Monday
My week starts, as do most days, with the gym. I get there about 8am, do a session and, like most middle aged gym-goers, arrive back home with a slightly undeserving sense of smugness. My working day starts at 10am, so I try to make sure I am in my office by then.
Today is spent working on client cases, which invariably involves interesting debating with our excellent paraplanner, Nathan Fryer of Plan Works. I have lunch with Julie Pullinger of Co-op Legal Services, who I introduce will and power of attorney enquiries to.
We work closely and meet regularly. My food is a nice chicken and bacon wrap. I leave the office at 5pm for my six-minute drive home.
Tuesday
I go to the gym again – smugness is intact.
Tuesday is always an important morning. I have a weekly meeting with my team to review how the week is going, assess the key metrics of the business, identify any issues that need resolving and set out key tasks that need to be done before the next meeting.
These tasks are not business-as-usual; they are about moving the company forward. My business life is broken down into quarters so the weekly meetings help make the company look different – hopefully better – at the end of the quarter compared to how it looked at the start.
I do more case work and then have a presentation with clients. As is often the case, they come in with a pension issue but, after deep discussion with them, it becomes a “what do I want to do with the rest of my life?” discussion.
We discuss their pension arrangements in the context of their overall lives and what they want to do. These discussions are helped no end by the use of cash flow planning software. We choose to use CashCalc, which is simple and easy for clients to engage with. It hits the spot with these clients. I do Taekwondo and have a good training session in the evening.
Wednesday
I nearly fall off the running machine this morning. I have an interesting discovery meeting with a client today, where we gathered all the facts about his situation and discuss investment risk at some length.
He wants my help in translating the complexities of his financial arrangements in to what they might all look like at various points in the future so he has a better idea of when he can retire. This is really important work and the single most fulfilling part of what I do.
Because I am still looking to grow, I spend a couple of hours every Wednesday on sales and marketing activities, which includes scheduling social media output for the forthcoming week. Today’s session is not one to be remembered, but they can sometimes be like that. It is a quiet night at home with my wife, Anna, and our two boys, Vito, aged 13, and Gio, 11.
Thursday
Back to the gym again: I manage to stay upright on the running machine. I have two client meetings. One is an initial meeting, which is the first part of our process, a ‘first date’ if you will. I like the client and we seem to be a good fit for each other, so we may well do some work together.
The other meeting is setting up a plan for clients who initially had no idea what their futures would look like, but are now clearer. I have a useful catch-up session on Skype with my virtual assistant, Nicola Hession-Kent of IFA Admin Solutions. I have Taekwondo again in the evening – a very hard session, but enjoyable. I have a can of lager when I get home as a reward.
Friday
No gym on Fridays – I am in too much agony from Taekwondo the night before. My working week is now done.
I stopped working on Fridays a few years ago. That said, I like to get things done on my Fridays including hoovering the house and cleaning the floors – jobs Anna hates, but I enjoy.
I often listen to business podcasts and FCA announcements while I am doing it. Yes, I am strange. I also go and see my best friend, Gary, for a coffee. He has multiple sclerosis and welcomes the company. I do a bit in the garden, catch up with mum and dad and then pick the boys up from school.
Taekwondo on a Friday evening rounds the week off nicely.
Marco Vallone is director of Brighton Financial, based in Hove, East Sussex
