Most families have pieces of a plan. Few have a plan that connects the pieces. A pension here. A mortgage there. A will written years ago. An ageing parent who may need care. Children finding their feet. Perhaps a business, a property, or responsibilities shared across generations. Each part may have received attention. But who … Continue reading T.F.O friday: Building a Total Family Office for Every Family
Author: Steve Conley
Steve Conley is the founder of the Academy of Life Planning, a movement dedicated to restoring human agency in financial planning and helping people navigate life's decisions with greater confidence, capability and independence.
With over 40 years' experience in financial services, Steve has held senior leadership roles with HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander and Royal London. A Chartered Financial Planner and Chartered Insurer, he combines deep industry expertise with a passion for challenging systems that leave people unnecessarily dependent on experts.
Steve believes the future of financial planning is not about replacing advisers with artificial intelligence, but using AI to strengthen people's ability to understand, question and make informed decisions for themselves. This philosophy underpins Academy OS, a growing ecosystem of AI-powered tools designed to help individuals, families and planners build capability rather than dependency.
Through the Academy of Life Planning, Steve works with financial planners, organisations and individuals who share a vision of a more transparent, ethical and human-centred approach to planning. His work spans education, research, technology, speaking and professional development, with a focus on creating practical solutions that improve financial capability and restore confidence in decision-making.
Steve is also the creator of the Total Wealth Planner approach, which recognises that a fulfilling life depends on far more than money alone. By integrating financial, personal, social and purpose-driven wellbeing, he helps people pursue what he calls "enough"—a life of balance, resilience and meaning.
As a speaker, mentor and author of *Your Money or Your Life: Unmask the Highway Robbers*, Steve continues to challenge conventional thinking about financial planning, arguing that the profession's greatest opportunity is to move beyond advice alone and become a catalyst for greater human agency.
To learn more or connect with Steve, visit the Academy of Life Planning or email steve@academyoflifeplanning.com.
A £50 meeting with Steve Conley
A £50 meeting with Steve Conley "I need experienced help with a specific decision, without signing up to an ongoing advice relationship." If that sounds like you, this meeting is for you. About 50 minutes, £50, one conversation about the thing that matters right now. Most of the questions people bring are an 18-month problem, … Continue reading A £50 meeting with Steve Conley
AI Is Making Financial Planning Faster. Is It Making People More Capable?
By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning | 12 October 2026 Financial planning firms are becoming better at using AI. They can capture conversations, organise information and produce documents with less manual work. That is a real improvement. But a faster process does not tell us whether the person at its centre understands their … Continue reading AI Is Making Financial Planning Faster. Is It Making People More Capable?
Your client’s life is bigger than the FCA perimeter
Why Total Wealth Planners need to change the centre of their practice By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning12 October 2026 A person asks for help making sense of retirement. Before long, the conversation turns to pension consolidation, investment funds, regulated advice and what the Financial Conduct Authority will allow. But the person’s question … Continue reading Your client’s life is bigger than the FCA perimeter
When do you change your business model? Before the cash cow stops paying.
AI may take years to reshape financial planning. The time available to build a viable alternative could be much shorter. By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning Your business is profitable. Clients are staying. The existing model still pays the bills. Meanwhile, a new technology promises to change what customers can do for themselves … Continue reading When do you change your business model? Before the cash cow stops paying.
Human Capital and Total Wealth Planning: Seven Lessons from the Research
By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning Abstract Financial planning can describe accumulated assets in considerable detail while giving less systematic attention to the capabilities through which people earn, adapt, contribute and exercise choice. This article examines six supplied papers on human capital, education, income distribution and sustainable development. It develops seven lessons for … Continue reading Human Capital and Total Wealth Planning: Seven Lessons from the Research
AI-led advice—or an AI-led route to your money?
Open comparison can expose the cost of distribution. Commercially captured AI can channel customers into it. By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning A recent Citywire headline announced Moneybox’s plans to roll out AI-led advice. With two million customers and £23 billion in assets under administration, the story promises an explanation of how the … Continue reading AI-led advice—or an AI-led route to your money?
What is good for the City is not necessarily good for the country
When central bankers intervene in government spending choices, we should ask whose definition of prosperity is setting the limits. By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning An elected government prepares its Budget. The Governor of the Bank of England warns about credibility, rising spending and the possibility of another crisis. A newspaper invokes the … Continue reading What is good for the City is not necessarily good for the country
HSBC Is Doing It Again. This Time, There Is No Carve-Out.
HSBC Is Doing It Again. This Time, There Is No Carve-Out. The competitive pressure will spread through the banks. The change in customer demand will reach much further. By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning HSBC is doing it again. I was there when it announced its retail advice withdrawal in 2011. I argued … Continue reading HSBC Is Doing It Again. This Time, There Is No Carve-Out.
When the Rewards Flow Upwards, Why Does the Blame Flow Downwards?
Five overturned banking convictions raise a bigger question: who has the power to shape a system, and who carries the consequences when it fails? By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning8 October 2026 A prestigious employer. A respected job title. A career in the City. From the outside, these look like signs of security. … Continue reading When the Rewards Flow Upwards, Why Does the Blame Flow Downwards?
