Why I’m starting Financial Freedom Sooner
1st November 2017
When I started out as a Financial Planner I wrote an article for my company’s newsletter that stated a few ‘golden rules’ I was going to try my best to follow throughout my career. These were –
My golden rules
Make the most of life –financial planning isn’t all about helping people make the most money but, more importantly, about helping them use what they’ve got to make the most of their lives
People not products – always put people, and their hopes, dreams and fears, before products.
The Mum Test – I will always ask myself when dealing with clients “what would I tell my mum to do?” If you are giving advice you wouldn’t give your mum…then it’s probably the wrong advice.
Know my limits – have the courage to say when I don’t know something or that I can’t do something. For example, I’ve got no idea what the FTSE100 will do this year….or in any other year!
Get better – it is my professional duty to continue to learn about financial planning and how to do the job better.
Enjoy myself – no one should stick it out in a job they are not enjoying; life is too short. If I’m not enjoying what I’m doing there is no way I can help people achieve number one on this list.
Going forward
Now, as I start the adventure of running my own financial planning company, I look back at these and there isn’t a single one that I would change. In fact, I believe in them even more now than I’ve ever done. Being able to run a business completely aligned to these values is one of the main reasons I am starting Financial Freedom Sooner.
The financial planning profession has come a long way, but it still has a lot further to go to rid itself of its grubby reputation and become trusted and valued by the general public. I want to play my small part in helping it do that.
I want to show the industry there is an alternative way to provide financial advice to as many people as possible. And I want to show those people there is a different way to think about and use money to live a meaningful, satisfying and less stressful life.
A meaningful life isn’t achieved by always wanting more, taking more, owning more. We need to figure out how much is ‘enough’, then work on giving more back. That’s the way to make the most of life.