The wrong advisor can quietly cost you hundreds of thousands.

Even a 1% annual difference in fees or returns can cost over $240,000 in retirement value.

Part of The Evidence-Based Advisor Selection Series™

Why We Trust — and How It Costs Us.

Most investors rely on intuition or reputation when choosing an advisor.

Institutions don’t. They use measurable criteria, documented performance, and structured accountability — because experience has shown that trust alone is not a reliable safeguard.

Part of the Evidence-Based Advisor Selection Series™

The Hidden Cost of Misaligned Advice

Most investors assume poor performance is market-driven. In reality, it’s often incentive-driven.

When an advisor’s pay or product bias shapes their recommendations, you pay for it in lost returns, unnecessary fees, and missed opportunities.

Institutional investors demand alignment, transparency, and proof. You should too.

"It’s not about trusting more. It’s about verifying better."

The Cost of Blind Trust

Most investors never see the impact of under-performance and fees.

1% less return = roughly $240,000 lost over 20 years.

Assumes $1,000,000 portfolio, 20-year compounding, 8% vs 9% return.

Even a seemingly modest 1% annual difference in advisor costs can quietly erode more than $240,000 from a $1 million portfolio over 20 years.

"The wrong incentives compound losses the same way good investments compound gains."

Even small gaps compound quietly. The checklist reveals where they hide.

Meet the Advisor Who Advised the Institutions

Paul Powell

Former Institutional Advisor | Managed $2B | Top 300 in Nation

Before founding Educated Investors, Paul Powell was one of the Top 300 financial advisors in the United States, managing over $2 billion in retirement plan assets for Fortune 500 companies.

After two decades in the institutional world, he saw a disturbing truth:

the same rigorous hiring standards used by major companies were never applied by individual investors.

So he built a system to fix that —

the Evidence-Based Hiring™ Framework.

“Institutions don’t hire on trust. They hire on proof.” — Paul Powell

The same framework Paul used to evaluate institutional managers overseeing billions.

Meet the Advisor Who Advised the Institutions

Paul Powell

Former Institutional Advisor | Managed $2B | Top 300 in Nation

Before founding Educated Investors, Paul Powell was one of the Top 300 financial advisors in the United States, managing over $2 billion in retirement plan assets for Fortune 500 companies.

After two decades in the institutional world, he saw a disturbing truth:

the same rigorous hiring standards used by major companies were never applied by individual investors.

So he built a system to fix that —

the Evidence-Based Hiring™ Framework.

“Institutions don’t hire on trust. They hire on proof.” — Paul Powell

The same framework Paul used to evaluate institutional managers overseeing billions.

The Evidence-Based Hiring™ Framework helps investors make smarter, safer decisions when choosing a financial advisor.

The framework translates institutional due-diligence standards into a disciplined model any investor can apply when evaluating a financial advisor.

The Four Pillars of

Evidence-Based Hiring^™

Expertise

Advisors should prove specialized skill in your area of need — retirement income, business exits, or tax strategy.

What this means for you: You’ll know your advisor is qualified for your situation, not just generally experienced.

Transparency

Every incentive, cost, and potential conflict must be visible in writing.

What this means for you: You’ll finally see how your advisor really gets paid — and whether their incentives align with yours.

Accountability

Advisors should agree to measurable benchmarks and written progress reports.

What this means for you: You’ll have hard data, not guesswork, to know if your advisor is actually earning their fee.

Alignment

Advisors should be compensated in ways that advance your interests — not their own.

What this means for you: You’ll know your advisor’s advice is guided by your goals, not by commissions, product sales, or asset-based fees.

Applied together, these dimensions replace the subjective question of who to trust with an empirical one: what does the evidence show?

The result is a shift from assumption to analysis—and from dependence on personality to confidence in process.

You can apply the same pillars institutions use —

this checklist shows how.

You can use the same three pillars institutions rely on. The checklist shows how.

From Trust to Proof

Clarity begins when advice is measured, not assumed. Institutions don’t rely on personality or referrals — they rely on evidence.

Most investors pick advisors based on personality or referrals.

Institutions don’t. They use data, incentives, and performance audits.

The Evidence-Based Hiring™ Framework brings that discipline to individuals — so you can choose an advisor with evidence, not emotion.

Institutions follow a process. Now individual investors can too.

The Six Steps of the Evidence-Based Hiring Method

The same due diligence process institutions use to vet asset managers — simplified for individuals.

1 Define Your Goal

Clarify what success looks like — retirement income, business exit, or growth target.

Every great decision starts with clarity.

2 Set Minimum Criteria

Decide your non-negotiables: fiduciary status, credentials, experience, AUM range.

You deserve proven expertise.

3 Conduct Due Diligence

Request documentation: Form ADV, fee schedule, regulatory filings, investment process.

Ask for data. Watch who hesitates.

4 Select Finalists to Interview

Compare how each advisor communicates, documents, and defends their strategy.

Good advisors welcome tough questions.

5 Negotiate a Fair Fee.

Choose a flat or fixed fee that rewards results — not asset size.

Incentives should serve you, not them.

6 Establish an Accountability Framework

Set measurable benchmarks and quarterly reviews.

Oversight turns promises into proof.

Institutions follow a process. Now individuals can too.

What the Data Shows

Independent studies continue to confirm what disciplined investors have known for years:

Transparency, accountability, and alignment drive better outcomes.

Investors who evaluate their advisors using objective criteria—fee structure, fiduciary status, and documented results—retain more wealth and experience greater long-term confidence in their plans.

Yet fewer than one in five investors ever ask for measurable proof.

The Evidence-Based Advisor Selection Series™ was created to change that—by helping individuals apply the same standards institutions have relied on for decades.

"The difference between hope and confidence is evidence."

Evidence isn’t opinion. It’s how disciplined investors make better decisions.

The Educated Investor Blog

Insights and analysis for investors who make decisions based on evidence, not persuasion.

Each article in the Educated Investor Blog examines the real-world forces that shape financial outcomes—how incentives work, where conflicts hide, and why transparency matters.

Our goal is to help investors think independently, evaluate advisors critically, and make decisions that stand up to evidence.

What Makes a Good Financial Advisor? The Institutional Standard

Individual investors can evaluate financial advisors like institutions do—using structure, not trust. Learn how to apply professional standards, assess alignment, and verify advisor performance with... ...more