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Pursuing Progression in Your Financial Planning Career · Financial Planner Life Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: And today's guest on the Financial Plan Alive podcast is Ben Slater from Stephen Eve Financial Planning.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_01: Ben talks about his transition from employed to self-employed.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_01: In the last 18 months, he's managed to get 21 million of assets under management.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_01: Keep it simple.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_01: So on today's podcast, he's going to delve deep into his career transition from employed to self-employed, how he did it, why it doesn't need to be scary, and why keeping it simple is the best route forward for growing a financial planning business.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_01: Ben, thank you for joining me today on the Financial Planner Life podcast.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_01: Nice and early.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_01: How are you?
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: I'm very well, thank you, Sam.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, thanks for having me.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: Looking forward to our uh conversation today.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_01: No, thank you so much.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_01: I think you responded, didn't you, to uh the post I put out.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_01: I'm looking for for guests that can really kind of add some value to our listeners now around sort of high performance people that have made pivotal changes in their careers.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_01: Because a lot of our listeners, it's like peer-to-peer learning the financial plan of life.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_01: We're trying to inspire those that are listening to maybe make some of those changes that they're worried about.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's the stories that get brought to the table from the guests on the financial plan of life that inspire people to either join the profession or to make that step from employment to self-employment or to hire a marketing person.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_01: So today it's all about understanding your journey, the value that you can add to our listeners and helping people.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_01: That's what it's all about, isn't it?
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_01: Adding value to those in a profession that often was quite quiet, quite insular.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_01: People weren't really helping each other.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_01: And we want to change that with financial planning.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the aging out of the advisor and the next generation of individuals like yourself coming through, I think it's going to be a more collaborative environment because there's plenty of clients to go around, isn't there?
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, I totally agree.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think um the way people are interacting, young advisors, people coming through the industry is great.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: I think the industry needs to be a do a better job, however, of discussing and talking about opportunities.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: So if our conversation today can inspire someone that's looking to get into the career or looking to go self-employed, as you discussed, then great.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Because um I've been in it for 10 years now at quite a young age, so I've seen quite a lot and seen quite a lot of change.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: So hopefully I can, you know, add some value to certain listeners and uh yeah, give some guidance, which would be great.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: Fantastic.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: Let's take a look at the listeners now who might be thinking about getting into the financial planning profession.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: And what they're always interested in is how our guests got into the financial planning profession and really what their first few years felt like.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_01: So tell us a little bit about that.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no problem at all.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: So I bet you get this answer all the time is that uh I wasn't planning on getting into financial services.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: I've not met one person yet that has planned on getting into financial services, but they've all stuck around, so it must be a it must be a good thing.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, yeah, like most, I was 18, um, come to the end of my A levels, and I was looking at various apprenticeships.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: So I knew university wasn't a route for me.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I've always worked, always liked to earn my own money.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I came across an apprenticeship in a local financial services business in Nottingham for a client services administrator.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_00: Didn't really have a clue what one of those was.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: I didn't really have a clue what financial advice was.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um so I went along to this interview and got the job in the end after a series of interviews and found myself in an office environment very quickly with some financial planners, some administrators, um, and quite a small SME, you know, 50 members of staff, something like that, um, helping clients to provide financial advice.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Now, at that point in time, I had no idea what financial advice was.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: So that was a the start of my learning curve, so to speak.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: But it certainly wasn't a planned entry into the industry by any means.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: So you decided to join that firm.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_01: That firm gave financial planning, it was your entry point into the role, a kind of now what's considered to be a traditional route into the profession.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: Well, actually, there's two.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_01: One is going straight into, say, an academy and becoming a financial planner.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: The other seems to be starting out as an administrator, working your way through power planning and then becoming a financial planner.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: There's two different routes.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_01: And each one really is relevant to somebody where they are in their life based on their experience, what they can possibly bring to the table in perspective their relationships, skill sets, and all those typical types of things.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: Now, you started out as an administrator.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: Let's look at that first of all for anybody that's thinking about doing that.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: And it's lots of them in my financial plan of life academy.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_01: And for anybody listening that wanted to get into the profession, get yourself into my financial plan of life academy because you can get your qualifications and some skills and uh training uh to get you into job opportunities.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_01: What do you think you need to enter into the profession as an administrator?
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: What do you think a candidate going to a job interview or applying for those jobs needs to really evidence and bring to the table to give them the best chance of actually getting that job and having a great first year?
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think a lot of it, I don't really think it's about the skills.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: I think you can learn all of that on the job.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: So I had no idea what financial services was, um, what they did, I didn't even know what an ISA was, you know, anything like that.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: I was 18 and quite naive to the to the industry.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it's just the personal skills.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: So you need to be, you need to evidence that you're a good person, you're willing to learn, um, willing to develop, and most importantly, you you care because I think that's what this industry is all about.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: So hopefully that's what came through in my initial interview when I was 18, um, all those years ago.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I don't think you need any particular um skills or or sort of um knowledge about the industry.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: I suppose it's more the personal skills that I think are most important.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're uh willing to learn and uh good with people, I think you'll do absolutely fine in this profession.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: And the rest can be taught, the exam material, all that sort of stuff.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: Fantastic.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I think um from my perspective, that's absolutely true.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: It's really about high trust.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_01: When I look at people who join my business and the people that I want to work with, skill sets can be taught.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: The job can be taught.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: I want to see whether or not I can trust that person.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: You know, can I trust that person to turn up?
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: Are they accountable?
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: Do they have a willingness to learn?
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_01: Can they self-reflect?
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_01: Can they look at sort of things that they've done in their life that they can evidence and articulate in a competency interview that shows that they have they've they've learned something and they've changed something that was quite difficult in their life, how they overc how they've actually overcome it.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: I think when somebody sits in front of me and is able to articulate life's learnings, but also life's ambitions that are realistic and that they can manage their realistic expectations.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_01: And at the same time, they can dip into some industry knowledge to bring something to the table that actually says, uh, you know, I know what's going on at St.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_01: James's place at the moment.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_01: I understand what's going on around the charging structures and how difficult that could be.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_01: I understand it's 95% of the population that can't afford uh financial advice based on the current charging structures, and I know that people are out there creating subscription models and flat fee models and all those difficult types of things.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: I think when you have some solid knowledge and you can actually have a conversation in the meeting, you look and find the type of person that they want to hire.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: One of the difficulties is getting in front of those individuals.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_01: And in our academy, we teach people how to do that, you know, because there is something that you have to do yourself to get in front of people.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: Because if you lean into the likes of recruitment consultants who get paid a fee to put somebody in front of an advisor, they're usually paid a fee to bring somebody to the table that's got experience.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_01: Now, you need to be somebody that is going out and finding that job opportunity yourself.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_01: Did you do that or did you um lean into a recruiter?
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: How did you go about actually getting that job opportunity?
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, I agree exactly with what you just said, first of all.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_00: And for me, the individual needs to care.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_00: That's so important in this industry.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: If if you don't care, don't start.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_00: If you just want a job and to get paid, this industry I would say is not for you because you do need to care, and it's all about the client that you're working on.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: But in terms of how I got into it, so I actually enrolled with a business college, a local business college in Nottingham.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and they were offering up a series of different apprenticeships with in different industries.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it was a business college, it was called.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: So business had always sort of intrigued me.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_00: I'd done business studies at A levels and economics and things, so I thought, well, it's worth a go.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so they got me uh an interview at um the the company in Nottingham, um, sent over my C V and got this series of interviews.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so it was it was through a business college actually, and it was an apprenticeship route that I began my my career on.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: Fantastic.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: Was the firm that you joined?
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um, was that also part of the apprenticeship as well?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: So you entered that firm on an apprenticeship.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: Correct, yeah.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_00: So that I think I was the first um employee they'd done that for.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: So the first uh apprentice through the door, hopefully a success story for them.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um and again, it was a typical advice business that had been through the the years and years of change, you know, changing the fee models, RDR, um, advisor charging, all that kind of stuff.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but it was a really good firm, I must add.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um family run.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, they really cared about their clients and their staff.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um so I think I was a bit of a challenge and a bit of a you know a new um a new prospect for them to get started with.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the finan there is a financial planning apprenticeship out there, and I think when people think about apprenticeships, you always think about, oh, I'm starting at the bottom, bottom, I'm making the cups of teas, you know, it's only for young people.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: I think really like the name apprentice because it does sort of have connotations of someone leaving school at 16.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, an apprenticeship is for anybody at any age, and there are firms that utilize the apprenticeship model.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_01: And when they utilize the apprenticeship model, what often happens is that you're outsourcing things like the training and the development through that apprenticeship organization.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_01: Did you go through qualifications with the apprenticeship organization?
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_01: Was there like a set structure?
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: And how long was that structure?
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: How long did it last?
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: And what did you do?
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, there was.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I think back then this was 10 years ago, it probably wasn't as advanced as it is now.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: So I did start on some really low-level exams.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I think I can't remember what they're called, ER one and ER2, I think they were, something like that.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, from memory.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: I may have got that wrong, but yeah, so there's a couple of studies, and I went through like a level four um or level three qualification um with them.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: So by the end of it, I had a certificate in financial planning or financial advice administration, um, and that was it, basically.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: So it was an MVQ level four, by the way, not the diploma level four.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: So it was quite a basic apprenticeship.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_00: There weren't any higher level exams, which did come later through you know, both me pushing and the business offering me those, but it's nowhere near what the current apprenticeships on offer are nowadays.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: I know from first hand we've we've we'll cover this later, but we've got an employee that's just joined us, Rav, and we're putting him through a CII apprenticeship that's available now.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: So Ben, that's really I think it's got better.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Ben, that's really important to hear that actually.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um, do you think if you had your time back and you could do things differently?
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I suppose you are emulating what you'd have done differently with Rav, um, would you advise somebody who is entering the profession and at say an administrative level, entry level, uh you advise them to get cracking with the exams?
