For eight years, I worked at investment banks in London, dealing with huge sums moving through complex spreadsheets. It was interesting work, but it often felt disconnected, like the numbers didn’t really translate into a tangible impact on people’s lives.
In 2018 I moved to Yorkshire and changed career entirely. I’m now a wealth planner at Mattioli Woods in York, and the difference couldn’t be more obvious. The technical knowledge I built in the city still underpins how I think about markets and investment – but now it’s applied to real people, real goals, and decisions that genuinely matter.
The moment that really clarified why I made the switch came during a free financial clinic we ran at a factory. There were no fees or sales – just people with questions. One man, 55, was renting his council house and had no idea he might be able to buy it, let alone afford it. We talked through his situation, and a few months later he bought his first home. It was a straightforward outcome, but a meaningful one and not something you measure in basis points.
At its core, financial planning is about relationships. It’s about helping people work through questions they’ve often considered but never fully answered: what do you want retirement to look like, how should your wealth support your family, and what does financial security actually mean to you? Once those answers are clear, the planning itself becomes much more purposeful.
Every client is different, and the starting point isn’t a model or a product, it’s understanding the person in front of you. I typically work with business owners and senior executives, people with complex financial situations and clear views on what they want. Where it makes sense, we can explore a broader range of strategies beyond the basics to help build and manage wealth effectively over time.
I grew up in London in a single-income household – my dad was a musician, and money was often tight. We never felt like we went without, but it did teach me not to take things for granted. That background has given me a useful perspective on what money represents to people, particularly those who haven’t always had it in abundance.
Outside of work, music is still a big part of my life. I play piano and have a small studio at home. I also play tennis. And with two young children, I’m learning patience – or at least making a decent attempt at it.
