Here are the key lessons for Holistic Wealth Planners drawn from Essays on the Economics of Human Capital (Lucia Rizzica, UCL 2013) — translated from academic economics into the context of AoLP’s human-centred planning philosophy: 1. Aspiration Is an Economic Asset The UK “Widening Participation” study showed that raising non-cognitive traits such as aspiration and … Continue reading Key lessons for Holistic Wealth Planners
Tag: money
The Real Value of Advice: Why We Don’t Charge by the Pound of Assets Under Management
“If your worth is measured by the market, you’ve already sold your soul to it.” Across the financial advice industry, one number continues to dominate — 1%.Whether your wealth grows or falls, the adviser’s fee remains tethered to it. The Citywire Top 100 Firms 2025 and FCA data show the same pattern: ongoing charges clustered … Continue reading The Real Value of Advice: Why We Don’t Charge by the Pound of Assets Under Management
Key lessons for Holistic Wealth Planners
Here are the key lessons Holistic Wealth Planners can draw from Education, Growth and Income Inequality by Coen Teulings and Thijs van Rens: 1. Human Capital Drives Growth—But With Diminishing Returns The study confirms that education (a proxy for human capital) boosts GDP, but each additional year of education contributes less than the last. In … Continue reading Key lessons for Holistic Wealth Planners
AoLP Blog: “Let’s Get the Debate Over With”: You’re all doing financial planning wrong.
You’re all doing financial planning wrong.When one person stands against the crowd, it’s easy to dismiss them as difficult, disruptive, or wrong. But what if that one person simply sees the truth differently? For years, I’ve been that “annoying guy” in your feed saying the financial planning industry has lost its way. It’s not about … Continue reading AoLP Blog: “Let’s Get the Debate Over With”: You’re all doing financial planning wrong.
Reconceptualising Wealth: From Human Capital to Human Capability
In the Academy of Life Planning, we believe wealth is not what you have — it’s what you can do.This philosophy resonates powerfully with a landmark paper by Paula England and Nancy Folbre, Reconceptualizing Human Capital (2000) — a text that redefines what it means to be “wealthy” in human terms. Beyond the Balance Sheet … Continue reading Reconceptualising Wealth: From Human Capital to Human Capability
Why Britain Needs Total-Wealth Planners — Not 1% Advisers
For years we’ve told people that “financial advice” means picking funds, switching products, or optimising the investable sliver of their portfolio. But this narrow definition has hidden a deeper structural truth: regulated retail investments — the only area most advisers are authorised to touch — account for less than one percent of the total wealth … Continue reading Why Britain Needs Total-Wealth Planners — Not 1% Advisers
When “Alpha” Broke the Bank
In 2007, I was Head of Savings and Investments Strategy at RBS Group, based in the gleaming Gogarburn headquarters that symbolised the bank’s soaring ambition. I had just completed a five-year strategic plan designed to position RBS as a sustainable market leader — one that could combine profitability with prudence, and growth with genuine customer … Continue reading When “Alpha” Broke the Bank
🧭 Structurally Trustworthy Education: Teaching Our Children Freedom, Not Dependency
By Steve Conley, Founder of the Academy of Life Planning Background: Financial Education Returns to the Curriculum After more than a decade without review, the UK Government has announced plans to include financial education within the national curriculum for both primary and secondary schools. The proposals, warmly welcomed by many financial planners, aim to make … Continue reading 🧭 Structurally Trustworthy Education: Teaching Our Children Freedom, Not Dependency
🌍 The Real Wealth of Nations: Lessons in Human Capital for Holistic Wealth Planners
“Wealth in the broadest sense includes people.” — Irving Fisher (1906) The world’s greatest untapped resource isn’t oil, gold, or digital currency — it’s human capital. A recent study from Riga Stradiņš University and al-Farabi Kazakh National University, “Problems of Development and Effective Use of Human Capital in Developing Countries” (Muravska et al., 2020), offers … Continue reading 🌍 The Real Wealth of Nations: Lessons in Human Capital for Holistic Wealth Planners
🌌 The Six Invisible Laws Every Holistic Wealth Planner Should Know
— How to work with energy, ethics, and timing in the Aquarian Age of Empowerment In the world of holistic wealth planning, numbers and strategies matter — but energy, intention, and alignment matter more. The best planners don’t just design financial blueprints; they harmonise with deeper laws that govern all creation. These laws are not … Continue reading 🌌 The Six Invisible Laws Every Holistic Wealth Planner Should Know
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