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: I would uh it's very difficult.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_00: I know everyone wants to um run before they can work.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: That was particularly the case with me.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_00: I was quite ambitious and I wanted, you know, to get all my exams done and move on and progress at every every possible step.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_00: But looking back, I think the journey I've been on has really helped me because I've been um experienced at every single level across the business.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_00: So although I probably personally would have liked to get started on the high-level exams to begin with, I don't know if that's the right thing, Sam, in all honesty.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: I think experience in the job, whether it be a year or 18 months of just you know being in the job, doing the administration, seeing what happens in the office is quite valuable.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: So, yes, you can do the exams on the side, but the exams aren't what teaches you how to do the job for me.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's the experience and the on-the-job experience.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_00: So ensuring that you're getting both side by side.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um definitely.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and and I think if you if you did start on the like the diploma level exam straight away, for example, without any previous experience, you might struggle because some of the books are pretty dull.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um, even now, me reading them, I probably wouldn't get a lot of the answers right, you know, that that they're pretty pretty boring, I must admit.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so yeah, get started as soon as you can on the exam, but don't think it's a be all and end all because it's definitely not.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: With the Financial Plan of Life Academy, when someone joins us, we've got the R01 to R06 currently at the moment.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_01: We are going to introduce LIBF and the CISI as well because we want to be quite sort of um agnostic when it comes to qualifications.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_01: We don't want to be pushing people one way because people have different learning styles and different goals.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_01: What we run alongside it also is like skills, behaviour training as well.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_01: What we like to do with the exams is they've got on-demand training, we've got like challenges, um, and we've got live.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: So for any kind of learning style, it's about making sure that we can bring those qualifications to life so they're not boring.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_01: Because if you do go directly to CII and you get the study book and you read it through the study book, you're going to fall asleep.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's going to be painful, and you're probably not going to progress quick enough and fast enough.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: And I think what the profession always lacks, which is why we brought the academy in, is a community where people can lean in, talk to each other, help each other, and also get that expert training and advice from people that know how to train and deliver uh exam, you know, how to pass the exams, for example.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: I think that accountability plays a big part in someone's learning.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: And so year one, where like it's like, oh God, I've got to drag myself through this, could actually turn in to be quite um empowering because you take accountability for your own learning.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: And the way we've done it with the academy, for example, it sounds like I'm pitching the academy constantly, but the way I do it with the academy is we only charge like 20 quid, so and there's no commitment, and someone can stay in their current job, start the qualifications, get an understanding of the skills and behaviours required, and then move into a job opportunity as well.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: So we're trying to kind of really reduce the gap in respect of learning, but empower people also to understand, look, you can take control.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_01: Did you feel like do you feel like did you feel ever at times that you weren't progressing fast enough and you were resentful for that?
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: Potentially, yeah.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: So I think I think what you're doing is fantastic.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I think more companies need to partner with firms like yourself because the the companies of financial services companies, if I look at myself, I can teach the soft skills, the client-facing skills, the on-the-job skills, but the exam study, you know, I can help out with queries and questions.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_00: But in terms of the interactive sessions and helping bring chapters and study books to life is very difficult for me to do as a financial planner.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I did it all years and years ago.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_00: So I think partnering with someone like yourself is is is going to be key.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_00: I know, again, first time at the CII now have interactive sessions and um revision studies and so on and so forth.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it's got a lot better.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_00: When I look back to when I started, it was literally a delivery of a study book and off you go, Ben.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so I was quite lucky with the firm I had.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: I think it took quite a bit of pushing from me to get more support, but in the end, I had like a dedicated individual in the business that had to sit down with once a week, go through studies, go through what I've learned.
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_00: So she was very keen on helping to teach me.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: So she wasn't a practicing financial planner, she'd been in the industry for years, but I was just lucky and fortunate that there was someone in the business that wanted to help me develop on my way, which again I think was very, very helpful.
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_00: If I look back and think I wasn't progressing quick enough, I don't think that was the case with the exams.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I reckon it was more the case with the soft skills and getting the time in with financial advisors and paraplanners to learn those soft skills.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: So later on in my career, that took off, but early on in my career, it was very much you're an administrator, stay in the admin box.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the industry really needs to change that.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_00: I think we need to have give individuals access to every bit of the business, and that's how you'll learn.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_00: The sooner you are involved in client meetings, advice reports, um, putting advice together, the better, as far as I'm concerned, and it will help you learn as well.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_01: Fantastic.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_01: Really good advice for anybody that's running a business, which you are now, uh, but also great advice for anybody that's getting into the profession, going to interviews, you know, challenge the person who's sitting in front of you.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_01: What does their career development plan look like?
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_01: Does it encourage you to get exams?
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: Does it encourage you to build upon your soft skills and practical skills?
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_01: Is there any mentoring?
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_01: Is there any training?
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_01: Is there anybody that's going to help develop you?
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: If not, can they provide something like the Academy to help you do that?
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_01: Um, also, as well, um, you've brought Rav on.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: You're going through that process with Rav at the moment.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_01: So Rav's what, in like an administrative, power planny type role?
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_01: And are you practicing what you preach?
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_01: Are you bringing him into meetings and stuff?
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, yeah.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: So Rav's background is he he actually worked at the firm.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: I was previously pot.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_00: I've actually got him an interview at that at role.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_00: So I've known Rav for a long time, a sort of family friend, so to speak.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so he's been in admin for five years.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I'm sure he won't mind me saying this, but I think he would have hoped he'd be further on than he is at the moment in his career in terms of exams done and so on and so forth.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's quite typical for the industry.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_00: So I think a lot of people get an administration job or a trainee power planner job, a promised progression, and that just slows.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's just because businesses are busy and they haven't got the time to dedicate to bringing those individuals on and helping them push through the studies.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're not very highly motivated and uh are not pushing like I was, it's very easy, I think, to stall.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I know a few individuals that I think are in are probably in that camp.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: Um so yeah, I am practicing what I preach.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_00: Rav's involved in client meetings, has been to three, four, or five already.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: He's only been with us a couple of months.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_00: You ask him how many he went to at previous firms, the answer is zero to one, um, you know, in a in a few years, which it which is which is huge.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: He comes to um seminars with me um on the job training, he's involved in the report writing.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: I include him in everything because although he hasn't got the diploma, he's a very competent individual, and therefore I don't think that should hold him back.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I'm not gonna put him in the advice field, of course.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_00: He needed the diploma and an ideally charter status for us, but there's no reason why he can't be involved in the advice journey and the and the client facing roles.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, perfect.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Ben, you obviously progressed your career into becoming a financial planner because today you're sitting behind a sign that says Stephen E financial planning, you're running your own financial planning business.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_01: How long?
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you know, how just talk to us about your your role within financial planning.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: So you you were employed first before going on to set your own business up.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um, just kind of let's just frame that a little bit.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_01: How long were you employed for?
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's fine.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: So I actually had a look on the LinkedIn earlier on to see my journey, and it's quite interesting.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_00: So um I started in June 2018, straight out of college as an apprentice, client service, and administrator, like I said.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_00: That was a two-year program.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I completed, I think, a bit early 18 months, something like that.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: So then become an administrator.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: That was a proud day.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_00: I'm got rid of the apprentice now, and I'm a fully fledged administrator.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I did that for another couple of years.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: So I think I spent three or four years as an administrator, before then finding out a bit more about the diploma exams and power planning.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_00: What was paraplanning?
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: How did that look?
• 18:44
  SPEAKER_00: And then the advice role.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_00: So very soon on in my journey, I I found out that admin can be a career for people.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_00: That's quite important to know.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: So you can paraplanning, but quite early on, I thought I quite like this advice side of the coin.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: A, because I I get on with people, um, I'm I'm a talker, I like to find out things, I like to ask questions, and I'm I'm quite um interested in in individuals.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: And the more I found out about advising, the more I found out that that suited my role or sort of my my uh personality quite well, should I say.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: So a couple of years in in admin, then I moved on to sort of training power planner role for another couple of years, then got the diploma and I was uh a power planner.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: Then we had a push at the firm to become a chartered firm, so it's quite important.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: I got chartered as soon as possible, which I did.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_00: So I think it was a couple of years doing lower level exams.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: I then passed a diploma in a year, um, which I'm really proud of.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: So an exam uh every couple of months.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I didn't find that too strenuous.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_00: I quite enjoyed the process.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and my sort of habit was pass an exam, book another one, and just keep going.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's very, very important.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: Once I got the diploma, we didn't stop, we carried on and we got the charter level exams done.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_00: And again, I must give credit to my previous firm.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_00: They pushed me along the way of those exams.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_00: I probably would have quite liked a break, but looking back, it's the best thing I did to keep going.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_00: And then I moved into advice about four years ago now.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_00: So moved into a trainee role, and I basically spent a year shadowing other advisors, looking after some lower-level clients, um, trying to build my way of speaking to clients and advise clients, which I think was very, very again valuable and accredited to the firm I was a part of because it gave me that time to learn.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um, then started taking on my own clients for a couple of years with them, um, had two really successful years.
• 20:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, when I left, I had 100 clients that I um looked after.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um, good revenues, good fee incomes, and good professional connections that had been built.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_00: And then in March 2022, it will have been, I decided that the firm for a number of reasons wasn't for me anymore.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: They'd been sold to a big uh consolidator.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and again, I think what they've done is right for certain clients and certain individuals, but for me at my point in my career, I thought, no, I need to do something different.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_00: And that's when I decided to take the leap of faith and go solo.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_00: And I can give you a lot more detail on that, I suppose, um, in the next few questions.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: Fantastic.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_01: When you built those hundred clients that you were responsible for um when you were employed, were you were those clients passed to you from other advisors?
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_01: Were you expected to go out and self-generate those clients?
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_01: Tell us a little bit about the acquisition of those clients.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so a real mixed strategy.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: So the the business developer at the the previous business was very keen on growing your own connections and getting your own clients.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of time and focus on business development.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: And for me, I'd again I was inexperienced with that.
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I'd never gone out and met someone for a coffee or explained what we do and how we can help and benefit mutual clients.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_00: So that was a journey, and I think it was a journey that's put me in great stead today.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_00: So there was a focus on generating your own clients, and you know, there's usual targets and things like that to hit in terms of new clients.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_00: There was a bit of lower level clients coming to me because I was, you know, grinding my teeth, so to speak, learning.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: The the industry.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_00: So clients that there was quite a few advisors at the business 10 to 12.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of them were very busy.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_00: So if they had clients below a certain threshold, they'd be passed to me and I'd look after them.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um and some of them are still clients today.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um and then there was also a few projects that I probably started.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_00: So the company I was part of had been around for 100 odd years.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: So huge, huge backpack of clients that had engaged at some point in time.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I had a bit of a project where every time posts came in, I would review that with the um receptionist, go through any sort of opportunity I felt was was worth pursuing.
• 22:34
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, old style pensions, old bonds, old ices, anything that's not been reviewed.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I did a lot of calling of clients and just said, look, let's have a catch-up and a review.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_00: There's no cost, and let's take it from there.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I was I was a self-starter in that way.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_00: I was really keen to grow and get my own clients.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_00: So I'd say it was a mixture of all three, um, Sam.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_00: There was definitely some past to me, which is invaluable, but there's also quite a lot of self-generated business there from older past past book clients.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_01: I'd say yeah, I really love that.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_01: You know, when you pick up a telephone and you phone people up and you've got a reason to actually call them, I love what you did there.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_01: You went through it, you look for opportunities and reasons to have a conversation with somebody, right?
