Dont Shoot The Messenger

Is a Network the Right Place to Start in Financial Advice?

• Chris Ball • Season 1 • Episode 19

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In this episode of Don’t Shoot the Messenger, Chris sits down with Adam to break down what it really looks like to start in advice from scratch, build a client book, and make the leap from a network model into a larger practice without losing your entrepreneurial edge.

Adam joined Hoxton Wealth in March last year and brought over a significant book of business. He started with no prior experience, cut his teeth in mortgages and protection, and over time transitioned into full wealth management. We talk honestly about the messy middle: confidence, structure, support, and why so many advisors feel stuck doing everything themselves.

We cover:
- How Adam started in advice with no prior experience
- The reality of being advisor, admin, and paraplanner all at once
- The moment you realise solo growth has a ceiling
- How to retain independence while plugging into a bigger team
- Where new business really comes from: referrals, leads, and professional connections
- The fundamentals that separate great advisors: responsiveness, delivery, client-first thinking
- Advice for anyone in a network or solo setup wondering what is next

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If you want to see what life in Hoxton Wealth is like, please visit:  / @hoxtonlife 

For more information on Hoxton Wealth careers, please https://www.careers-page.com/hoxtonwealth.com

For my videos by Chris, please visit his Youtube:  ⁨@ChrisBallHoxton⁩  

Meet Adam And His Path

SPEAKER_01

So, welcome to another episode of Don't Shoot the Messenger. Uh, and today I am very, very thankful that Adam uh is with us. He bought on about 8 million last year. And he has quite a unique entrance into Hoxton in the fact that Adam started his career in a network from scratch.

SPEAKER_00

I was admin, I was financial advisor, I was para planner, but it was, but I was just being pulled pillar to post.

SPEAKER_01

Hopefully, for people who are maybe in a similar position, maybe in a network, wondering whether it's for them, wondering what the other options are and what they look like. I think two financial advisors is enough for one family. Would you advise that to someone starting out now to potentially start off with mortgages?

SPEAKER_00

It really was six weeks training, and that all that really incorporated was going with a senior advisor once a week. Do you enjoy it? Or I suppose you maybe you're not as much. It was quite overwhelming. I think you have to have complete conviction in how you give advice. You can be the best financial advisor in the world. Some of the lessons I've learned and the mistakes I've made.

Family Roots And Early Ambition

SPEAKER_01

So, welcome to another episode of Don't Shoot the Messenger. Uh, and today I am very, very thankful that Adam uh is with us and grateful that he's made the trip over to Dubai from the UK. So, Adam uh works in our UK business. He joined last year in March. Uh, he managed about£35 million of assets to which he bought on about 8 million last year. And he has quite a unique entrance into Hoxton in the fact that Adam started his career in a network from scratch, no prior experience, straight in headfirst, uh into the deep end, as some might say, uh, in a network, and then has then transitioned over into a financial advice practice, I would say, you know, that the the business, uh, a business side as opposed to just solely working on his own. So I'm super, super excited today to delve into that. And hopefully for people who are maybe in a similar position, maybe in a network, wondering whether it's for them, wondering what the other options are and what they look like, Adam can provide some context on how he's found that transition, but also, you know, things that he really enjoyed in the network and things that he's really enjoyed, you know, coming into uh coming into a business that's you know not just himself going forward. But let's um let's kind of rewind a bit before we we get into all of that because your dad's an IFA, isn't he?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, that's right, yeah. So I was uh born and bred on the Isle of Wight. Um so my old man is still down there, so he's been in the industry 30 plus years. Um, and it's just him and an administrator, but he's built, yeah, a very nice business and he's still still operating now. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Amazing. And it's you uh so it's kind of like financial advice is in your blood then.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I I always kind of had one eye on on potentially following in his footsteps. Yeah. Um, really like the idea of working for yourself, you know, being the master of your own destiny and trying to build something, I guess. Um and so I always took a keen interest, even when I was young, he'd always talk to me about deals and talk to me about the advice he was giving. Yeah. Um, and it really interested me. And so I did have always one eye on doing that. Is your dad super passionate about it? He is, he's a very, very passionate man, yeah, very motivated. Um, yeah, very, very unique in how self-disciplined he is and things like that. So he was a great person to admire and he's been a great mentor throughout my career.

SPEAKER_01

That's cool. And I think as you kind of see that as you're growing up, no doubt it seeps in and that kind of passion moves over to you. But interestingly enough, I remember when we were speaking, you wouldn't want your own children to become financial planners. You said you wanted them to kind of find their own career path, didn't you?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I mean, I think it's a great profession and and a great, a great career. Uh, but I think two financial advisors is enough for one family. And um, I'd love them to just kind of yeah, find their own path and find something they're passionate about and um and go for that.

