No one asks for a financial plan…or at least they used not to

I have been working as a financial planner since 2010 and have worked with dozens of people in helping them make sense of their money and what they want to spend it on. In that time, no one has ever come into me looking for a financial plan.

Financial planning clients always came in to me wanting to talk about pensions or investments. Talking about investment returns or investment strategy doesn’t make people want to start the financial planning process. It is talking about spending their money that makes people want to engage in financial planning.

1. What do you love doing?
2. If money was no object, what would you do?
3. What changes to your current life do you have to make so you can make things happen?
4. Will you go without smaller things for the next few years so you can achieve something BIG in 4 or 5 years?
5. Are you willing to make these changes or would you prefer things to carry on as is?

Thankfully, over the last couple of years, I have begun to have clients, only a handful mind, come to me asking “Steven, we like our life and we want to continue enjoying it. What do we need to do to ensure that we don’t run out of money?”

For me, as a financial planner, it is a welcomed departure from the point where product advice was the first and last thing you talked about. Now, having a great life is the first and most important topic was talk about. Product products are a tool to help you on the way.

What do you think? Are people becoming more aware of financial planning and the benefits of the financial planning process? Or do people generally have to be made aware of it by talking to a good financial planner?

Let me know what you think. You can contact me at steven@bluewaterfp.ie