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think if you're ever going to pick the phone up, if you're ever going to send a message, you have to have a reason to have that connection with them, that call with them, that conversation with them.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_01: I reached out to you, you know, we I put a post out.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_01: The post was about, you know, financial planning, high performance, running your own businesses, that kind of thing.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's a reason to reach out, or whether you want somebody on an inbound basis or an outbound basis, have a reason.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_01: Have a pain point they might be experienced, have a solution to a problem they might encounter, and tell them a little bit about it.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_01: You need to give them something and you need to engage with them because there's a hundred people that you've identified that you could possibly help.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_01: You could send a hundred emails, you could send a hundred LinkedIn messages, and you can pick up that telephone.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, there is opportunity that you can create if you identify what the actual problem is.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I think a lot of people are scared to pick up the phone because they think it's going to be a cold conversation.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_01: You need to warm up that conversation.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_01: You have to have a reason to call.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_01: Now, whether they're an existing client or they're not an existing client, whether it's uh phoning up 20 accountancy firms, you have to have a pain point that they might be experiencing or a problem they might be coming up against.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know, how can you ease the problems and the stress that they're having during end of tax year and all those things, you know?
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_01: People need to identify that.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_01: But you need to get on the phone and you need to phone people up.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_01: And there's types of things as well that can happen during the administration role, it can happen whilst you're in a power planner role.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_01: It doesn't happen to have to happen when you're in a financial advice role.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're sitting there and you're in power planning and you want to step up into client facing, why not take a back book of clients?
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_01: Why not take a backbook of marketing uh uh inquiries and make those calls?
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_01: Because the more you do it, the more you're gonna learn and the more confident you get.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_01: And more than likely, you can, well, you never predict, you can never really predict the conversation.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_01: And you don't know when you phone them, when you turn that stone over, they might have just had a huge inheritance.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_01: There might be an opportunity that arises that you'd have never known about if you didn't make that call.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: So I love that, Stephen.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, sorry, not Stephen, I'm looking at your bloody wall.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_00: I I get that all the time, so Stephen and Eve, Stephen Eve, Stephen's your middle name, Eve's your middle name and my wife's middle name, absolutely.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, brilliant.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_00: Again, a question I've probably answered a hundred times by now.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_00: It's funny the choices that we make when we set up our companies.
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_01: I know, I know, yeah, you know, it's it's it's brilliant.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: But um conversation starter, you know?
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly, exactly.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: But I'll just add on on the previous comments about you know speaking to clients and calling clients.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: I think there's a um I think people are worried about being called salesmen in this industry.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_00: And I I don't think we are salesmen, but you do need to have sales skills.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the thing that differentiates you from a salesman is you need to be passionate about what you're doing.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_00: So the reason I was calling these clients is I was confident and passionate that the strategy we were able to offer was so much better than what they'd currently got.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that used to come through in how in my conversations and how passionate I was about what I was doing.
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, you are you are selling at the end of the day.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: I think everyone's in sales to some extent.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_00: You need to sell what you believe in and what you're what you're doing.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but don't be scared of that.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, you're gonna get a few no's and you're gonna get people saying I'm not interested.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_00: And there's there's nothing wrong with that, you know, we still get it to this day.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I think um I think we can sell up sales in in a in a couple of things, right?
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: You need to be resilient, you're gonna get no's.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_01: If you're going into like a job of selling your services, you have to understand that if you make a hundred phone calls, you're gonna get more no's and you're gonna get yeses.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_01: I learned that very on, early on in my my life, because I knocked on people's doors selling things.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_01: A hundred doors I had to knock on to try and make a hundred pounds a day, right?
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: But I had to get a hundred doors knocked on to get a hundred pounds a day.
• 26:43
  SPEAKER_01: That's how they kind of worked it out.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and that's kind of how it works.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: So resilience needs to be there, right?
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: A bit of planning needs to be there.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_01: You need to understand what your product is.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_01: So when we say what is your product, what is your service, what is the features and benefits, and what is the unique selling point of it?
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: What are the problems that your customer experience and what is the solution that you are coming to the table with that is going to add value to their life, either saving them money, making them money, or creating less stress in their life, improving their life.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_01: You need to learn about open questions and closed questions and the power of probing questions.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_01: So if you went on YouTube and said, Right, how about you know what's an open question?
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_01: What's a closed question?
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_01: What's a USPs, what's features and benefits, how do I sell, what based analysis, stuff like that.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_01: You're gonna be learning so so so so so much.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I think an investment in how to sell something is one of the most vital things anybody should give themselves in any job which is around growth and building a business.
• 27:50
  SPEAKER_01: Because if you don't have the fundamental basics in place, you're gonna put yourself off if you don't understand the expectations upon yourself when it comes to selling and the fact that you're gonna get no's and it is going to be uncomfortable, but actually uncomfort, uh being uncomfortable is really good to get get comfortable with being uncomfortable and building that mindset around sales that you know you have to do it.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's a it's the lifeblood of any business.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: If you can't sell, you're gonna fail.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: If you can evidence and walk into a business and articulate the importance of that, eyes light up from any person that's gonna be interviewing you because you instantly get it, and they get it because a business owner who's running a business and wants someone to work for them wants to make more money, wants more clients, wants a better level of service.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: And if you can provide that to them and understand that that's what they need, they're gonna buy into you even deeper and the connection becomes uh deeper, and there's more chance of you getting a job opportunity, and also more chance of you just being a success in your job in general.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_01: Now, exactly.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: You're employed, you move to self-employed, right?
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_01: Scary for some, isn't it?
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like giving up the security of a salary and having to enter the world of self-employment and how are you going to do it?
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_01: Is it RI?
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_01: Do you sit underneath another firm self-employed?
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_01: Do you stay where you are?
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_01: Do you go appointed representative?
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_01: Do you go directly authorised?
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_01: What the bloody hell does that all mean?
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: How much risk am I taking on?
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_01: What's the reward?
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_01: How can we make it less scary for people right now thinking about it based on your experience?
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_01: Tell us a little bit about your experience from moving from employee to self-employed and why perhaps it doesn't need to be as scary as people think.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: So I'll start by saying it was scary at the time, but looking back, um, I'd encourage anyone to consider it because there are a lot of tools and a lot of partners you can join to make it a less scary experience.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_00: So it's always going to be a leap of faith, is the first thing.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I'd gone from a very nice salary, looking after a good bank of clients and a fantastic growing company.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: I had career prospects and I could have stayed there for a long, long time.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: It has to be right for you.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_00: So going self-employed isn't right for everyone.
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_00: If you're quite happy with a salary and career prospects and the security of a job, stay in the job.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_00: For me, it was about growing something and achieving something by myself.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_00: So I've always been quite driven and motivated.
• 30:28
  SPEAKER_00: And the more I thought about my career career going forward, the more I knew I needed to start my own business um and go it alone.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_00: So I didn't think I'd do that at the age of 27, which is the age I was when I left.
• 30:41
  SPEAKER_00: I thought I'd be, you know, early 30s and a bit more secure.
• 30:44
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, things happen and and and timing is is very important.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: So my options were quite simple stay employed, um, and that would have been a good great success, and I'm sure would have had a great career.
• 30:56
  SPEAKER_00: Leave to go self-employed.
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_00: And when you go self-employed, you've got a few options slightly so you can go directly authorized with the FCA, which means setting up your own company, getting FCA authorization.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and for me that was quite a scary prospect because you know, we didn't have um hundreds of thousands of pounds in the bank to fall back on.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, we need to put food on the table, we didn't have the money to invest in IT systems, processes, compliance partners, so on and so forth.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_00: And for me, that was a bit of the job I didn't enjoy doing, and I frankly wanted to outsource.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_00: So I didn't want to spend my days worrying about compliance and report writing.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_00: I wanted to spend my days with clients and adding value to those clients.
• 31:36
  SPEAKER_00: So, very quickly, I know, and again, I learned on my network and other advisors I knew who had done similar things.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_00: Very quickly, I learned about um becoming an appointed representative of a network.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so there are plenty of networks around the UK.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_00: Some are restricted advisors, okay, and some are independent advisors.
• 31:55
  SPEAKER_00: The second thing I quickly learned was I needed to be independent and did not want to be restricted in any way, shape, or form.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so um I joined a network called Two Plan Wealth Management.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, they're part of open work holdings, but they're a separate entity and they are a fully um independent um network that offers all the compliance services, the IT systems um and back office systems for their advisors.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so once I'd made that decision, and it was quite an easy decision, I think two plan heads and shoulders above the rest of the market for me.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um decision as to whether I stay under the two-plan brand um as an IR, um, an independent representative of two plan, and I use all their branding, all their kit, which is fine, or I become an appointed representative, which means I can build my own brand and my own um vision.
• 32:40
  SPEAKER_00: And again, I quickly learned that was very important for me.
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_00: For some individuals, it won't be, but for me it was, you know, I'm 27, 28 now.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: I want to grow my own brand, my own business, and make it feel like me and my wife Danielle, who's heavily involved in a business, we both agreed we need this to be our own baby, so to speak, um, which is why we developed Steve and Eve and went down the appointed representative route of a network.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_01: I think if we pause there, there's something really important that's come up and the differentiator between being a registered individual and being an AR underneath a network, for example.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_01: Now, the network is taking responsibility with all the compliance, they'll work with the regulator so you don't have to, obviously, for that service and the other bolt-on services that they might offer, things like databases, systems, CRMs, they might have administrational power planning.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, they might even allow you to take on their branding.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_01: They might have some literature that you can use from a marketing perspective.
• 33:34
  SPEAKER_01: So there's things that these kind of networks, nationals will do to support you and to sort of to also protect you against the advice that you're giving.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_01: So you can go out there, build your business without having to take up 50% of your time worrying about Gabriel reports, reporting into the FTA, um PI costs and anything else that's associated with actually running that business.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_01: So that's why people go down networks.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_01: But the choice between RI and AR is really interesting because when you're in RI, you are taking on their brand.
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_01: So like Tuplan would say, right, come be in RI, and if you want, it's a business in a box.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_01: You can have two plan, all the brands are done, you might have a little website built for you and all of that.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_01: So, yes, it's a cost-saving exercise, but what you give up is your identity and your personal brand.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_01: And we've seen that for like St.
