Lauren,
Great article, which I have forwarded along to many across my firm. I really appreciate how you took some self-selecting questions and dug down to the "latent variables" of trust, communication, and finding a solution for a client. These qualities may or may not be true for a firm that gets all "no" or all "yes" responses.

The real strength of a "trusted adviser" despite the number of the superficial questions that can be marked with a "yes" check mark to the five you cite is, The next time you are faced by a question and a perceived need from a client or prospect, and you look for a real solution inside or outside of your platform for the client(s)' needs, do you face an easy or difficult decision? Is it something you have and do well, perhaps as well or better than the competition? Or do you not solve the real problem, but sell what you have? If you can't truly find a viable solution that you can deliver at all, would you refer a solution that makes sense (despite making a referral away from your firm)? Depending on the answers above, should you really be so "trusted" by your clients?

Perhaps another article on the ethics of saying, "No, we don't or can't do that, but call this person because, in my opinion, it is your bet choice." might be interesting? A bit of a combination of listening to the client and delivering bad news... managing expectations: aka, "What I hear you need is this, but a) I don't think that exists, or b) we can't offer it, so you should call xyz." Sometimes a tough to deliver answer of what you cannot do builds trust in the future, and is rewarded by more business on what you can deliver. Plus, it keeps you from over-promising and under-delivering - a certain combination that erodes trust.