Sandy page isn’t the type of advisor to complain about how difficult it is to balance life and work. She had to motivate herself to work independently from home since she had her first child 12 years ago.

“I learned to do what I had to do,” she says.

Along the way, Page has learned some other ways to ensure that the balance in her life is maintained:

> Build Your Client Base Slowly. “It’s a commitment, emotional and time-wise, to get a client’s financial package together,” she says. “I’m very careful about how I grow it. I don’t advertise. I’m not in the Yellow Pages and I don’t have a Web site.”

> You Can’t Do It On Your Own. Page says one of the biggest challenges to working independently is hiring the right people. Whether it’s a nanny — Page had one for years, when her children were younger — or dependable administrative staff, Page has long understood that good help is essential. Last year, she hired both an assistant to do administrative work and a university graduate who had just finished his CFP course to handle the analytical analysis.

> Seek Out The Right Client base. Page seeks out clients she truly likes and respects — and who believe, as she does, that health, fitness and balance are an integral part of life. The quality of the time Page spends at work improves when she works with people who are genuinely kind and respectful, who have a good heart and who care about the world.

> Do What You Say, And Say What You Do. Page’s rule of thumb is to meet with clients every six months to review their portfolio, and every 12 to 18 months to redo their plan. Within that time frame, she’ll have several activities that need to be addressed with each client.

Clients become so accustomed to her tracking that they know when to expect a phone call or e-mail reminder about any one of their planned actions, she says.

“It’s not necessarily complicated, but all this stuff needs to get done,” Page explains. “I think the industry falls down in this regard because they don’t do those little things they say they’re going to do.” — WENDY CUTHBERT