• 34:20
  SPEAKER_01: James's Place over the years, like you had all these St.
• 34:23
  SPEAKER_01: James Place representatives, and St.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_01: James Place really pretty much put handcuffs around people building their personal brands and said, You can't do it, you've got to keep it at SJP.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_01: And it really pissed a lot of people off.
• 34:32
  SPEAKER_01: And as the people were starting to understand that it's actually about you as an individual, your personal brand, it's it's down to you know your uh connection to your brand as an identity.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's really, really important for people to consider.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's not a problem taking on somebody else's brand and stuff, if you're comfortable with that.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_01: And say if you're a one-man band or a one-person fan, that might be absolutely perfect for you, happy to pay away six, you know, 40% of your fees for absolutely no hassle, and you just pay golf and see your clients and enjoy yourself.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_01: But when you have an aspiration like yourself to build something and to have control, and especially with you, because your partner in your business is your wife, and your wife is a marketer.
• 35:10
  SPEAKER_01: So I love that starting a business with marketing because it, you know, we're entering a world where marketing, digital marketing, online presence, branding, social media, YouTube, podcasting is so important.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_01: And you kind of feel like, well, I need to have that creative control over my business and the directional control over my business.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's worth noting it's quite as well here.
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_01: Another point to that is that if you left net the the um two-plan network, you don't have to rebrand somewhere else.
• 35:37
  SPEAKER_01: And your clients don't have to feel like you're leave they're leaving uh a company.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_01: If you're an RI and you're in your two plan, you might then, oh, I'm leaving two plan and now I'm joining uh open work directly or something like that.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_01: All of a sudden, they're like, well, you're you know, is the business changing?
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_01: Whereas you can just have that conversation that this is what the network is, it's Steve and Eve, and I'm just going over here, and it becomes far easier for you.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_01: And then if you then will also kind of decide because your business is doing well, that you want even more control, that you might go directly authorized, it's easier for you to go directly authorized than with your brand and it's less hassle, isn't it?
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's what people need to consider.
• 36:16
  SPEAKER_01: But it's not the end of the world, is it?
• 36:17
  SPEAKER_01: Either, you know, either either way.
• 36:19
  SPEAKER_01: And um, I think um, you know, when like you've moved from an employee to self-employed perspective and you want that control, I think AR makes total sense.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I agree.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_00: And and I always thought I wanted to be directly authorized.
• 36:32
  SPEAKER_00: I thought that was a big deal for me.
• 36:34
  SPEAKER_00: But the more I learn about the industry and what's important, it it's not it's not important for me.
• 36:39
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't think it's really important for the clients.
• 36:40
  SPEAKER_00: You know, the the most important thing is what I'm doing is compliance, um, and we can give the clients the service they want to they want to receive, you know, all the IT, all the back office systems, so on and so forth.
• 36:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, if I was directly authorized, that all falls on my shoulders, effectively.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_00: It still does meet with me being an AR, but there's a big business behind the scenes that has done this hundreds of times, has got much deeper pockets than I have.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_00: They've got an in-house expert IT team, all that kind of stuff, building of portals and all the rest of it, you know what it's like.
• 37:08
  SPEAKER_00: There's a minefield of tech out there.
• 37:10
  SPEAKER_00: So for them to do that hard work, do the compliance, do the risk, and take that off my shoulders has has really allowed me to focus on what's important, again, which is the client.
• 37:19
  SPEAKER_01: How much time did you, how much space in your head did the worry of moving from employed to self-employed and the solution that going AR gave you, how much, how much, how much of a relief was it when you understood what AR was and that you actually went the AR route?
• 37:34
  SPEAKER_01: Did you think, ah, that wasn't as scary as I thought it might be?
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_01: That was a lot easier.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_01: Did it did it slow you down?
• 37:41
  SPEAKER_01: Did it live in your head for a while, that worry, that concern about what the best route was?
• 37:45
  SPEAKER_00: No, I think it took a big weight off my shoulders.
• 37:47
  SPEAKER_00: So it didn't take long to work out.
• 37:48
  SPEAKER_00: And again, I've I know the other advisors that have gone with two plan, so that was really beneficial for me.
• 37:53
  SPEAKER_00: So I'd I'd I'd encourage you to speak to other people at these businesses and find out their experience.
• 37:58
  SPEAKER_00: People, what I've learned actually, people are really willing to help and speak, as you've probably learned with these podcasts, which is why I'm on it today.
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so use people, use their experiences.
• 38:07
  SPEAKER_00: So it didn't take me long to decide two plan was the right fit for me.
• 38:10
  SPEAKER_00: And going to AR was the right thing for me.
• 38:12
  SPEAKER_00: And once I decided that it was a huge weight off my shoulders, you know, I didn't need to worry about the compliance.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_00: There were certain processes and ways of doing things within two plan, I had to get my head around, but it just meant that the whole risk and the whole um you know compliant bit was off my shoulders.
• 38:27
  SPEAKER_00: And that is a big worry, I think, in this industry.
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we're heavily regulated and you need to make sure you're doing the right thing.
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: And two plan do that job for me, which is it's it's fantastic.
• 38:36
  SPEAKER_01: I just want to say at this point, if anyone's listening to this and they're really considering going self-employed, um, here at Financial Planner Life, we work with a number of different networks and nationals, all with different options about going like either registered individual or AR.
• 38:49
  SPEAKER_01: We work, we can't help you with going directly authorized.
• 38:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um, our introduced to relationships are with ARs and national firms of all different shapes and sizes.
• 38:58
  SPEAKER_01: So I think sometimes in the first point of call, have a conversation with someone like us here at the Financial Planner Life, we can set your mind straight.
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_01: We work with two plan.
• 39:05
  SPEAKER_01: I know James Marshall really well.
• 39:06
  SPEAKER_01: So um, if anybody's considering two plan, again, reach out to me.
• 39:09
  SPEAKER_01: We can look at the market, explain what it all means prior to you even like putting your foot in the, you know, your hat in the ring and ease some of those tensions, worries, concerns, and then we can point you in the right direction and manage you, your relationship, you know, with all these different options to make sure you're making the best choice possible.
• 39:26
  SPEAKER_01: Brilliant stuff.
• 39:26
  SPEAKER_01: Now, one of the biggest scary things about going self-employed is how the hell am I going to make money?
• 39:31
  SPEAKER_01: Tell us about how you made money and why you went self-employed and your client acquisition strategy, because that's what it's all about, isn't it?
• 39:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it's a it's a huge concern, and there's no right answers to how you do this.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_00: Like we've just discussed, you can be a one-man band, um, AR or um IR.
• 39:48
  SPEAKER_00: There's no problem with that.
• 39:49
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're a one-man band and you outsource all of your IT and tech to plan and you get them to do all your admin and power planning, which they can do and other networks can do, you can quite easily build a little business for yourself, take on a few clients, and you know, once you've got some revenue coming in, you can earn a handsome figure and and live.
• 40:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so the biggest challenge for us was how the bloody hell do we continue to live the lifestyle we've been accustomed to and put food on the table, which I guess is is top of the top of the tree for most people, isn't it?
• 40:18
  SPEAKER_00: So the first thing is make sure you're prepared for this.
• 40:21
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, I wasn't alone.
• 40:22
  SPEAKER_00: I had my wife, Danny Allen, she had her own self-employed business that was doing very well, so she could support us as a couple, which was invaluable.
• 40:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but we also had savings and things to fall back on.
• 40:32
  SPEAKER_00: So I was under no illusion that you know, first six to twelve months of business, I didn't need to take a salary.
• 40:37
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that was quite important for me personally.
• 40:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think that's probably quite important for other people as well.
• 40:42
  SPEAKER_01: Can I ask you at this point before we carry on, how much money did you have in the bank as a security blanket?
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_01: You don't have to tell me specifically how much you had, but perhaps how many months worth of money before you actually got your first fees in?
• 40:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yep.
• 41:00
  SPEAKER_00: So we were quite fortunate.
• 41:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um previous job was quite well paid, we had bonuses and things like that saved up.
• 41:05
  SPEAKER_00: So we had 12 months of essential spending in the bank.
• 41:08
  SPEAKER_00: So we didn't have money for holidays and new cars and all that kind of stuff.
• 41:12
  SPEAKER_00: But if worse come to worse, we me and Danielle sat down and said, and this is if Danielle lost all of her her income as well, which clearly wasn't going to happen.
• 41:18
  SPEAKER_00: So if neither of us earned a penny for a year, we'd have been okay.
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_00: Now we wouldn't have had a luxury lifestyle by any means, but we'd have been okay.
• 41:25
  SPEAKER_00: And that was very important for us from a security point of view.
• 41:29
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think you quite need that much if if you're doing this.
• 41:32
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you will pick up clients and fees will start to roll in.
• 41:35
  SPEAKER_00: But again, I think if you can spend your time on growing the business and winning new clients and not worry about the financial element, I think that's a huge weight off your shoulders.
• 41:44
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 41:44
  SPEAKER_01: So let's say for so you did 12 months to prepare yourself up against the realities of your first 12 months.
• 41:53
  SPEAKER_01: When did you start receiving income into your business that allowed you then to go, I don't need to rely anymore on the money in the bank account?
• 42:02
  SPEAKER_00: I think we're probably about four months in, believe it or not.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's pretty good.
• 42:06
  SPEAKER_00: That's pretty good.
• 42:07
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm I must say we're quite again, given what we've done, we're quite fortunate.
• 42:10
  SPEAKER_00: So things like our branding, our marketing, our website, Daniel.
• 42:14
  SPEAKER_00: So that was a huge cost saving for us.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_00: If you were a business without that level of support from your business partner or your wife in my case, uh or both, um, then that will be an additional cost.
• 42:25
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, very quickly from you know, sort of month four or five, we were drawing in income from the business, um, which which was which was again important for us because it meant we could continue to live our life.
• 42:36
  SPEAKER_01: So in my academy, there are and in and in in some of the sort of hope high profile academies in the UK, like St James's Place, for example, Academy, Open Worker God Academy, Quilter, etc., there is an emphasis on um going self-employed, and there is an emphasis on second career as joining the profession, doing their qualifications rapidly, and then becoming advisors, running their own partner practices, going self-employed and building their businesses.
• 43:02
  SPEAKER_01: Do you um put yourself in their their shoes becoming saying from another profession or another career career area?
• 43:09
  SPEAKER_01: They could be all different shapes and sizes.
• 43:11
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the average age I see is like for those career changes being really for 35 to 40 around that sort of area.
• 43:17
  SPEAKER_01: So they've got some life experience, relationships, that type of thing.
