Shows / Challenge the Standard in Financial Advice
Challenge the Standard in Financial Advice
Welcome to the Challenge the Standard podcast - a podcast for financial advisers, by financial advisers. Your hosts, Nathan Fradley and Jordan Vaka, will examine the biases, fixed thinking and status quo in advice. In every episode, we'll dive deep into the world of financial advice, questioning the norms, sparking new ideas and exploring how we could do things better. Our goal is to elevate our professional practices and 'uphold and promote the standards of our profession. So, whether you're a…
Episodes
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E6 Compliance with Nadia Docker
In this week's episode, Nadia Docker from Kinetic Compliance comes on to share her insights about the ever-changing compliance landscape we advisers have to…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E5 Ethics of Portfolios
Continuing this season's theme of asking 'yeah, but who's it for?', this week we explore some of the ethical considerations advisers have around investment…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E4 Client Portals
"I just want milk that tastes like real milk." Fair to say that what started as a serious topic went off the rails pretty quickly - but today's topic was…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E3 The Single AR Challenge Video
This week, we're flashing back many, many years to a more innocent time. A purer time, where both hosts were fonts of positivity, optimism and naivete. Joking…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E2 AI v VA
UPDATE - CPD points are back!! CPD For this Episode: https://quiz.ensombl.com/CHAL-26100804-20560001 Thanks again to the team at CPD Check for letting us…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS9E1 PI Insurance with Richard Silberman
"Sorry, our PI insurer says you can't do that - we're not covered." "Our PI says we need to have this 27-step process in place before you can recommend an…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E20 Out On Your Own
This week, regular listeners may ask themselves, much like the hosts, 'haven't they done this episode before?'. Turns out that, no, not really - but it does…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E19 Screening
You've done it - you're at a point where you have enough enquiries coming in each week to fill your books. Plenty of meetings, plenty of engagements, plenty of…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E18 Pharewelling Phil with Angry Anderson
Phil Anderson, General Manager Policy, Advocacy & Standards, has announced his retirement. So, naturally, we thought we'd drag him onto the podcast again to…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E17 Post-PY Life with Hannah Elliott
Fair to say the Professional Year experience has involved a lot of pioneering spirit from all involved. And it's now been around long enough that we're seeing…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E16 Reform, At Last!
Like most of our listeners, we at Challenge the Standard believe that the regulatory landscape for financial advisers has been too stable, for too long. Just…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E15 Hiring
This week's episode is centred on important question - when should you hire staff? Inspired by a post from Matthew Jarvis on LinkedIn, Nathan and Jordan are…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E14 Walking the Talk with Kate Mitterer
How well do you remember your higher education? Beyond that - how much did you give back during your uni days? Then, coming out of those halcyon / dreaded…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E13 The Industry vs Retail Fund Dilemma
It's the debate that doesn't go away, the frustration that infuriates, the conflict that challenges - the age-old argument adviser have every day, about which…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E12 Everyone's Wrong About AI (Except Us)
Leaving aside the deeply tongue-in-cheek title, this episode was a challenge to record. After all, both Jordan and Nathan use AI every day - they're very…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E11 Vulnerable Clients
How do you recognise, assess and accommodate the vulnerabilities your clients bring into your meetings? In this week's episode, Nathan and Jordan explore the…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E10 SMSFs in 2026
Do you wind up more SMSFs that you open? So does everyone else apparently, so who is opening SMSFs then? In this episode Jordan and Nathan open SMSF…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E9 ASIC REP 833
Hot new ASIC report dropped this week and just like the classic, finger-on-the-pulse tastemakers they are, Nathan and Jordan are here to unpack it. Donning…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E8 - Q&A #3 (Careers and Ethical Dilemmas)
Take a short flight, with a hot cup of tea (but bring your own teabag) for this episode, where Jordan and Nathan answer some listener questions. They discuss…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E7 Your Capacity
How much work can you reasonably get done? How many SOAs per week, per quarter, per 40 week year is youre realistic capacity? Or is that approach old…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E6 IPOhhhhhhs...
