Author: Steve Conley

Steve Conley brings over four decades of innovation and expertise to the forefront of financial planning. As the founder and driving force behind the Academy of Life Planning and HapNav Ltd, Steve has been a pivotal figure in transforming financial services to be more democratic and decentralised. His role as a Game Plan Practitioner, Coach, Mentor, Speaker, and Author of "Your Money or Your Life: Unmask the Highway Robbers - Enjoy Wealth in Every Area of Your Life" underlines his comprehensive approach to financial education. The Academy of Life Planning, hailed as the "Most Pioneering Financial Planner Network," reflects Steve's commitment to fostering transparency, integrity, and accessibility. This institution serves as a testament to his dedication to enhancing the financial planning landscape. Under Steve's innovative leadership, HapNav Ltd has launched groundbreaking advancements, including the first end-user financial planning app integrated with open banking. This app guides users towards achieving 'Kokoro'—a life rich in financial, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual abundance. Recently, Steve introduced "Planning My Life" and "Financial Life Coach"—services that extend his ethos into practical, impactful tools for financial autonomy. "Planning My Life" offers an affordable subscription model, giving members access to an AI Life Planner, comprehensive resources, and expert insights. These initiatives epitomise Steve’s commitment to empowering individuals, nurturing community growth, and contributing significantly to global efforts to eradicate poverty. Steve's journey is more than a career; it's a steadfast crusade to revolutionise financial education and planning, creating a world where financial wellbeing is not just attainable, but enriches every aspect of our lives. Contact steve.conley@aolp.co.uk.

Life on the Other Side of Financial Planning

Why Human Capital Strategies Mastery Is Becoming the Bridge to the Profession’s Future There’s a quiet moment many financial planners reach. Nothing has gone wrong.Clients are still engaging.The rules are still being followed.The numbers still add up. And yet something feels incomplete. Not because financial planning has failed —but because the world it serves has … Continue reading Life on the Other Side of Financial Planning →

The Bridge: Who you are on the other side

Where you are now (Before the Bridge) People arrive at the bridge carrying some combination of: exhaustion from systems that take more than they give a sense of having been used, overlooked, or misled skills and experience that no longer fit the roles available a quiet knowing that this chapter is over They often describe … Continue reading The Bridge: Who you are on the other side →

Most of a Person’s Wealth Is Not on a Balance Sheet — It Walks Into Work Every Day

A practitioner insight for Total Wealth Planners Traditional financial planning has taught generations of advisers to look down—at balance sheets, portfolios, wrappers, and projections.Total Wealth Planning asks us to look up—at the living, breathing human being who generates, sustains, and renews all of that capital. A growing body of academic research confirms what many of … Continue reading Most of a Person’s Wealth Is Not on a Balance Sheet — It Walks Into Work Every Day →

Case Study: When “Building Your Own Book” Isn’t What It Seems

This case study is drawn from multiple adviser experiences. Details have been anonymised, but the structure and outcomes are real. The starting point: an attractive opportunity An adviser joins a well-known advice practice operating within a large network. They are offered a Business Support Package (BSP), described verbally as: help getting started, an investment in … Continue reading Case Study: When “Building Your Own Book” Isn’t What It Seems →

The BSP Trap: What SJP Advisers Are Rarely Told — and How to Get Free If You’re Already In

Business Support Packages (BSPs) are often presented as a helping hand. A bridge.A vote of confidence.A way to “get established quickly”. For many advisers entering or operating within large networks such as St James’s Place, BSPs can feel like the only viable route forward. But what looks like support on the way in can feel … Continue reading The BSP Trap: What SJP Advisers Are Rarely Told — and How to Get Free If You’re Already In →

The Planner’s Tension:

Why “Complexity” Doesn’t Increase With Age — It Shifts As more traditional planners explore Total Wealth Planning, a recurring tension often surfaces: “Planning becomes more complex as clients get older.” It’s a reasonable assumption.It’s also incomplete. What actually changes over a lifetime is not the level of complexity, but the composition of wealth — and … Continue reading The Planner’s Tension: →

When AI Is Captured: What City Banks’ AI Ambitions Mean for Citizen Investigators

Lessons for Get SAFE users from the front line of “bankers and bots” Artificial intelligence is often framed as a great equaliser — faster analysis, lower costs, better decisions.But as the City’s largest banks roll out agentic AI at scale, a more uncomfortable truth is emerging: AI does not automatically democratise power.It amplifies whoever already … Continue reading When AI Is Captured: What City Banks’ AI Ambitions Mean for Citizen Investigators →

Planning for Total Wealth: Why Human Capital Must Be at the Heart of Lifetime Planning

Most new financial advisers are taught to plan only half a life. The familiar model—accumulation, transition, retirement, legacy—has become so normalised that few stop to ask a more fundamental question: What exactly are we planning? The answer, in practice, is almost always the same:financial capital. Savings. Investments. Pensions. Decumulation strategies. Estate planning. All important.All necessary.But … Continue reading Planning for Total Wealth: Why Human Capital Must Be at the Heart of Lifetime Planning →

AI Cash-Flow Planning vs Traditional Lifetime Cash-Flow Tools

A reflection for planners navigating what comes next For decades, lifetime cash-flow planning tools have played a central role in professional financial planning. They brought structure, consistency, and a sense of rigour to conversations about the future. Many advisers built their confidence — and their practices — around them. So it’s understandable that the emergence … Continue reading AI Cash-Flow Planning vs Traditional Lifetime Cash-Flow Tools →