• 43:22
  SPEAKER_01: Be honest now, right?
• 43:23
  SPEAKER_01: Be honest with me, be honest with me knowing what you know and working in the profession and and where you are now.
• 43:28
  SPEAKER_01: You're a chartered financial planner running your own business, self-generating business, right?
• 43:31
  SPEAKER_01: Let's give some advice to these to these people thinking of doing that.
• 43:37
  SPEAKER_01: Do you think they're making a mistake, going self-employed straight away?
• 43:41
  SPEAKER_01: What do you think they should be doing as a SWOT analysis, you know, uh to to work out whether or not it's that they're making the right choice?
• 43:47
  SPEAKER_01: And what are the real what's the realism around that first twelve months?
• 43:52
  SPEAKER_01: What you know, what should they be thinking about to make sure they're not making the wrong move and setting themselves up for financial difficulty?
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't think there's the right answer, but I do think there's a huge value in going employed first.
• 44:05
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so I think there's a huge value in going into a business and being a trainee power planner, trainee advisor, fully fledged advisor, whatever role you can get yourself.
• 44:14
  SPEAKER_00: Because within that business, there'll hopefully be other individuals that you can learn from, the good and the bad.
• 44:20
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you'll also probably get given a bank of clients to help work on um and and learn your craft, so to speak.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll probably develop them relationships with those clients.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_00: And this is a relationship business.
• 44:30
  SPEAKER_00: If you've got a relationship with clients, they're probably going to want to stay with you.
• 44:34
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, going employed first might be a good um starter for me because I think that's where you learn a lot of um skills and there's no risk because you've got your salary coming in at the end.
• 44:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, if you were to go do the exams, go through the academy of such and then go self-employed straight away without an employed role previously.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's a different proposition and a different challenge for individuals.
• 44:57
  SPEAKER_00: But again, I don't think you need to be too scared of it.
• 45:00
  SPEAKER_00: There's so much opportunity out there.
• 45:02
  SPEAKER_00: There are um lead generation firms, um, there's there's loads of individuals in the industry that are willing to share their knowledge.
• 45:09
  SPEAKER_00: There's another podcast called Trap T R O P.
• 45:12
  SPEAKER_00: There's four really good advisors that sit on there and they give away sort of um nuggets of of wisdom on how they would go about setting up their business if they were to do it again, things like that.
• 45:22
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't think you need to be scared of it, but it's all about people and and your your um professional circle is what I would say.
• 45:30
  SPEAKER_00: So if I didn't have connections with solicitors, accountants, mortgage advisors, whatever it might be, our business wouldn't be where it is today because we wouldn't have had those referrals coming in.
• 45:40
  SPEAKER_00: And if I didn't have existing connections with the number of clients, again, our business wouldn't be where it is today.
• 45:44
  SPEAKER_00: So I do think is a bigger challenge if you're going straight into it without any previous employed history, I must admit.
• 45:50
  SPEAKER_01: So it's really about reflecting upon your network being your net worth.
• 45:58
  SPEAKER_01: Where are opportunities for me to generate clients?
• 46:04
  SPEAKER_01: We know within financial planning client referrals are really important.
• 46:09
  SPEAKER_01: So whether that's a client referral from an introducer, such as an accountant or a solicitor or a mortgage advisor, but then there are ways to also generate referrals, um so corporate finance companies, tax specialists, clinical negligence and PI, if you've come from a legal background, for instance.
• 46:35
  SPEAKER_01: It could be that you are in a network of very high net worth individuals or even ultra high net worth individuals.
• 46:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um one of the advisors I had on the podcast used to get huge amounts of referrals from a hairdresser who did haircuts for celebrities, and that was a really great source.
• 46:54
  SPEAKER_01: I've had people that are that are footballers professional, and then they're using their experience and understanding of that market to go in and win relationships with footballers, rugby players, sporting personalities, those that don't quite often look at their finances, and they're creating educational ways for them to recognize that they do need to start saving up for their money.
• 47:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um have got social media presences already, so they're elevating their brand off the back of their social media.
• 47:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um there are so many different ways to build referrals and to have those networks.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_01: But I think for those that are seriously considering, look, be realistic, because if you're gonna go self-employed straight away and you're hoping to just sell a few things to your friends and family, it's gonna be fucking tough.
• 47:37
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it isn't it?
• 47:38
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna be hard graft.
• 47:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um and maybe doing that whilst having the pressures of paying the bills, etc., is not a good idea.
• 47:46
  SPEAKER_01: And we don't want people to go through um stress, um, anxiety and worry, um, perhaps risk their homes, finances, family, because running a business is tiring, um, exhausting, and can have an impact on your life as a whole.
• 48:01
  SPEAKER_01: So that my advice with you or by the sounds of it is look, take a good hard look at yourself, take a good look hard look at your network.
• 48:08
  SPEAKER_01: Are you capable of doing this?
• 48:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know, some people I speak to have such successful careers that they're surrounded by business owners and they know they can go into those businesses, they can deliver advice to the businesses, but also the business owners themselves.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_01: So um, and that's where second careerist is great, but yeah, taking the risk without that experience, you maybe you do need to seriously consider going in and trying to find the admin power planner or trainee route.
• 48:35
  SPEAKER_01: And there is an abundance of them out there for people without experience, which is why you need to lean into stuff like the academy to get that experience levels up so you can go in there and sell yourself.
• 48:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and just to jump in there, I don't think you need to wait until you're qualified to be doing this networking and going out there and meeting people.
• 48:51
  SPEAKER_00: There's no reason why you know you can't meet potential lawyers, accountants, solicitors, friends, family while you're doing your training, and just give them heads up as to what you're looking to do, what you're looking to achieve, and and just get the feelers out there as to whether these people are going to be interested.
• 49:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um go out and meet everyone, spend your days going out for coffees and meeting people.
• 49:09
  SPEAKER_00: That is how you will grow your business.
• 49:11
  SPEAKER_00: You won't grow your business sitting behind a laptop writing um direct messages to people, in my opinion.
• 49:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, meet people.
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know, if you're a good person and you're building wanting to build a good business and do the right thing for clients and individuals, that will come across and people will want to work with you.
• 49:26
  SPEAKER_00: So my advice is just get out there and meet people and get ready to go.
• 49:30
  SPEAKER_01: I wouldn't client segment, I think segment target segmentation is a really good idea as well.
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_01: So I always say, like, if you'd have came to me and you were employed and you were saying you want to go self-employed, Sam, can you help me?
• 49:40
  SPEAKER_01: So I would do is push back on you and say, right, first off, let's look at your contract because you might have restrictions in place of what you can and can't do.
• 49:47
  SPEAKER_01: Even if you're not um within the profession, you still might have those types of relationships, but you've got to be very careful that you're not gonna get tanked on your lawn and getting sued.
• 49:55
  SPEAKER_01: And it does happen, someone even in my recruitment business got sued.
• 49:57
  SPEAKER_01: 25 grand sued, he had to pay it because he stepped up, you know, he stepped out of line on his contract, which is very, you know, be very, very careful and protect yourself in those areas.
• 50:05
  SPEAKER_01: But I would always say, look, what's your A clients, what's your B clients, what's your C?
• 50:09
  SPEAKER_01: A are people that you would go down the pub and have a pint with, you know, advocate relationships that you have in place.
• 50:15
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're employed as an advisor at the moment, what levels of business do you think you can get from them new as new business?
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_01: Not what you can bring to the table by trying to transfer, because you're gonna have restrictions in place for six to twelve months anyway, of what you can and can't do.
• 50:29
  SPEAKER_01: And you certainly can ovate those clients across a flick of a switch.
• 50:33
  SPEAKER_01: So that's like a kind of long game.
• 50:34
  SPEAKER_01: But in the short term, what can you get?
• 50:36
  SPEAKER_01: And are you stepping in?
• 50:37
  SPEAKER_01: Are you gonna be stepping in into any legalities there?
• 50:39
  SPEAKER_01: B is like, you know you can do business with them, you know them, you've done business with them, you know you can do it, um, but you're gonna have to do a bit of work.
• 50:47
  SPEAKER_01: And C is like everybody else, like targets, prospects.
• 50:51
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's a really great way to do it.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_01: And I think even when you're self-employed, you made a really good point.
• 50:54
  SPEAKER_01: Even when you're going self-employed and you've come from another profession, do exactly the same thing.
• 51:00
  SPEAKER_01: And actually, then, whilst you're doing your qualifications perhaps in the academy, reach out and start building those relationships and understanding that where can I help you?
• 51:07
  SPEAKER_01: I had somebody that was on the podcast, um, no, he's not on the podcast actually.
• 51:10
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna get him on actually.
• 51:11
  SPEAKER_01: He's now he was a teacher and now he's moved into financial planning, and he does loads around financial education.
• 51:16
  SPEAKER_01: He's really passionate about it.
• 51:17
  SPEAKER_01: So he spent a lot of his time in his school educating, getting skilled in educating students about money.
• 51:23
  SPEAKER_01: So now he's then transferred that across into financial planning, and he's the financial educator, and I can just see from the outside looking in, he's gonna be fantastic.
• 51:30
  SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna reach out to him soon, actually, because I think I want to know about his transition, his journey.
• 51:33
  SPEAKER_01: Cool, that's some really great advice.
• 51:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, I think there's a world of opportunity in this industry at the moment.
• 51:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the typical model is you know, retirees with hundreds, hundreds of thousands invested, and you take a percentage-based fee and meet them every year and make sure everything's on track, but don't be scared of the one-off fees.
• 51:50
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we're we're building a service offering where we offer a low-cost one-off fee for like a check-in.
• 51:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I think there's a big market for that nowadays.
• 51:57
  SPEAKER_00: So, although it might not be your ideal and your end goal, if you have to start with those lower lower fee clients and check-in um services, so to speak, or or ad hoc services, don't be afraid of that.
• 52:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I've always generated a lot of initial one-off fees each year um through my four years in advising, um, more than most in the previous business, and I still think they're quite high fees now as well, or figures, should I say, for the year.
• 52:21
  SPEAKER_00: So let's look.
• 52:23
  SPEAKER_00: Don't be scared.
• 52:24
  SPEAKER_01: Brilliant.
• 52:24
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's brilliant advice because a lot of people often think about assets under management model.
• 52:28
  SPEAKER_01: They're thinking also about I've got to get high net worth clients.
• 52:31
  SPEAKER_01: But there is 95% of the population out there at the moment that don't seek financial advice or aren't really fitting the financial advice model that can be capitalised on by new advisors coming through.
