Welcome to Day 2 of the Financial Planner Life Golf Day – where birdies, bogeys, and brilliant business insights go hand in hand. You can watch this episode on youtube or spotify! here This round sees Michael Yuille CFP™ (aka Mr #ChickenTuesday) and Sam Oakes take on Carla Brown (President of the PFS) and Guy Skinner (Citygate Financial Planning) in a best-of-seven match play showdown — with caddies, clubs, and competitive spirit fully loaded. What starts as a light-hearted game quickly turns in...
Sep 11, 2025•47 min
🎥 Financial Planner Life Golf Day | Game 1: Vikash Kanani vs Paul Taylor Real Golf. Real Financial Planners, Real Finanical Planning Career advice. Watch this episode on YouTube or Spotify - here Welcome to the first ever Financial Planner Life Golf Day, where the fairway becomes a forum for honest, unfiltered career advice in financial planning. 🏌️♂️ The Match: It’s Vikash Kanani (MD, Chatsworth Wealth) vs Paul “The Power” Taylor (Chartered Planner & Coach) in a competitive 9-hole matchp...
Sep 11, 2025•1 hr 7 min
How do you pass the CII RO exams and achieve the DipPFS? In this episode of Financial Planner Life , host Sam Oakes speaks with Gary Paul (Academy Relationship Manager, St. James’s Place Academy ), John Smith (Qualifications/Technical Trainer, Redmill Advance ) and Rebecca Bidwell , who passed the DipPFS in just 5 months . We answer the top questions aspiring advisers ask: What are the RO exams? → Six modules (RO1–RO6) that make up the CII DipPFS qualification. Which RO exam is hardest? → Most s...
Sep 01, 2025•30 min
How do you get clients as a financial planner without buying leads or relying on referrals? In this episode of Financial Planner Life , Sam Oakes interviews Jak Ali, Managing Director of J.A. Financial Planning Ltd, a Partner Practice of St. James’s Place Wealth Management. Jak shares exactly how he generates clients as a financial adviser using creative, confident, and relationship-based business development. He has built his entire client base without depending on lead providers or a legacy cl...
Aug 27, 2025•53 min
Mortgage Adviser Explains Why She Went Self-Employed, and Will Never Go Back! 👉 “I left my job after 16 years, and it turned out to be the best decision I ever made.” That’s what Carly Naylor, Mortgage and Protection Adviser at Foster Denovo , told me when we sat down to record this episode of Financial Planner Life. Carly’s been in financial services for over two decades. She started her journey in high street banking, moved into mortgage advice, and spent 16 years with one firm before making ...
Aug 21, 2025•35 min
If you’re a newly Level 4 Diploma qualified financial adviser with or without CAS status , an experienced financial planner wanting to run your own practice, or a mortgage broker looking to expand into financial planning, this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast is a must-listen. This week, host Sam Oakes speaks with Mark Hobbs , founder of New Leaf Distribution - an I FA network that supports advisers at every stage of their career . From helping mortgage brokers future-proof their in...
Aug 13, 2025•41 min
What if your advisers could serve 20–30 more clients, save 45 minutes per meeting, and reduce suitability report time from 3 hours to 10 minutes - all without hiring more support staff? That’s what Saturn AI is already delivering for over 600 financial planning firms ( 1600 Advisers ) , and in this episode of the Financial Planner Life Podcast , Sam Oakes sits down with co-founder Rohit Vaisha to explore how. But this isn’t another “AI will replace advisers” narrative. Saturn’s mission is to enh...
Aug 06, 2025•55 min
Thinking about a career in financial planning ? In this episode of Financial Planner Life , Miriam Murphy joins Sam Oakes to share her powerful career switch story, from Executive Assistant to qualified financial planner , with support from the St. James’s Place Academy . Miriam opens up about her early money mindset, paying off debt, buying a home, and how mentorship from Rob Gardner helped her see the potential she hadn’t yet recognised in herself. If you're considering becoming a financial pl...
Jul 29, 2025•51 min
Wayne Griffiths | One Financial Solutions | Financial Planner Careers In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, Sam Oakes sit down with Wayne Griffiths , Managing Partner at One Financial Solutions , to explore how he’s creating meaningful, supportive career paths for self-employed financial planners . We also dive into the ongoing debate: what’s better, restricted or IFA? Wayne shares his honest views and explains why the best advice always comes down to trust and intention—not jus...
Jul 24, 2025•53 min
From Admin to Self-Employed Financial Planner with £10M AUM by 26! In this episode of the Financial Planner Life Podcast, Sam Oakes sits down with Lawrence Bearman, a 26-year-old Chartered Financial Planner at Westminster Wealth Management who's gone from admin assistant to managing £10 million in assets, all within his first year of self-employment. We unpack: Why Lawrence chose to go self-employed with just £3M AUM How he tripled his assets in 12 months without cold calls or networking events ...
