“I make things simple for clients and do what I say I’m going to do.”
I went to Durham university to study economics, although the quality of the rugby team had more of an impact on where to study than the quality of course!
Rugby was my main focus in my early 20s before I became serious about my career. While I never aspired to be a professional rugby player, I was keen to play at the best level I could while studying for my degree. Durham allowed me to do this. After my degree I moved back to Lytham and played for Fylde, my local team, with some great history. Fylde were a couple of leagues below the Premiership and I played with – and against – some past and current legends of the game (if you’re interested in who, just ask!). This was while starting to study to be a financial adviser and working as an administrator at a local company. My rugby career ended at age 31, with 4-years’ experience as an adviser by this point, having also passed the exams to become chartered.
I played on the wing which meant I was reliant on 14 other people to help me do my main job, to score tries. Teamwork is key in rugby, more so than in most team sports. Now my clients benefit from my understanding of working within a team, whether it’s alongside the client, or with the various parts of the business that support me and clients, or working with the client’s other professional advisers such as solicitors or accountants.
I love being a financial adviser as I get the opportunity to meet different people with different thought processes around money – a fascinating challenge. The technical side suits the analytical part of my brain, and the flexibility meant I could keep playing and training before I retired from rugby, and now gives me flexibility around family life.
Now my sporting involvement is coaching my children’s football teams. One of the parents recently told me, in the nicest possible way, that I wasn’t the most technical coach but my man-management was excellent. Again, this shows the benefits of playing a team sport previously, which has helped with the management of all people involved in looking to ensure clients get the best outcomes, along with managing client’s expectations and understanding their concerns.
My main sport now is golf, I’m fortunate to be a member of Royal Lytham which has previously hosted The Open. Being one of the toughest courses in England it has the ability to put you, and any ego, back in place! Luckily people don’t rely on me for my golfing ability!
My main strengths that clients appreciate, almost disproportionally are: making complicated stuff sound simple, and just doing what you say you’re going to do. There are lots of simple things that help clients build trust in you such as showing up on time, replying to emails within 24 hours, actioning what you said you’d action. Not exciting, but it’s surprising how often clients are grateful for it, almost as much as when you save them lots of tax or help them retire years earlier than they had planned!
Trust is key when working with clients and helping them make important financial decisions all the time.
