“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” – William Morris

Financial planning has a couple of key check-in points. One check-in point is focussed on the future and considers risks and opportunities, whilst another check-in point helps us look at closer, medium-term goals that we want to achieve (or avoid!) in the next three-five years.

However, the hardest, yet most accessible, check-in point is the one that looks at our behaviours and choices from yesterday, today and tomorrow. This is the space where we can develop skills and behaviours that will aid us in our mid- and long-term planning check-ins. 

These details of our daily lives cannot be overlooked in how much they impact our happiness and our future financial plan. If we don’t pay attention to them, or we allow someone else to plan our finances independently of us, we could find ourselves confined to living a smaller, less fulfilling life.

Estelle Gibson, accountant and TED speaker, helps people achieve personal freedom through financial literacy. She shares her story of recovering from financial dependence (despite her profession) and shows how giving up control of your finances – voluntarily or otherwise – can leave you powerless. 

She explains how despite being educated and skilled at managing money, in her marriage she reverted back to what she’d learned growing up: one person managed all the money. She handed over her financial power, and became financially dependent. 

Financial dependency can leave emotional scars that cannot be seen. This is a subject of taboo because nobody wants to show their emotional scars, and because many of us are taught that money, and money problems, should not be spoken about. 

Gibson shares her story and highlights three problems that, if identified and addressed, can help us regain our financial independence, and all focus on the details of daily life:

 (1) Lack of awareness

Not only for our current situation, but of our formative years and how we are influenced by decisions that our caregivers made, and how we tend to copy the same behaviours. 

(2) Lack of information about financial literacy

Financial planning is a key component of developing our financial literacy. Whilst we don’t have to understand the intricacies of all financial products, we should be aware of how we are using them to build and protect our wealth.

(3) Lack of support

At WellsFaber we will support you every step of the way. We are genuinely interested in all the details of your daily life and will consider all the relevant check-in points as we help you meet both your personal and business financial planning needs.

A financial plan is not something we simply hand-out, it’s a unique and tailored strategy that will benefit you and your family. This is crafted over time in collaboration with you and your changing needs.

Your happiness is important to us because that is how we help you thrive in your wealthspace!