It may not surprise you that I discuss this question quite frequently! There is an increasing number of good financial coaches out there and I am keen to help many more people benefit from seeing one. It is not so easy to answer as different financial coaches will offer different services and many have their areas of specialism. But I can at least try to give you an overview of how the coach can help. Let’s start with some of the core areas that most will cover in their work with relevant clients:
- Financial education: Every financial coach will want to help you understand financial concepts and the much overused finance jargon, so you can make more informed decisions about your financial arrangements.
- Setting and achieving financial goals: The coach can help you set realistic financial goals and create a plan to achieve them. This can include goals like paying off debt, saving for children and/or retirement, or buying a home. But you may also want to explore changes you want to make in life and the financial implications. Do you want to start a business or make a career change?
- Budgeting and spending: Your coach can also help you create a budget that works for your income and expenses. They can also offer tips and strategies for saving money and reducing unnecessary expenses. This becomes even more important for clients who want help to move beyond persistent debt.
- Savings and investments: They can help you develop a plan for saving and investing your money that aligns with your financial goals and personal circumstances. This may include supporting your decisions on pensions and other tax efficient options.
Your coach may also help in a number of other specific ways; for example around inheritance, self employment or preparing yourself and others if things go wrong.
While these are all specific ways a coach can help, there are deeper, potentially more significant areas of support. Much of what happens in our financial lives reflect underlying beliefs that could be holding us back. This could for example be thinking I must stick in this safe job until some day in the far future (mortgage is paid off/ kids left school etc). Your coach can help you challenge the underlying assumptions and consider alternative or transitional options to start making progress.
As another example, finding ways to manage spending in order to reduce debt or increase savings is about more than having a plan. Coaches can provide invaluable support in helping you to identify and address unconscious beliefs and behaviours that may drive some discretionary spending. We can help you to identify habits to stop, limit or start, one manageable step at a time.
I should briefly touch on the different roles a financial coach can play. As a coach we help you to understand yourself better and facilitate the process of making decisions and taking action. We will help you figure out your own answers to your own questions. As a mentor we leverage and share our experience to be more directive as to what you need to know and what factors to consider. Just be aware that whenever we coaches are mentoring, we are doing so based on our lived experience and world view. You will still need to work out what is right for you, but we should be making that a reassuring experience.
So what are my areas of specialism? Well certainly I want people to consider sustainability when they make their plans and financial arrangements. I believe this is critical for us to address the climate emergency and other environmental and social challenges. I also think that there are enough good options from respectable financial providers that will meet your own financial needs at the same time. In some cases, it can even be advantageous to take the greener solution. But the degree to which sustainability features in my coaching is driven by each client, their own interests and aspirations.
My other area of interest is ensuring that we work on your finances in the broader context of how does it help you to live the life you want. What do you want to achieve in the future in a way that relates to, and reinforces, the real you? I think this alignment between your true self and your finances is at the core of achieving financial wellbeing. You could say this is all about how your money sustains you.