Jul 15, 2025•48 min
From Critical Illness to £60M Practice: Russell Cook’s Story of Resilience, Mindset and Career Growth at Foster Denovo In this special partnership episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast with Foster Denovo, we speak with Russell Cook — a senior partner, self-employed financial planner, and two-time survivor of life-threatening illness. Russell shares how he built a thriving £60 million practice advising 120 clients, despite facing a rare blood cancer diagnosis and later, a brain tumour. Hi...
Jul 10, 2025•44 min
In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, host Sam Oakes reconnects with Emmanuel Asuquo, a leading financial planner, TV personality, and social media educator. Emmanuel was Sam’s second-ever guest when the podcast launched, making this a special full-circle conversation. They dive deep into Emmanuel’s journey from growing up on a council estate to becoming one of the UK’s most recognisable financial planners, using platforms like Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube to educate and ent...
Jul 03, 2025•51 min
In this episode of the financial planner life podcast, Sam Oakes sits down with Katie, a former Army officer who transitioned into a successful financial planning career with the St. James’s Place Academy . Katie’s story is one of resilience, adaptability, and building a business that fits around life’s big moments, including becoming a mum mid-way through growing her firm. We cover: ✅ How military skills like leadership, discipline, and resilience translate into financial planning ✅ What it’s r...
Jun 26, 2025•51 min
Jeri Williams on Scaling a Business, Letting Go of Control, and Building a Life with More Freedom In this episode of Financial Planner Life , Sam Oakes sits down with Jeri Williams , the powerhouse behind Smooth Accounting in the UK and now Smooth Dubai . Jeri shares how she built a business that runs without her, the mindset shift that allowed her to finally let go of control, and why protecting her time is now non-negotiable. We dive deep into: ✅ Why she expanded into Dubai - and how it’s tran...
Jun 19, 2025•29 min
In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, Sam Oakes speaks with Aleem Nijabat , a self-employed financial planner who built £12 million in AUM without a client bank, without leads, and without a background in finance. Aleem started during lockdown, working alone from his bedroom. He had just qualified, had no clients, and relied entirely on cold outreach through LinkedIn to get started. This conversation is packed with practical advice for anyone considering a self-employed career i...
Jun 10, 2025•44 min
In this episode of Financial Planner Life , Sam Oakes is joined by certified money coach Dennis Harhalakis to explore the powerful emotional side of money - and why financial planners can't afford to ignore it. Dennis shares how our earliest money experiences shape the way we think, feel, and act around money as adults. Whether it’s shame, fear, scarcity, or self-worth, these emotional drivers often get in the way of good financial decision-making. We discuss: Why childhood money stories influen...
May 26, 2025•48 min
In this episode, Sam Oakes is joined by John O’Driscoll and Wenyu Bai from St. James’s Place to explore how AI and technology are being developed to support the future of financial planning. Discover how SJP’s 2030 vision is being built around: Advice Assistant : An AI-enabled tool already in production that reduces the time to produce advice packs from hours to minutes Chat SJP : An internal GPT-style assistant that delivers fast, accurate, compliant answers to technical questions Agentic AI : ...
May 15, 2025•47 min
Roger Brosch | 20 Years of Foster Denovo, 47% Growth, and the Launch of Foster Denovo Talks In this episode of Financial Planner Life , we welcome back Roger Brosch , CEO of Foster Denovo , to reflect on a standout year for the business. 47% revenue growth 200+ new hires 7 acquisitions A thriving culture that’s stronger than ever Roger shares what’s driven Foster Denovo’s success over the last 12 months, who he credits for the results, and why they’ve just launched their own podcast, Foster Deno...
May 08, 2025•27 min
In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, host Sam Oakes sits down with Jay Dhaliwal , Chartered Financial Planner at Chase de Vere , to talk about her inspiring career journey. Jay shares how facing rejection twice for financial planner roles early in her career didn’t stop her - it fueled her . Already working as a paraplanner, she used the setbacks as motivation to deepen her technical expertise, achieve Chartered status, and carve out a specialist niche advising NHS medical prof...
Apr 30, 2025•46 min
How a Former Recruiter Built a £266M Financial Planning Business - Vikash’s Journey from BD to Chartered Adviser In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, Sam Oakes is joined by Chartered Financial Planner Vikash , who shares how he made the bold move from a successful recruitment career into the world of financial advice. Vikash’s story is one of intentional reinvention. After building a strong career in recruitment and business development, he stepped away from the boardroom and i...
