Investing in “Freedom”

Before I start please forgive the title of this blog. I know if I read it the first thing I would think of is some gun touting American dressed in the stars and stripes like this guy:

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1RbBHMeX80

However, please try and bear with me until the end as there are some valuable lessons to be learned if you are coming to a major life transition.

I received a call last week from a prospective client, he had contacted a number of different financial advisers and the usual questions followed; If I invested X amount for 10 years how much could I get back? What type of assets do you invest in? What kind of strategies do you use to mitigate risk?

I tried to steer the conversation towards Financial Planning and recommended that we build a personalised Financial Plan for this client and that this would tell us how and what we should be investing in.

He did not bite and continued to ask some highly technical questions about rebalancing, derivatives, futures etc. I have to say I was impressed with this client’s level of knowledge of investment instruments so I started explaining the Metis Ireland Investment Philosophy; having a long-term view, investing in the market itself, trading very rarely and sticking with the plan.

I gave the client my email address and told him to email me if he wants us to build a Financial Plan for him from scratch. I have not heard back from him and to be honest I do not expect to.

The mistake I made is that I did not help this person understand what he is really investing in. He was not going to invest in stocks, bonds or real estate. He was investing in Freedom. The Freedom to do the things he loves to do, when he loves to do them and with the people he loves to do them with. That is what investing is really, buying units of Future Freedom to live your life as you see fit.

So often Financial Advisers spend a lot of time trying to convince clients why they should pick a certain stock, or fund manager, or investment strategy whatever it may be. However what we really need them to understand is that by investing their money for the long term they are actually putting a down payment on their future happiness and security.

Fortunately, I got another shot a few days later; another prospective client rang me after seeing our offices while driving through town. He told me he was thinking of retiring and wanted to know what his retirement options are. He started talking about tax-free lump sums, AMRFs, and investment options, so I stopped him. I asked him what he meant by retirement. Did he mean leaving his current job? Stopping to work entirely? Or did he mean some kind of semi-retirement? He said he was not sure. I continued by asking him what he would do with his time if he did retire. He seemed surprised by my line of questioning and asked where I was going with this. I explained; I want to give you a financial road map for the rest of your life. I want to invest your money in such a way that it will give you the best chance of living the life you want to live, that will give you the Freedom to do the thing you want to do. How can I do that if I do not know what retirement means to you or what the most important things to you are?

He seemed happy with my answer and we both agreed that he should come and meet our Financial Planning Team so we can get a better idea of what Freedom means to him.

If you are reading this and are feeling the same way or just looking for some help and peace of mind for your future, please contact our Financial Planning Team.

Cian Callaghan
Head of Financial Planning

Disclaimer

Metis Ireland Financial Planning Ltd t/a Metis Ireland is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

All content provided in these blog posts is intended for information purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial advice. You should always engage the services of a fully qualified independent financial adviser before entering any financial contract. Metis Ireland Financial Planning Ltd t/a Metis Ireland will not be held responsible for any actions taken as a result of reading these blog posts.