Why Build a Total Wealth Planning Practice Alone?

Most financial planning businesses begin with one person. One planner. One diary. One network. One set of skills. One person carrying the whole thing. That can work. But it also creates an obvious weakness. If everything depends on you, you may have created a practice — but you have not yet created much organisational resilience. … Continue reading Why Build a Total Wealth Planning Practice Alone? →

Know What You’re Receiving Before You Act on It

We regulate the difference between information, education, guidance, promotion and financial advice. Perhaps it is time we taught the public the difference too. BIG Checker doesn’t just ask “Is this true?”It asks “What is this, who benefits, and why should you believe it?” More than half of people who acted on financial advice they encountered … Continue reading Know What You’re Receiving Before You Act on It →

The Academy Community Is Now Live on WhatsApp

Most people do not need a financial adviser beside them all the time. They need the right tools, somewhere trustworthy to ask questions, and access to an independent second brain when life becomes complex, stressful or uncertain. That is the thinking behind the new Academy of Life Planning Community on WhatsApp, now open to all … Continue reading The Academy Community Is Now Live on WhatsApp →

Agency Story No. 2: The Couple Who Came Back When the Decision Changed

Rachel and David did not need someone permanently managing their financial lives. They needed a way to explore retirement for themselves, followed by focused human support when the remaining decisions became more complex. Names and certain identifying details have been changed to protect client confidentiality. The underlying circumstances, planning process and client quotations remain faithful … Continue reading Agency Story No. 2: The Couple Who Came Back When the Decision Changed →

The Hot Shower: Jimmy Carr’s Outlook on Gratitude, Perspective and Modern Luxury

The Hot Shower Thought Most of us step into a hot shower without giving it a second thought. Jimmy Carr suggests we should. He points out that no king, emperor or celebrated figure from a century ago could reliably enjoy what millions of ordinary people now experience every morning: clean, instantly available hot water, delivered … Continue reading The Hot Shower: Jimmy Carr’s Outlook on Gratitude, Perspective and Modern Luxury →

Professional Agency: From Selling Shovels to Giving People the Forge

Most professional academies make the same promise. They identify the professional’s dream of freedom, success and independence, then sell them the tools they supposedly need to reach it. A business model. A marketing system. A coaching framework. A qualification. A secret formula. The message is familiar: You can build the practice you want—but only if … Continue reading Professional Agency: From Selling Shovels to Giving People the Forge →

Human Harm Story #1: The Judge Who Spoke Up for Justice—and Needed Protection From the Justice System

Before the harm Claire Gilham was a district judge. In her own words, she was what many people would regard as a “bog-standard district judge”: a general practitioner of the civil courts dealing with family disputes, road traffic accidents, mortgage and rent arrears, and the everyday conflicts through which ordinary people encounter the justice system. … Continue reading Human Harm Story #1: The Judge Who Spoke Up for Justice—and Needed Protection From the Justice System →

When the Investigator Becomes the Target – Part II

A contemporaneous record of events following my involvement with Safe or Scam Steve Conley Why I am publishing this For several years, various websites, anonymous online reviews and social media posts have made serious allegations about me following my involvement with an organisation called Safe or Scam. Some of those allegations accuse me of operating … Continue reading When the Investigator Becomes the Target – Part II →

When the Investigator Becomes the Target

Reputation attacks against people who investigate financial misconduct When people think about financial misconduct, they usually imagine the victims. The pensioner who lost their retirement savings. The family persuaded into a high-risk investment they didn't understand. The business owner who trusted the wrong people. What they rarely consider is what happens to the people who … Continue reading When the Investigator Becomes the Target →