Apr 21, 2025•44 min
This week on the Financial Planner Life podcast, I sat down with Samantha Russell , one of the most respected voices in financial adviser marketing in the US. She shared insight after insight. Here’s one that really stuck with me: “Even if someone is referred to you, they’re still going to Google you. What they find next decides whether they pick up the phone – or move on.” That’s the shift. Referrals alone aren’t enough. Generic messaging doesn’t cut through. And your digital footprint? It’s yo...
Apr 10, 2025•41 min
In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, Chris Ball sits down with Paul Jackson, Global Head of Asset Allocation Research at Invesco, to explore the career pivots, market cycles, and investment principles that shaped his journey from working-class beginnings to global leadership. Paul shares his honest reflections on a non-linear career across firms like Morgan Stanley, Société Générale and Invesco, including the bold decisions that worked and the ones that didn’t. They discuss min...
Mar 28, 2025•1 hr 10 min
This week on The Financial Planner Life Podcast , we’re celebrating Neurodiversity Celebration Week with an inspiring conversation featuring Dan Buckland , a financial planner who has ADHD, dyslexia, and dyscalculia. Dan’s story is one of self-doubt, resilience, and transformation . Growing up, he was told by teachers he’d “never amount to anything.” Like many neurodivergent individuals, the traditional education system left him with limiting beliefs about his potential. Fast forward to today—he...
Mar 20, 2025•1 hr
Hiring Missionaries, Not Mercenaries with Guy Skinner In this episode of Financial Planner Life , we welcome back Guy Skinner , founder of Citygate Financial Planning , to discuss what it really takes to build a sustainable, mission-driven financial planning firm. Key Takeaways: 🔹 Why ‘Missionaries, Not Mercenaries’ Is the Hiring Philosophy That Works Guy shares why he prioritises hiring people with purpose over those who simply chase numbers. He believes that a team driven by values - not just...
Mar 12, 2025•51 min
🚀 How Do We Attract and Develop the Next Generation of Financial Planners? In this episode of Financial Planner Life , I sit down with Carla Brown , President of the Personal Finance Society (PFS) and Founder & CEO of Oakmere Wealth Management , to discuss the biggest challenges and opportunities in financial planning today. 🎯 We cover: ✅ The PFS Professional Map – A clear framework for career progression in financial planning. ✅ The real skills gap – Why technical knowledge alone isn’t en...
Mar 05, 2025•35 min
Chris Ball is back on the Financial Planner Life Podcast , and this time, we’re diving deep into Hoxton Wealth’s explosive growth in 2024 and what’s coming in 2025. From smashing revenue and AUM targets to a complete brand transformation, Hoxton Wealth has gone from industry underdog to one of the most disruptive firms in financial planning . But not everyone is a fan… Some call Chris a toxic disruptor , while others say he’s the breath of fresh air financial planning desperately needs . In this...
Feb 27, 2025•58 min
🔥 From Burnout to Breakthrough: How Performance Coaching Transforms Careers 🔥 In this episode of The Financial Planner Life Podcast, I sit down with Tony Fields, a former chartered financial planner turned performance coach, to discuss how high achievers in financial planning—and beyond—can break free from burnout, find clarity, and reach their full potential. 💡 We cover: ✅ Why performance coaching isn’t just for top performers—or those at rock bottom ✅ How obsession with success can become t...
Feb 20, 2025•46 min
Bitcoin just smashed past $100K —but is it just another speculative bubble, or is it cementing its place as the digital gold of the future? To get real answers, I sat down with Lisa Tyshchenko, Alternative Investment Specialist , while she was in Dubai . Lisa is a globally connected expert in digital assets , regularly working with family offices, private banks, and institutional investors to navigate the crypto space. In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast , we discuss: 🔹 Bitcoi...
Feb 11, 2025•32 min
In this episode of the Financial Planner Life podcast, we sit down with Joanna Butler, Director of Client Operations at Foster Denovo. Joanna’s 18-year career within the company is a testament to the firm’s culture of innovation, career development, and commitment to diversity. We explore Joanna’s journey from marketing to operations, how Foster Denovo supports financial planners through a robust operational infrastructure, and the significance of leadership diversity—50% of Foster Denovo’s lead...
Feb 06, 2025•31 min
Would you trust a financial planner under 30? There’s a big debate in financial planning: Does age matter? Some say younger advisors lack life experience —that they can’t guide clients through retirement, divorce, or legacy planning. Others argue that young planners bring fresh perspectives, long-term commitment, and up-to-date knowledge. After sitting down with Karl and Harry —a father-son duo from St. James’s Place—on the Financial Planner Life podcast, I’ve seen both sides of the coin. Karl h...
Jan 31, 2025•47 min