SPEAKER_01

So obviously your dad was self-employed, he was working for a network. How was it watching him as you were growing up growing his business? Because that was what he was, you know, effectively doing.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I I guess I thought that was the only way to do it. Yeah. And I think that's you know, that's one thing I look back on, and it's not. There's so many different ways you can, you know, you can progress in this business. And so, you know, he did it one way, which was you know, very much on his own. Um, and he came from the old school version of finance, it was very different 30 years ago. So it's evolved a huge amount from then to now. Um, but he's you know, he's kind of gone all through that, and and that was the only way he did it. And so I thought, right, I better do the same thing. Um, and that's why I started off doing exactly that, went self-employed on my own. Um, and then with hindsight, I think there is other ways to do it.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah. Is he still advising today? Yes, he is, yeah. Yeah, fantastic.

SPEAKER_00

Still going.

SPEAKER_01

Still and he still loves it, and you know.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, he's he's mid-sixties, um, and in his own words, he's not gonna stop until you know, until his his health would will dictate that, but he'll keep going. Yeah, wow, that's cool.

Starting In Mortgages As A Launchpad

SPEAKER_01

It's nice, it's nice when you love something that you like, you know, that you do and that you're passionate about it and you want to keep on doing it for as long as you can. Absolutely. Uh, and that must have that must have seeped in as you as you were growing as well. So you talked about that, you know, that was the that was the only thing that you knew. So I suppose it's like most things in life, you only know you only know what you know. Um, you don't know what you don't know, clearly. Um, so you don't know necessarily the art of the possible. Um so you went from having no financial advice experience at all into becoming an advisor. Yeah. Um, and I remember you saying that actually you started off in mortgages underneath in the network, didn't you? So you went and joined the network and you started off giving mortgage advice.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, and it was actually a really good way to cut your teeth, I think, with with no rural experience before that. I was fully qualified from day one, but because of the age I did it, I was 28 when I went out on my own. Yeah. Um, just naturally, a lot of my mates were buying flats and things like that. So I kind of fell into just giving a lot of mortgage advice. And it's a perfect way to do it because mortgages and protection are, you know, relatively simple products, and it just gave me a great grounding in talking to clients, presenting to them, you know, dealing with all the different aspects. And then as I became more confident, you know, I just came across more pension and investment business, and then that gradually evolved over time. And after four or five years, you know, things began to switch and wealth management was a much bigger focus. And then I really built the book in the last five or six years, or the majority of it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Would you advise that to someone starting out now to potentially start off with mortgages? Like if you was looking back and giving advice to your younger self, would you say actually that's a really good grounding?

SPEAKER_00

I absolutely, I really do. I think um I think it's just a great way to start. Um, really just get you used talking to clients, doing all the different advice aspects that you need for wealth management, but just in a slightly simple simpler context. Yeah. Um, and so I think it's an excellent way to do it, yeah. And lots of advisors do. And and now I've gone full circle, you know, I've obviously stopped giving mortgage advice. Um, I really enjoy the wealth management side, the investment side of it all. Uh, and so, but yeah, a great start and and one I would definitely advise others to do. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

And when did you stop giving uh wealth? When did you stop giving wealth? When did you stop giving mortgage advice? Hopefully you still give them wealth, mate.

SPEAKER_00

No, absolutely. No, it was actually when I came over to Hoxton, so only a year ago. Yeah, because you know, I I still had a lot of clients on my mortgage book, and and so I I kind of continued doing that. Yeah. Um, but I was always looking to try and stop that at some point. Yeah. And then it just was a was good timing that when I came over to Hoxton, um, it felt like a good time to do it. And so that's when I stopped.

SPEAKER_01

D do you still do you enjoy it? Or I suppose you maybe not as much as the wealth side?

SPEAKER_00

Not as much as the wealth side. I think there's a lot of hassle that comes with it. So, you know, mortgage applications and the application process often falls apart at the very end or you know, just before you complete. And so it can be quite frustrating, I think. And I get much more fulfillment about kind of taking a client, you know, all the way from pre-retirement through to retirement and beyond. You know, you get a lot more out of that. It's a much closer relationship, and um, you feel like you have a much bigger impact, I think, overall. It's definitely a lot less transactional, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01

The you know, giving wealth management advice over the course of a client's life as opposed to like we'll help you just at this point. I suppose people come back to you with mortgage advice and you can definitely build a great career off it. And I know lots of great mortgage advisors who do fantastically well and really enjoy it. But I suppose that has to be your passion, and you have to want to do it all day, every day.

