It's not just about the money

It was in 2002 it really clicked with me; it’s not just about the money, there are much more important things to life!

I had just read a letter from a client thanking me for not getting money and life mixed up. Four years previously I had met with her and her husband and discussed the importance of building up their most important asset, their “memory bank” of experiences.

At our initial meeting they had said they could not afford to go and see their first grandchild, who lived in Australia with his parents. Having just completed an in depth financial audit of their assets, I was the wrong person to say that to.

I’ve said many times that “I’m paid for my opinion”; that day I told them that using their money wisely was building their bank of memories, especially now that they had a grandson to go and see.

In 2002, four years after our initial meeting, Sarah wrote to me stating that they had taken my advice, gone over to Australia six times over a three year period and built up both memories and a wonderful relationship with their grandson. It was the best time of their lives, thankfully embraced before her husband received news of his aggressive and terminal cancer.

It brought home to me that in the high pressure world of banking in which I was working I easily could have ignored the important issues and simply striven to secure business without thinking about need. It was time to go!

I decided to start my own business looking at the short and long term goals of my clients. I call this, "focusing on the core," the things that are central to our lives, and that money supports, protects or enhances.

As the important things in life can change, I only work with clients who see me on an annual basis, whether this be in my office in Ayr or in their homes the length and breadth of the UK.

If you are interested in working with a financial planner who operates this way then please contact me.