How does your usual day look like?

I always start my workdays with yoga. I got into the Down Dog app during lockdown and it helps me centre myself. I’m very fortunate to be able to work from home so my commute is nice and short.

I tend to keep Mondays and Fridays as admin days and then block my meetings into Tuesday-Thursday. For those days there are four main types of meetings. There are coffee meetings which could be with a potential client discussing the ways that we can work together or a catch up with an existing client. There are initial client meetings where I’m taking the time to understand my clients and their needs. I also now do cash flow modelling which is a great way to show my clients visually what their future could look like. I love that this is bespoke, tailored specifically to their goals and current circumstances. The other type is a presentation meeting. This is once I’ve done all my research and am ready to share their best solution and get a plan in place.

I have always made sure I take an hour for lunch to get away from my desk and go for a walk so I can reset for the afternoon. At the moment I’m working later than I would like, my workday typically ends around 7pm unless I have a networking event to go to. I have supper with my husband and we sit down and talk about our day and relax in front of a box set. I head up to bed around 10.30pm to journal and do some reading before falling asleep around 11.30pm.

What are the things you like the most about your job?

I love that I work with highly driven professionals & business owners to ensure that their money is working efficiently to achieve the future they want.

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By helping my clients to better understand their finances this means that together we can make the right decisions for them. The most common feelings around money are confusion and anxiety and I take my clients from feeling like that to feeling confident and in control about their finances and their future.

What are some of the skills you utilise the most in your day-to-day at work?

Clear communication, goal setting, empathy, organisation, collaboration and planning

What was one of your happiest day in your career and why?

This last week has been one of my happiest in this career. I’ve been shortlisted for two awards, which takes my total this year to 5. Fingers crossed one turns into a win. I’ve also found out that the second episode that I was on with the Financial Planner Life podcast has had over 1200 downloads in its first 3 weeks. To put that into perspective the first podcast episode we did together only hit 1000 downloads after a year. This episode has been in the top 10% of downloaded podcasts globally! That blows my mind, especially as it is such a niche topic. Also, I’ve had an article come out with FT Adviser recently that I’m really proud of.

What was the toughest career decision you ever made?

Quitting my previous job during a global pandemic. Removing the security of a job was scary, but I knew I had to remove the safety net before I could allow myself the mental clarity to fully explore what I truly wanted to do with my life. It was tough but also one of the best decisions I have ever made and I’m so glad that I did it.

What is something you had to learn to become better at your work?

I am constantly learning as part of this career. That could be soft skills such as improving my communication and listening skills or hard skills such as different forms of investment or inheritance tax planning. It is also important to keep on top of regulatory and legislative changes, for example what has changed in each year’s Spring and Autumn Budget.

How did you get to become a Wealth Manager?

I quit my job in corporate finance at the end of Summer 2020 to do some soul searching. I was recommended the book "What Colour is Your Parachute". From working through the worksheets and exercises in that I discovered I wanted to be a financial planner.

I loved the idea of working with people to help them better understand their finances and thereby live a better life. However I had no idea how to get into that career or what precisely they did so I turned to Google.

The first resource I found was the Financial Planner Life podcast. After listening to a few episodes it confirmed this was my dream career path. One of the episodes mentioned an academy to train financial advisors. I reached out, went through the interview process and got accepted to join a 6-month fast-track academy in March 2021. This helped me to get qualified and get myself ready to set up my own practice and start working with clients.

If you could give a younger woman one piece of advice (it can be anything) - what would you say to them?

BBQ. Be Braver Quicker!

As women we typically only put ourselves forward when we are 100% confident we can do it. But the only way to expand your comfort zone is by doing the things that may scare you but will also help you grow.

The other thing I would like to highlight is to be aware that we overestimate what we can do in 6 months but underestimate what we can do in 6 years.

Professional networking for women matters, because….

Our network is our networth. It is such a valuable resource in so many different ways.