SPEAKER_00

Exactly. And if you love it and you want to specialise, then great, you know, like you say, you can build a very good business doing it. Uh, but for me, it was always, you know, the wealth management bit was the was always the bit that I wanted to focus on, and I really enjoy helping clients throughout you know every stage of their life and and having that close relationship for a long time, and um, and that's what I want to focus on going forward. Fantastic.

SPEAKER_01

And with so when you first started, who taught you? How did you learn the um, you know, how did you how did you learn the skills and the uh, you know, the the well, obviously you'd done your exams, so you'd obviously had a quite a good base, but there's practice and theory. Um, you know, like how did you manage to to learn actually how to give advice?

From Transactional To Lifelong Planning

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it was I I've got to say it was very much being thrown in at the deep end. Yeah. Um and I look at Hoxton with the the pathway programme you have, and I would absolutely love to have gone on something like that that's very structured and gives you, you know, really good grounding in every aspect of advice. Because when I started, I went to the I was working before just at an asset manager, um, got qualified and did all my exams off my own back while I was there. But then when I made the jump, it really was six weeks training, and that all that really incorporated was was going with a senior advisor once a week to sort of shadow him. He'd show me uh the ropes and what he did. I'd sit and sit in on some meetings. He then sat in on five of mine, and then I was effectively cut loose, and you just just went off on your own. Um, and it was quite overwhelming. So that's not a great feeling to go into, but you just have to get on with it. And and I would ask advice from from my dad. And although he's been a great mentor, um, I don't think he's he's the best at doing that either, because he said, Well, just go and have a chat with them. I was like, Well, what does that mean? Isn't you know, give me a bit more structure? And um, but in the essence of it, that is what you do, just go and have a chat, find out what they, you know, what their issues are, what the problems they're facing, um, and you take it from there. But I would have definitely benefited from more structure, I think. Um but you just had to learn slowly, um, slowly but surely, and and find your own way, I guess, of how you give advice and how you feel comfortable. Um, and and yeah, it took time. And I think that's the other aspect of it. I think if you have more structure at the beginning, I think you can you can scale and you can grow much quicker. Yeah. So I think that if I'd had that, I think I probably would have grown quicker than I did.

SPEAKER_01

But um a great, a great, I mean there's two ways of learning. Number one, you try and figure it out yourself, or number two, you try and watch others and and figure out what they're doing and just replicate it. The quickest way clearly is number two. But number one, you put you have to learn a lot of lessons along the way, and hopefully you don't, you know, you don't make the uh you don't make those hard lessons uh you know a repeat uh and and you know you you learn. But I to me it's I think that both ways both ways work well, and obviously you've done very well and you built a great business uh so far and obviously you know many more years to come um as you keep on developing that. But as you as you were learning, what was the hardest lesson that you learned?

SPEAKER_00

The hardest lesson, I think um I think it was it was just by being I guess it was it was very difficult when you first went into a client meeting to know how to control it, I think. So I think that was the biggest lesson that you are there to kind of to guide the meeting and to guide them through this process because they might, you know, they they might not have a really good idea of exactly what they need and what they need to do and things like that. And so I think that took me the longest thing to learn, and the biggest lesson was to be there that of course you are there to to listen to them, but you are there to also dig a bit deeper and to guide them through and find out really the meaning behind what they're trying to do. Yeah, and that was a that was that took me a long time to learn that and um and the intricacies of it, but um, but that I think that comes with experience and just takes time.

Training Gaps And Finding A Method

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah, it's uh it's not something that you can pick up, and actually that's something that you do have to keep on doing, keep on doing. You can watch someone do it, and you can probably get a few ideas, maybe on how to speed it up, but actually you do need to you do definitely need to go out there and and do client meetings. It's funny because we have guys like that sit on the pathway program and they watch an advisor do it, or they think they've seen an advisor do it that they, you know, that they'll work with or a planner that they're working with, and they'll be like, Yeah, I can do that, no problem. And it's like it's not that easy, no, you know, like there's nuances to this, it's not just yeah, great, you've booked a meeting and you know you can go in there and start delivering fantastic financial advice and the client's gonna take you up on it. You can be the best financial advisor in the world, but if you don't have the skill set to get the client to action the advice you're giving, it's pointless. Yeah, um, and that that definitely comes with a control side.

SPEAKER_00

I completely agree. And I think as well, it's very difficult to replicate what someone else does. You have to find your own way, and so I've always tried to you know to learn as much as I can from everyone I meet, you know, especially in the early days. I would always ask them how they did things, you know, what was their process, and then over time really like cherry-pick different elements of it and then create your own your own brand of that. But I think you have to have complete conviction in how you give advice, and I think that's really important. And um, so you have to go in really believing what you're what you're doing is right and and have your way of doing it.