Well, isn't this all very exciting?! Some big new listings hitting the market and it's such fun watching everybody lose. their. goddamned. minds. Rules no…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E5 Aged Care II: Retention Boogaloo
We've talked about Aged Care before, but things have changed. Lots of things! There are new rules about how fees are calculated, applied and, most importantly…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E4 Fine, We'll Do One On The Budget
Apparently the Federal Government dropped some sort of Budget thingamajig the other day. It's got many people in a lather with the injustice of it all. Dragged…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E3 Paraplanning
Say it with us...paraplanning. Paraplanning. Paraplanning. Para - planning. What is it, why is it important, who's doing it and how are they doing it? This…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E2 CSLR Consultation
We get serious this week. No guest. No banter about dentists or Jordan's latest grievance with... well, you know. Just Nathan and Jordan, a Treasury…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS8E1 Tax Planning with Martin McGrath
We're proud of all our episodes, but the level of useful gold in this one is incredible. Joined by regular guest, Martin McGrath, who seems to enjoy ganging up…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E20 The Next Stage with James D'Apice
It's hard to believe that this show has been going long enough to start building traditions, but this is absolutely one of our favourites - our annual check-in…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E19 ID, Advising Non-Couples, Scoping and Insurance Bonds
Following a run of outstanding and informative guests, this week we return to our normal programming - Jordan and Nathan mouthing off about a stack of…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E18 Human Side of Advice with Brendan Frazier
In this episode Jordan and Nathan are joined by none other than Brendan Frazier, most well known as host of The Human Side of Money Podcast. The boys discuss…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E17 Special Disability Trusts with Kathy Havers
Our recent episode on collaborating with other advisers - 'Playing Well With Others' - is one we're really proud of. And in that episode, Nathan and Jordan…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E16 Scaling Advice
Is it possible to scale good, quality, personalised financial advice? If it can be done - then how can we do it? Can we scale the advice without scaling the…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E15 Collaborative Estates with Zinta Harris
Financial advisers - you've spent your entire working relationship with your clients helping them build their wealth. How prepared are you to help them make…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E14 Discovery
Quick question for you - is the 'old' way of doing fact finding enough in the current financial advice profession? If it is, great - let us know! But if you…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E13 Playing Well With Others
Financial advice is a fairly solitary pursuit - the burden sits heavy on our individual shoulders. But, does it necessarily need to be so? In this week's…
- Challenge the Standard in Financial Advice
S7E12 QAR Revisited
Remember QAR? The noise, the fury, the outrage? The column inches, breath and spittle diverted into 'discussing' the Quality of Advice Review? Would it…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E11 Ethics of Engagement
We all know what bad engagement looks like. The shiftiness in the face of the truth, the big sales pitch, over-promises and, sadly, inevitable pain when the…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E10 AI in Advice with Stuart from Claras.ai
This week, we're joined by Stuart Riddle, of Claras.ai - one of the AI offerings in the financial advice market. Nathan and Jordan start by asking him about…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E9 Implementation
This week, Nathan and Jordan try to answer the question - how involved should you, as an adviser, be involved in implementing your advice? Well, they don't try…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E8 Gettin' Paid
Managing to keep the meandering at the start of the ep to a - wide ranging and flower-heavy - minimum, Nathan and Jordan quickly get on task today to discuss…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E7 Ethics of Age Pension Advice
As a financial adviser, you no doubt know some stuff about the Age Pension. The Income Test. The Assets Test. Thresholds, limits, reduction factors - a fair…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E6 Episode 100: POWER!
100 episodes! 100 episodes of these two goons meandering around topics that affect, interest and bewilder financial advisers in Australia. To celebrate this…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E5 We (Kinda) Read RG181
We genuinely had a plan for this episode...and then it just ran right off the rails. Which is a shame*. Because ASIC have updated their regulatory guidance…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E4 The Business of Advice with Patrick Flynn
Get in touchContinuing our streak of bringing people on, then putting them in commercially awkward positions by asking silly questions, we're joined in this…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E3 Weaknesses
Weaknesses - we've all got 'em. But, what do we do about them? This week's episode sees Jordan and Nathan exploring the idea of weaknesses: What they are (and…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E2 Can You Act? Divorce Dilemmas
Time for more dilemmas - this time, what do you do when a client (strongly) hints they want to end their marriage? How do you handle the disclosure? How do you…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS7E1 Why You Should Attend Conferences, with Glen James
You see the event announcement, and you think to yourself, "Flights, Accomodation, Time out of the business, Time away from your family... is this conference…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E20 The James Wrigley Episode
Fresh off the release of his first book - Retire Life Ready - we're joined by James Wrigley. With the largest following on social media of any Australian…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E19 The Investment Dilemma
Index vs Active - it's the investment debate we all love to keep having. Or, is it? Because what's presented as a flat, binary choice is really much more…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E18 Ethics of CPD with Clayton Daniel
How much of your actual development as a professional is being captured via your CPD obligations? Are you only doing 40 hours of learning across the year? Or…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E17 Referrals
Referrals. We all need them. We all want them. And we're all, to some degree, getting them. But what works? Why does it work? And, critically, what doesn't…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E16 Expectations
We're getting philosophical again this week, but unlike our other meanderings up our own backsides - this one has real value for listeners*. Nathan realised…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E15 First Meetings
We can all agree that the first meeting is crucial. But - why? What are you looking for out of that meeting? What makes the first meeting a successful one?…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E14 Trusts & Div7A In Divorce with Ashley Taylor
We're joined this week by Ashley Taylor, accredited family law specialist from Lander & Rogers. Ashley's here to help us unpack the trickier financial…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E13 Private Assets
We've thought about doing an episode about private credit, equity and markets for a while now - but couldn't ever work out the right angle to take on such a…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E12 Roll for Niche
You've heard the experts (and these two mugs) repeatedly say "you should niche". But they never pay you the courtesy of explaining how. Well, let us rectify…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E11 Social Media Success with Deline Jacovides
What's stopping you from being more active on social media? From a professional perspective, that is - I'm sure you're forever taking photos of your meals on…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E10 Q&A2: Annuities, Tax Deductible Fees, Insurance Commissions & Workflow
This week we're back with a Q&A episode, tackling three big questions that have been landing in our inbox from our listeners. New and exciting Annuity…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E9 The Gameshow
This week's episode is about an incredibly serious, meaningful topic. Just kidding. It's a gameshow!! Mr Fradley has designed an excellent gameshow to put his…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E8 The Power of Peers with Charmaine Hall
This week's episode is all about the immense difference a network of peers can have on your career, practice and life. Joined by Charmaine Hall of Unbound…
Challenge the Standard in Financial AdviceS6E7 Ethical Dilemmas in Pricing
Whether it's sheer coincidence or not, Nathan and Jordan have happened to have a few...interesting pricing cases float their way since last week's episode on…