• 52:41
  SPEAKER_01: Now, let's just give some advice around what are the quick wins that someone can do to get income in the door to be affordable, for example, but to add value.
• 52:51
  SPEAKER_01: So, what are the quick wins that advisors can do to actually generate some income where it's not sort of reliant upon the the following conversations constantly, you know, and digging, digging, digging.
• 52:59
  SPEAKER_01: What are quick wins that they can do to get money on the board?
• 53:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so there's protection.
• 53:03
  SPEAKER_00: So most individuals in the UK have a protection need, and it's an area in the financial financial planning world that's really, really under undersold, I guess.
• 53:11
  SPEAKER_00: Massive.
• 53:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so you can focus on that quite quickly.
• 53:14
  SPEAKER_00: It's an area that mortgage advisors tend to cover off, but there's no no reason you can't, you know, you'll have members of family, friends that all needs maybe life cover, income protection, critical illness.
• 53:24
  SPEAKER_00: You can focus on that area.
• 53:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the other thing we're looking at is, like I've said, a check-in service.
• 53:29
  SPEAKER_00: So there's no, you know, um movement of money or setting up of platforms or setting up of accounts, but just given a check-in plan and given your expertise for a set fee.
• 53:40
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, for us that involves some cash flow planning and some software that we we pay a monthly fee for.
• 53:45
  SPEAKER_00: But you know, you can do it for quite a low overhead, in my opinion.
• 53:48
  SPEAKER_00: It's just giving away your knowledge.
• 53:50
  SPEAKER_00: That's it, when we whether that's a subscription model or a flat fee model.
• 53:54
  SPEAKER_00: I think exploring things like that while you're when you're starting out could be really beneficial for you.
• 53:59
  SPEAKER_01: Let's look at that then, because you've done this within your own business.
• 54:02
  SPEAKER_01: So you've got what can I just call you?
• 54:04
  SPEAKER_01: Let's just have paint a picture for our listeners.
• 54:06
  SPEAKER_01: How long have you been running your business now for?
• 54:09
  SPEAKER_00: So we began in June 22.
• 54:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um was our first of June 22 was our um just over a year.
• 54:15
  SPEAKER_00: So just over yeah, yeah, just under 18 months, just over a year.
• 54:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 54:19
  SPEAKER_01: Tell us a little bit about AUM.
• 54:20
  SPEAKER_01: What have you generated in AUM within that time?
• 54:23
  SPEAKER_00: So in that time, we've got about 21 million under management now, um, which we're very pleased with.
• 54:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I think we're forecast for turnover this year are about 200,000 pounds, um, which is again fantastic in year two.
• 54:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think we're looking at about 60, 65 clients that are on an ongoing retainer service.
• 54:42
  SPEAKER_01: Ongoing retainer service.
• 54:44
  SPEAKER_01: Is this an assets under management model?
• 54:47
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, it is, yeah.
• 54:48
  SPEAKER_00: So predominantly the clients that pay an ongoing fee pay that three fee through their assets under management.
• 54:54
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, it's 1% 0.75, depending on how much they've got with us.
• 54:58
  SPEAKER_00: That uh that's how how they uh pay us their ongoing fee, correct?
• 55:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, excellent.
• 55:02
  SPEAKER_01: What's the average case size then?
• 55:03
  SPEAKER_01: The average client?
• 55:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, about three to three fifty, something like 350,000 under management.
• 55:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so you know, as a business, I think every business is looking to do is we're looking to push upstream, but we don't want to turn our back on those lower than that.
• 55:16
  SPEAKER_00: We want to have different service offerings, which I think is very key.
• 55:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know, we're individuals, we like helping people, and I will go meet anyone if they've got 10 quid or 10 million quid.
• 55:25
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not bothered.
• 55:26
  SPEAKER_00: I will go and spend an hour of my time helping them.
• 55:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you never know what's going to that meet.
• 55:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's really key.
• 55:32
  SPEAKER_00: Don't, don't businesses do this.
• 55:34
  SPEAKER_00: There's plenty of businesses I know of, the one I left most recently and ones over the road, they'll only deal with you know millionaires, and that's fine, they've got a certain category.
• 55:42
  SPEAKER_00: But if you're starting out, I just think be very careful as to the direction you want to go on.
• 55:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm a human being and I like helping human beings, and that's why we've got no minimum ongoing fee.
• 55:52
  SPEAKER_00: We're working very hard with Danielle included.
• 55:55
  SPEAKER_00: This is a lot of her role and Rav is to segment these clients and give them a service that they want so they can be profitable for us, but we add value for them.
• 56:03
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's key.
• 56:04
  SPEAKER_01: I think that's beautiful.
• 56:05
  SPEAKER_01: I think you're absolutely spot on.
• 56:06
  SPEAKER_01: It's very difficult when you're a business owner to turn people away that you really want to help.
• 56:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I think there's a lot of people in a situation in the UK where they don't have access to advice because either they can't afford it or the advisor hasn't got the time or want or need because it doesn't fit their model of business.
• 56:19
  SPEAKER_01: So, how are you fixing that problem there at your business at Steve and Eve then?
• 56:22
  SPEAKER_01: What have you created that is actually servicing and offering advice to the typical type of client that doesn't fit the usual 250k minimum assets model?
• 56:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, okay.
• 56:33
  SPEAKER_00: So the first thing I'll I'll discuss is keeping it simple.
• 56:36
  SPEAKER_00: And again, we might move on to this a bit more later on.
• 56:39
  SPEAKER_00: But for me, you have to keep every single um uh area of the journey simple.
• 56:44
  SPEAKER_00: So don't over-complicate things, don't over-complicate your investment philosophy, don't over-complicate the platforms you work with and the and the tech you use.
• 56:52
  SPEAKER_00: You need to have a philosophy and stick to it and make sure it's simple.
• 56:55
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it's very easy to go down rabbit holes.
• 56:57
  SPEAKER_00: There's loads of fund managers that want to work with you once you go self-employed.
• 57:01
  SPEAKER_00: Have a philosophy, have a partner and stick to it and make sure that you believe in it wholeheartedly because it will come across in client conversations.
• 57:07
  SPEAKER_00: So we've done that from early.
• 57:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we've we've got a philosophy, we've stuck to it and kept it simple.
• 57:12
  SPEAKER_00: And therefore, whatever level of service you need with us, whether that's let's call it bronze, silver, gold, we're just fleshing out actually the different services at the moment.
• 57:19
  SPEAKER_00: But let's call it bronze, silver, gold.
• 57:21
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever service offering you want, it's going to be simple for us to work on and administer on an ongoing basis.
• 57:26
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so even if that's a gold client with two million pounds under management, I'm not going to complicate it just because I've got two million pounds.
• 57:33
  SPEAKER_00: What works works, whether you've got 10 quid, like I say, or 10 million quid, is my view.
• 57:37
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 57:38
  SPEAKER_00: And but for the lower level clients, it's very interesting.
• 57:40
  SPEAKER_00: So again, the the industry has had a habit of needing to offer an ongoing advice service.
• 57:46
  SPEAKER_00: Now, if you offer an ongoing advice service, you need to meet annually and reconfirm suitability of your advice.
• 57:52
  SPEAKER_00: Now, for that, there will be a review report, there'll be some valuations to do, there'll be a bit of work to do.
• 57:57
  SPEAKER_00: So if a client's got 50,000 quid, and let's say they're paying you 500 pounds a year, for you to do that every year, it might not be profitable.
• 58:04
  SPEAKER_00: And we understand that.
• 58:06
  SPEAKER_00: The second thing, Sam, is some individual might not need it.
• 58:08
  SPEAKER_00: You know, if you're 40 and you're paying all you can into your pension every year, and you're just your main objective is growth.
• 58:16
  SPEAKER_00: I can't really add much value after our initial check-in.
• 58:19
  SPEAKER_00: So we've developed a flat fee model, which is 995 pounds.
• 58:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, some have said it's really good value, others still said it's too expensive.
• 58:26
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's quite hard to please everyone, but we think it fits well.
• 58:29
  SPEAKER_00: We don't make huge amounts of money on it, it's just to cover our time, really.
• 58:33
  SPEAKER_00: But that flat fee service um will allow you as an individual to log into a portal, provide us with your financial information.
• 58:40
  SPEAKER_00: We will review that information and then come back with a plan or um a breakdown of what your position looks like going forward, which is a cash flow model.
• 58:48
  SPEAKER_00: And then we'll say, well, what questions do you want answering?
• 58:51
  SPEAKER_00: And we'll answer them as part of this service.
• 58:53
  SPEAKER_00: So that might be should I pay more to my pension?
• 58:55
  SPEAKER_00: Am I in the right pension fund?
• 58:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, do I need more protection?
• 58:59
  SPEAKER_00: So on and so forth.
• 59:00
  SPEAKER_00: So we'll answer all the questions you have, give you all of our knowledge and value, um, but it's up to you to implement those changes.
• 59:07
  SPEAKER_00: So we won't do any of the doing because you're not paying us for that.
• 59:10
  SPEAKER_00: It's up to you to do that.
• 59:11
  SPEAKER_00: Once it's done, leave it.
• 59:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and if you want to check in in five years' time, you can do that and pay another check-in fee, but you certainly don't need an ongoing advice fee um on that model.
• 59:22
  SPEAKER_00: So far it's worked quite well.
• 59:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we're we've not pushed it heavily because we've been so busy, but it's something we're gonna start pushing a bit more.
• 59:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think it's great from a business perspective that we're getting clients in the door.
• 59:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, those clients may inherit, those clients may sell businesses, those clients may um have life changes and need advice, and we're gonna be the preferred partner to go to because we've already engaged with them.
• 59:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's key.
• 59:44
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's brilliant.
• 59:45
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's absolutely fantastic.
• 59:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and also it's a great example of how someone can get into the profession without having to feel like they have to have high net worth clients, which can often be very difficult to find.
• 59:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, what we're doing is you're creating something as well, which is mass market, which means that you can go out and sell it, which means you will be turning over stones, and those big boys and girls that you're going to come across will show themselves.
• 1:00:04
  SPEAKER_01: It means you're going to be having more conversations and you're going to be having more value add.
• 1:00:08
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's what you need, isn't it, when you're starting your business, is have a value add.
• 1:00:11
  SPEAKER_01: What I also love about it as well, it's like a financial education piece in there as well.
• 1:00:14
  SPEAKER_01: And I suppose as you develop the proposition, you can create those frequently asked questions as videos.
• 1:00:19
  SPEAKER_01: You might even create a coaching course that you can put them into and on a subscription basis.
