Is the grass greener in the independent channel? If you’re a wirehouse advisor today, it’s something you may find yourself wondering about more and more.

If you’re thinking about going independent or are ready to make the leap, there are a few important (and exciting!) steps to consider next. Of course, you might worry about losing name recognition after leaving the wirehouse. But just think about what you get to do now: create and tell your brand story for the first time. Why do you do what you do? Whom do you do it for? What support do you rely on from the new firm you’ve partnered with, and how does it help you better serve your clients and evolve as an advisor and business owner?

Your firm’s “brand” is about more than the message or tone conveyed by its website or logo. It’s also about you. You’re likely one of the first people to touch base with clients or prospects, and how you come across influences the connection people feel for you and the firm. In short, you’re a keeper of the practice’s brand, a teller of its story.

The coronavirus crisis upended everything advisors understood about their daily lives and businesses. You had to quickly react to ease rising client concerns, follow orders to shut down physical operations, and accommodate a suddenly remote workforce. There was no time for planning or adjusting. No playbook to follow. But after a few uncertain months, positive lessons learned from the pandemic have started to emerge—and they are likely to affect how you operate, develop teams, and work going forward.

So, here we still are. After sheltering in place and coping with weeks of volatility, we’re able to get out a bit more often as the economy has started to open. But we’re still social distancing to keep our communities safer. Many advisors are still working from home, as are many clients, which means less in-person communication than you’re used to. How, then, can you maintain and even deepen client relationships? Perhaps it’s time to try something new.