SPEAKER_01

Was there any books that you read when you uh when you were when you were learning that you think oh that really helped me or that that really you know because obviously a lot of this is just you, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, I did a lot of podcasts actually. I listen to a lot of podcasts, so you know the real Real Advisor Podcast has been podcasts. Yeah, it's been really good. I mean, that's four guys there that have got a wealth of experience and just you know, give advice in the right way, in my opinion. Um, and then lots of others like the high performance podcast and and other things like that. Just gives you a way of of and processes, I guess, to try and give good service and and um and learn from.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, so it's it wasn't necessarily just industry-related podcasts, it was actually learning from um you know outside industry and outside people to you know take things for it from there.

SPEAKER_00

And lots of books too, you know, there's there's lots of ones, the seven skills of financial advisors or something like that. I'd read I'd read everything that I could, uh business related and unrelated, um, and just try to glean as much as I could.

SPEAKER_01

And I think that kind of passion and that ru, you know, that um that you know relentless thirst to keep on learning and keep on educating yourself is something that all good, you know, great uh professionals do in general across all you know, you don't just sit on your laws and think I know it all, you actually want to evolve and you wanna you want to keep on taking on things.

SPEAKER_00

I think that's completely right. I don't think you ever stop learning in this business, and I think that's been something that I've actually really enjoyed now becoming part of a much bigger team, and that's learning off other advisors how they do things, but in a much closer way. So I've really enjoyed doing that. And then the flip side of that is being able to give a bit back as well, and yeah and mentor you know other people that want it and give a bit of advice back, which I've also really enjoyed. So it's been good.

SPEAKER_01

It's actually a really enjoyable part, isn't it? I mean, I think a lot of people look at it and go, Well, you know, I so I can I can some people obviously not selfish is the wrong word, but they're very focused on them and they you know just want to do what's right for them. But if you have that inkling that you like helping other people, which let's face it, most people do, actually being able to see and help people progress through their career is actually one of the most rewarding things that you can you can do.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, absolutely. And um, and you know, over over the years, you know, different advisors gave me time and and did that, and I remember really appreciating it. And so, you know, it's nice to be able to give a little bit back if if people can benefit from some of the lessons I've learned and the mistakes I've made and um and things like that.

SPEAKER_01

So it's giving back, isn't it? Yeah, so obviously at the network, it was just you. So you had your own business. I don't know if you had a limited company or or or you know how how you were how you were set up. Maybe we can talk about that in a minute, but you were wearing every hat.

Controlling Client Meetings With Conviction

SPEAKER_00

Yep. Yep, so I was an authorised rep through the network. Um so you kind of trade under you know your name. Um, and and exactly that I wore every hat I was uh for most of the years. I was admin, I was financial advisor, I was power planner, and and that's an awful lot. And it's it's okay in the early years when you know you you haven't got that many clients and things like that. It's doable. And also, again, it is a great grounding because you understand all the different aspects of admin, all the different aspects of power planning. Uh, but it got to a point where my client base was the size that it was, that I was just being pulled pillar to post, and I was spending the probably too much time on the things that I shouldn't shouldn't been doing, and and less time like client focused in the work that I really enjoyed. And that got me to a feeling where you felt a bit stuck and I had to do something. So the way I saw it, there were two main options. I could could have employed people and done it that way, but I never really wanted to manage anyone. And you know, there's a lot of hassle that comes with that. You know, you've got to do the contracts, you've got to employ them, you've got to train them up, they might end up leaving, you know, lots of different things. Or the second option was to kind of plug into a bigger firm that already has that support network in place. Um, and that was much more attractive to me, and that's kind of how I came across Hoxton.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, yeah. I mean, I I remember it well, I remember JJ saying that we've got someone who's currently a network and he's you know had a kind of had enough. And up until that point, I hadn't really thought about um hadn't really thought about why someone would want to leave a network. I always thought that that's what people kind of you know wanted to do. Like, you know, but it's very like there's certain parts of anything that you will do that you really enjoy, yeah. And there's a lot of what you do that you don't enjoy. And it's kind of that it's the bit, it's the distract you, it's that signal and noise piece, isn't it? Like and it's you want to focus on uh signal you don't want to be dealt with, uh you know, you don't want to be dealing with the noise. And I think I was saying to you as well before, you know, about uh Steve Jobs and Elon Musk, they reckon Steve Jobs was 80% signal, 20% noise. So he's 80% of his time is spent focused on things moving forward, and 20% of his time was uh you know noise. They reckon Musk is a hundred percent focused, which would probably explain uh why he's um why he's the you know the richest man in the world and soon to be soon to be a trillionaire. But it's very difficult to do that, especially when you're running your own business. And I think that's a thing that people miss a lot of. It's very, very difficult to, you know, you have to do the power planning, yeah. You have to do for your tax, you have to deal with deal with the accounting, uh, the bits that you maybe don't want to do.