• 1:00:25
  SPEAKER_01: So if they're not ready to pay£995, a bit like Pete Matthew with the Meaningful Money Academy, you could put them into a community where they go through the process of understanding debt, budgeting, um, what investments are, how to do stocks and shares.
• 1:00:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's a really vital service.
• 1:00:40
  SPEAKER_01: It means you're ticking a box there as a business when it comes to things like consumer duty, adding value, ESG, all those things.
• 1:00:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think it's I think it's fantastic and a prime example of how someone can not be too tied down into thinking it has to be a high net worth strategy.
• 1:00:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um and also protection opportunities again that come up.
• 1:00:58
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, business will come off the back of it for sure.
• 1:01:01
  SPEAKER_01: Business will come off the back of it.
• 1:01:02
  SPEAKER_01: It's a job within its own right.
• 1:01:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I can see you in the future having somebody that would probably, if you're serious about pushing that out, having somebody there, then that's their job.
• 1:01:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's such an excellent entry-level um opportunity for somebody to get out there in front of clients and who's got the passion and enthusiasm to do it.
• 1:01:19
  SPEAKER_01: Sits beautifully alongside a straight a social media strategy as well.
• 1:01:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 1:01:23
  SPEAKER_00: And we've got the thing is we've got all the components for us.
• 1:01:25
  SPEAKER_00: We've got Danielle in-house that can uh market us, we've got Rav in-house that's learning the ropes and can help deliver this service.
• 1:01:31
  SPEAKER_00: So it will be something we're looking at pushing and it's going to benefit all the individuals in our business.
• 1:01:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's just a time thing.
• 1:01:37
  SPEAKER_00: So we're we're we're getting there.
• 1:01:39
  SPEAKER_00: That's technology next year, watches space.
• 1:01:40
  SPEAKER_01: As technology develops, um, that'll push down.
• 1:01:43
  SPEAKER_01: You could push down the price or you could increase the increases the profitability.
• 1:01:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, because there's a lot of things, obviously.
• 1:01:49
  SPEAKER_01: That's the problem, innit, with being a financial planner, is the time it takes to do all the work before you even get paid.
• 1:01:55
  SPEAKER_01: So you need to be paid for your time.
• 1:01:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, accountants and solicitors pay per time, don't they?
• 1:02:01
  SPEAKER_01: Whereas a lot of advisors' model isn't really that.
• 1:02:03
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's loads of work up front, and then there's an absolute nightmare of um uh costs and things that you've got to put aside before you actually get things like assets under management or charging initial fees.
• 1:02:14
  SPEAKER_01: So that sort of takes away that model.
• 1:02:16
  SPEAKER_01: But it becomes a real great marketing tool, I think.
• 1:02:19
  SPEAKER_01: That model.
• 1:02:20
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, brilliant stuff.
• 1:02:21
  SPEAKER_01: Do they log in via an app, the cut client, or is there like an online platform or something?
• 1:02:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's an online platform.
• 1:02:27
  SPEAKER_00: So Tuplan have got a portal which they can log into, but I've actually logged them straight into our cash flow modeling system.
• 1:02:33
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 1:02:34
  SPEAKER_00: That we use.
• 1:02:34
  SPEAKER_00: There's a few of these.
• 1:02:35
  SPEAKER_00: Which one do you use?
• 1:02:36
  SPEAKER_00: I I use Cash Calc at the moment, yeah um, which is quite simple, which I like.
• 1:02:42
  SPEAKER_00: Again, I try and keep things simple.
• 1:02:43
  SPEAKER_00: I'll keep coming back to that point.
• 1:02:45
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but it's got a good client portal login where they can put their income, their spending, their assets, their pensions, and it allows us then to build that initial model for them very quickly.
• 1:02:54
  SPEAKER_00: And again, we keep this thing simple.
• 1:02:56
  SPEAKER_00: If someone's in their 30s or 40s, projecting to age 100, there's going to be so much change, but it's just to give them that reassurance and guidance.
• 1:03:02
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll see on our web sort website, peace of mind coming up quite a lot.
• 1:03:06
  SPEAKER_00: I've I've learned that's all clients want.
• 1:03:08
  SPEAKER_00: They want peace of mind.
• 1:03:09
  SPEAKER_00: They want to make sure they're doing the right thing, you know, and half the time they're willing to pay that, even if it's a half an hour conversation with me.
• 1:03:15
  SPEAKER_00: The reassurance we give them from that conversation is massive.
• 1:03:19
  SPEAKER_00: So don't underestimate that.
• 1:03:20
  SPEAKER_01: There lies your problem that you are solving is peace of mind.
• 1:03:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:03:28
  SPEAKER_01: We all have these instincts of self that get effective.
• 1:03:31
  SPEAKER_01: How we fit in.
• 1:03:33
  SPEAKER_01: You know, the home, the roof over our head, our home security, where we're living, our safety.
• 1:03:38
  SPEAKER_01: And one of the big ones is your pocketbook, that financial well-being, that financial security.
• 1:03:44
  SPEAKER_01: And often on our own thinking, we're unable to get to the root cause of really what the problem is or what the worry or the concern is, or we have it, but we say, Oh, we'll look at that soon, we'll look at that later.
• 1:03:55
  SPEAKER_01: I'll do a Google search, and you do a Google search, it's a bloody nightmare, you know.
• 1:04:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I think the value add for an advisor is let me give you peace of mind, and that's what you're selling.
• 1:04:04
  SPEAKER_01: You're you're selling peace of mind.
• 1:04:06
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's beautiful, well articulated.
• 1:04:09
  SPEAKER_01: I love the way you're keeping it really, really simple as well, because that philosophy, as well, whether or not you've got 20 quid to invest or whether or not you've got 20 million, your model itself and your strategy is aligned to both types of individuals.
• 1:04:21
  SPEAKER_01: Obviously, what I'm learning is that in that ultra-high net worth, high net worth space, there is a lot more complexity, especially around tax and types of introducers that you might be working with.
• 1:04:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm in the process of in the background discussing setting up a financial advice business with some really high net worth um advisors, chartered fellows who have been working for some of the biggest wealth management firms.
• 1:04:45
  SPEAKER_01: They're used to dealing with five, 10, 15 million clients, but the introducers that they work with are like corporate finance specialists.
• 1:04:51
  SPEAKER_01: Now, these individuals aren't going to just pass a client over that's got 10 million quiz um to somebody who's just started out who doesn't understand the complexities around tax and tax in that situation because they might lose that client.
• 1:05:03
  SPEAKER_01: So we need people who are in that firm who have experience of working with corporate finance and can influence corporate finance advisors to be able to pass their clients across and trust us.
• 1:05:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um so like there is other areas, you know.
• 1:05:16
  SPEAKER_01: I don't believe that someone, not to question you, but I don't believe that someone with 10 million has the same finance as someone with 10 quid.
• 1:05:22
  SPEAKER_01: I think there's massive differences.
• 1:05:24
  SPEAKER_01: And that comes also with like experience, network, qualifications play a part in this.
• 1:05:30
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I don't particularly want somebody who hasn't got things like who aren't chartered and gone through and understand different types of tax situations and and also doesn't have the experience within that area.
• 1:05:40
  SPEAKER_01: So realistically, what you're talking about here as well at the front end with this solution, I think is a great solution for the profession and for those getting in to step up, but also a great revenue stream and a and a great marketing tool for firms that are looking to diversify and build relationships now with people that are going to be big fee payers in the future.
• 1:05:58
  SPEAKER_01: I think it's fantastic.
• 1:05:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 1:05:59
  SPEAKER_00: Just to Clarify on the um needs of obviously 10 million and 10 pounds, totally agree.
• 1:06:04
  SPEAKER_00: I suppose what I'm alluding to is keeping the investment proposition simple.
• 1:06:08
  SPEAKER_00: So, of course, if someone's got 10 million pounds, there's huge tax planning opportunities that we can help solve, tax wrappers, um, estate planning tools, so on and so forth.
• 1:06:17
  SPEAKER_00: There's a whole world of um value we can add there for the more complicated client.
• 1:06:22
  SPEAKER_00: But on the investment piece, that's where I'm really focused on keeping it simple because there's so many fund managers, so many different ways of working out there.
• 1:06:29
  SPEAKER_00: Don't delve away from a globally diversified equity portfolio.
• 1:06:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, if you've got the 15,000 great companies in the world in your portfolio and your ICE and your pension, you're going to do bloody well.
• 1:06:42
  SPEAKER_00: And there's loads of graphs and loads of different fund managers you can work with that that get that message across quite clearly.
• 1:06:48
  SPEAKER_00: Don't overcomplicate the investment strategy.
• 1:06:51
  SPEAKER_00: Keep that simple, and your clients will benefit 10 times over.
• 1:06:55
  SPEAKER_01: Is there anything that you've got within your I'm really interested in this, by the way, because I think keeping things simple is really important.
• 1:07:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I think financial planning as a whole can be overly complicated.
• 1:07:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I think it's been used that way in the past to keep the client at bay and to make them feel like they're getting something special that we know all about and you don't and you need us.
• 1:07:15
  SPEAKER_01: And I think um when someone's thinking about them becoming a financial planner, they feel like it's going to be really complicated.
• 1:07:21
  SPEAKER_01: So just you you mentioned a few things there about the investment strategies and stuff, but what are you doing?
• 1:07:25
  SPEAKER_01: What you know, what are you doing and what can you tell our listeners about ways to simplify the business and especially like the client journey and and perhaps the um investment uh proposition and solutions?
• 1:07:37
  SPEAKER_01: Is that tech involved?
• 1:07:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, the first thing is it is difficult because you spend your time learning all the exams and all the material, which is complicated, and then you have to um find a way of telling clients what that means in plain English, and that is a challenge in itself.
• 1:07:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think I'm quite good at that, and I think that's been why I've done quite well in my career, but for other people it can be very, very challenging.
• 1:07:59
  SPEAKER_00: So um, we've partnered on an investment side with a company called Dimensional, um, who are a huge US um uh based company.
• 1:08:08
  SPEAKER_00: They've got offices in the UK and all over the world in Europe.
• 1:08:12
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of people haven't heard of them, which staggers me.
• 1:08:14
  SPEAKER_00: They've got billions and billions under management, and they are a great outfit.
• 1:08:17
  SPEAKER_00: Now, they're an evidence-based approach company, and I was introduced to them at my old business.
• 1:08:22
  SPEAKER_00: So I was again, I was quite lucky that I saw good quite early on in my career.
• 1:08:26
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 1:08:26
  SPEAKER_00: Now, Dal Mention have a philosophy of again, not overcomplicating it and diversifying and keeping costs low, which in investing is very, very important.
