise us - this is a very difficult task."

There is much work ahead for the financial industry. High on the list of tasks is rebuilding trust among many investors, not just trust that the market will be a good place to be going forward but trust in the advisor and firm they work with.

An important first step is understanding what has led to the heightened skepticism on the part of many investors - and this article is as good a place as any I've seen to begin that process.

In future articles, I'll explore how to go about rebuilding trust with investors.