• 1:08:34
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so they don't they don't know what's going to happen tomorrow or next week, and they don't claim to, but they do deploy some quite clever tilts within portfolios and quite clever strategies that may mean clients will get a slightly better return on the market on average in the future.
• 1:08:47
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so I won't do their job for them.
• 1:08:49
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of complexity in there, but clients I've found clients don't really care about the investment approach.
• 1:08:55
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, you can recommend an active uh fund, a passive fund, that they're not bothered, they trust what you believe in.
• 1:09:01
  SPEAKER_00: So find a good partner and stick with it.
• 1:09:04
  SPEAKER_00: And a good partner is to deliver value below cost and be diversified, and they're the key things, okay.
• 1:09:09
  SPEAKER_00: Don't be scared of risk, would be my second um advice.
• 1:09:12
  SPEAKER_00: So global equities are not risky, they're volatile, but they're not risky.
• 1:09:16
  SPEAKER_00: I hate it, I hate risk questionnaires, I hate things like that.
• 1:09:18
  SPEAKER_00: Um, if a client's in their 30s or 40s and you're in a pension fund, global equities are your friend, not your enemy.
• 1:09:24
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, and volatility isn't an issue.
• 1:09:26
  SPEAKER_00: So we combat volatility by holding cash and bonds.
• 1:09:30
  SPEAKER_00: So if a client's in retirement with us and he needs so much income a year, keep that income in bond or cash, it's not going to do anything, but it's safe and it's secure.
• 1:09:39
  SPEAKER_00: Remainder, take some risk with it, and then you can top your cash and your bonds up with it over time.
• 1:09:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's it's really, really simple.
• 1:09:46
  SPEAKER_00: It sounds too simple to be to be true and to you know show that you can add value, but the the client's the client's biggest value from you as an advisor will be that peace of mind and that educational thing.
• 1:09:56
  SPEAKER_00: And so when markets are playing up, the humans are going to want to sell their shares.
• 1:10:00
  SPEAKER_00: You stopping them from doing that is adding loads and loads of value.
• 1:10:04
  SPEAKER_00: You'll add value in your tax planning and your estate planning and all that business.
• 1:10:08
  SPEAKER_00: You won't really add much value on an investment piece, as far as I'm concerned.
• 1:10:11
  SPEAKER_00: So find something that works.
• 1:10:13
  SPEAKER_00: There's plenty of good partners out there and stick to it.
• 1:10:15
  SPEAKER_00: And but make sure you believe in it.
• 1:10:17
  SPEAKER_00: That's the most important thing because that will come across.
• 1:10:19
  SPEAKER_01: So you know, what it sounds like to me as well is that you're heavily involved in building trust with those clients.
• 1:10:25
  SPEAKER_01: That they trust you.
• 1:10:27
  SPEAKER_01: When you use dimensional tools, things like that, that is simplifying the process.
• 1:10:32
  SPEAKER_01: You're not overly complicated, you've got everything in one place, and you if you feel calm in your business that everything is running smoothly in the most simplified, easier to processes, it becomes a lot easier to then create a customer journey that that it runs alongside it.
• 1:10:46
  SPEAKER_01: Is there anything in your customer journey where you have touch points um or that you present things back to them so that you're always kind of keeping them in the loop, or do you give them access to anything that allows them to feel like they're part of the journey and that at any time they can check on things or they can check in with you, or um again, reassure them that even in times that are difficult, that and you're not running around like a lunatic on the phone and all of that, I expect you do that sort of thing as well.
• 1:11:13
  SPEAKER_01: But like you're trying to simplify, is there anything you do at the moment that that you think if you pass that knowledge on to somebody else who's thinking about it, would be massively beneficial if they're starting their own business?
• 1:11:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yep.
• 1:11:23
  SPEAKER_00: So we're actually just reviewing all of our client processes at the moment, so whether that's a new client, review client, check-in service, just to streamline them and get them even better than they already are.
• 1:11:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I would say the most important thing of the client journey, though, is initial meetings and educating the client on your philosophy and educating them on your beliefs because once they've bought into that and once you understand how markets work, how money works, they're not going to challenge you too often.
• 1:11:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the second thing is client contact is the most important thing.
• 1:11:52
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 1:11:53
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sorry to say this for the compliance people out there.
• 1:11:55
  SPEAKER_00: They don't give a monkeys about the risk questionnaire, they don't give a monkeys about the um reports that you're generating and the advice reports.
• 1:12:02
  SPEAKER_00: They're a compliant document, you need to do them.
• 1:12:04
  SPEAKER_00: Halftime clients won't bloody read the things, okay?
• 1:12:07
  SPEAKER_00: They care about you and your conversation and what you recommend.
• 1:12:11
  SPEAKER_00: They want they want your opinion, and for that, they need to trust you.
• 1:12:14
  SPEAKER_00: So if you're building the client's journey, make sure you're involved in as many client touch points as possible.
• 1:12:20
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, and that can be across the business.
• 1:12:22
  SPEAKER_00: That's me with the initial meetings.
• 1:12:24
  SPEAKER_00: That's then introducing Rav, and he has phone calls with them.
• 1:12:26
  SPEAKER_00: That's checking in after a month or so of new business, make sure they're happy.
• 1:12:30
  SPEAKER_00: At all times, you need to check in with that client and make and show that you're a human being.
• 1:12:35
  SPEAKER_00: I think what people crave in this industry is a personal service, which we are wanting to build.
• 1:12:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the challenge of the industry is the big consolidators out there are going to struggle because they're gonna have to streamline, they're gonna have to have processes, and they're gonna have to automate things without a human being involved at all all stages.
• 1:12:52
  SPEAKER_00: Human beings are very important in financial planning.
• 1:12:54
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, keep that at the forefront of what you do would be my guidance.
• 1:12:58
  SPEAKER_01: I think any technology that's gonna come in is only going to add value to the financial planning uh process by taking away the mundane, uh, annoying tasks that you guys have to do.
• 1:13:09
  SPEAKER_01: So you can spend so you can spend more time with people.
• 1:13:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um and that's what I love about it.
• 1:13:13
  SPEAKER_01: And this is why the opportunity within financial planning for me is so great because embryotic in respect to the tech, tech's not coming along to take over the human, the human plays a hugely vital role in it.
• 1:13:22
  SPEAKER_01: What AI and what automation is doing is freeing up the advisor to be an advisor and to stop stressing the nut out about things that are annoying, like so you can be better humans, have better human connection and build deeper trust and be more kind and caring and considerate.
• 1:13:38
  SPEAKER_01: And I think that's so exciting, isn't it?
• 1:13:40
  SPEAKER_01: Because that's the that's the lovely piece, isn't it?
• 1:13:42
  SPEAKER_01: We all love talking to people.
• 1:13:43
  SPEAKER_01: It's crap.
• 1:13:44
  SPEAKER_01: I could sell all day long, right?
• 1:13:46
  SPEAKER_01: I reckon I could sell all day long.
• 1:13:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um but when you're in a small business, you've got to think about the things because every time you sell something, there's something to do.
• 1:13:54
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's aftercare, there's service, there's things you've got to do.
• 1:13:58
  SPEAKER_01: And that's where tech plays a massive part in it.
• 1:14:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm reading all my business around at the moment, the financial plan of life.
• 1:14:03
  SPEAKER_01: There's lots of change going on here.
• 1:14:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um, for me, protest is automation, AI is something I'm quite heavily involved in.
• 1:14:09
  SPEAKER_01: I've actually got an episode coming up soon.
• 1:14:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm going to interview them today, actually, around AI and the implementation of AI into financial planning firms and how best to use it.
• 1:14:19
  SPEAKER_01: So, one for you to maybe listen to if you haven't stepped into that market.
• 1:14:23
  SPEAKER_01: This person's an AI consultant, came from Rowan Dartington, so has experience in IM, but is implementing it into financial planning firms of all different shapes and sizes.
• 1:14:33
  SPEAKER_01: They're not creating it, they're looking at the market.
• 1:14:35
  SPEAKER_01: And as a consultant, consulting on you how best to use it.
• 1:14:39
  SPEAKER_01: So really valuable for anybody that just wants to have an AI expert in the background.
• 1:14:45
  SPEAKER_01: And for certain types of firms that's all different shapes and sizes, obviously, they offer training, onboarding, development, and all that kind of stuff.
• 1:14:50
  SPEAKER_01: So super interesting.
• 1:14:51
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I need to bring this um fantastic conversation to an end because I've really enjoyed talking to you and I want to continue conversations on with you uh in the future because um I think there's a lot that you can teach me.
• 1:15:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um I really love the way that you come across and your uh how to you've really kind of calmed me a little bit because I often think about financial planning.
• 1:15:11
  SPEAKER_01: I haven't run a financial advice business, but I really plan on having one.
• 1:15:14
  SPEAKER_01: It's one of those things that I want to have in the future.
• 1:15:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I think um I need people around me that can um not overcomplicate things.
• 1:15:23
  SPEAKER_01: And I want to be able to lean into a network of people like you.
• 1:15:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um and I think you're a value add.
• 1:15:28
  SPEAKER_01: And I think listening and talking to you, I think and what you've done so far, uh, mate, well done.
• 1:15:36
  SPEAKER_01: You know, because I talk to I talk to lots of people all the time, and you're on the right path.
• 1:15:40
  SPEAKER_01: Keep doing what you're doing.
• 1:15:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um and I love that you've created this affordability, this affordable model as well.
• 1:15:47
  SPEAKER_01: And don't drop it, because I think that is like gold, mate.
• 1:15:51
  SPEAKER_01: That's like the sort of thing in the future that is absolutely gonna be driving your marketing and brand awareness and solving and creating problems, uh, solving problems, sorry, for a lot of people that um unfortunately are having um uncomfortable thoughts within their head around their future um when it comes to finances.
• 1:16:11
  SPEAKER_01: So well done, mate.
• 1:16:12
  SPEAKER_01: I love it.
• 1:16:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um thank you.
• 1:16:13
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for your time today.
• 1:16:14
  SPEAKER_01: Brilliant.
• 1:16:14
  SPEAKER_01: And we'll release this podcast soon, and our listeners will be able to listen to it.
• 1:16:18
  SPEAKER_00: Excellent, no, it's been a pleasure, Sam.
• 1:16:19
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you very much.
• 1:16:20
  SPEAKER_00: Uh really enjoyed it.
• 1:16:21
  SPEAKER_01: Fantastic.
• 1:16:22
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for your time, mate.