Learning From Podcasts, Books, And Peers

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, no, exactly that. You just have to, there's so many different elements to running a business, and you know, you have to figure out the website and you have to do that, and you have to do your documents, and you have to, like you say, you have to do your taxes and everything like that. And it just led me to to feeling like I was just not spending enough time being client-focused and doing what I really enjoyed, which was was providing giving advice to clients. Yeah. And and also it can be quite a lonely business when you're on your own, you know, you're just just there, there's no one else, and and I get a lot of energy from working with people and being part of a team. Yeah, and I think that's been the biggest thing that I've realized that I didn't realise what I was missing out on in a way. And so, you know, the structure at Hoxton gives you the perfect balance, really, because you still have the independence to run the business how you want and and and try and build that, but as part of something much bigger and and being part of a team. And I've got a huge amount of energy and motivation from from just that, and it's been it's been really, really good and given me a whole new lease of of uh purpose, I think, going forward.

SPEAKER_01

Obviously, we've we've talked about quite a lot of the great things about uh you know of of coming over, which is fantastic. But what were your what were you apprehensive about? Like what was you concerned about before you joined, you know, that you was like, can I, you know, I don't I don't know what it is. I won't put words into your mouth.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it was so yeah, I was very apprehensive coming over, and JJ will definitely attest to that. I think I gave him quite a hard time before I kind of pulled the, you know, pulled the trigger and made the decision. But for me, it was a huge commitment because it's it's not something you can undo easily, you know, and it's not something that I would have wanted to undo. You know, if I was gonna make this step, you know, that was that was gonna be a big step for a long time, and I really wanted to kind of commit to that. Yeah. And it took me a while because I guess part of it was just understanding would everything that was going to be said that was that would be provided, would that be delivered on? So the support and everything like that. Um, and you know, I can say it absolutely has been. So that the admin and the and the power planners in in the UK is fantastic. Um, but that was a big concern. You know, will I could will I come over and would that support be there? Um, and then also just it's it's stepping into the unknown, and I think that's that's always difficult and it always takes a leap of faith. Um, and so it just took me a while to get my head around that. And you know, being quite honest, the transition was quite difficult. So when I first came over, those first two or three months, I did find very hard, yeah, just because it was such a big change. Yeah. I think it wouldn't have mattered where I went, I think the change element of it, you know, not everyone loves it, and I certainly didn't, and it was just a lot to get used to, a very different way of working. Um, but you know, I'm thankful to say I'm very much through that and um and I'm delighted with the move. Yeah. Um but yeah, it took a while to get to a point where I was happy to make make the step.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, and I think it does. I think having worked for 13 years on your own, 12 years uh on your own, like you know, that's a long time, that's not a short amount of time. Yeah, and to step away from that and go, actually, I'm gonna kind of trust in someone else, because uh a big reason why a lot of people like working on their own is they want to do their own thing. Yeah, um, and I think you know, from our point of view, it's important that we don't clip people's wings and other practices, I'm sure, the same when they bring in people from there, but they don't want to clip people's wings, they just want to enable you to do more, they in that entrepreneurial way, that you know, where you can run your own business with within the business. And we'll kind of come on to that and how you how you do that now. But a key thing for you was probably burning the boats, you know, like not you know, as you said, it was a one-way door. Yeah, a lot of people could have seen it as a two-way door, and they give they kind of leave the the boats on the side going, oh well, if it doesn't matter, yeah, then I uh you know I can always get back in it and I can go back back across. Which, you know, being realistic, you probably could have.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Um, but it that kind of initial part of giving yourself right, I know this is gonna be a tough two, three, six months, whatever it might be, as I integrate, but actually these are the reasons why I'm doing it and keeping on focused on them was probably uh a good thing to do.

Wearing Every Hat In A Network

SPEAKER_00

Exactly. And that that was my mindset. I was gonna, if I was gonna if I'm gonna do this, I'm fully committing. And you know, the bottom line was I wanted to give the best service to my clients, yeah. And I felt like I needed to change to do that, so something had to change. I either had to bring people on or you know, partner with a company that could give me better support, and so that was always at the heart of what I was doing. I just wanted to make sure that it was best for the clients, you know, best for me. Yeah, um, and so it felt like a lot of responsibility just to make sure that that that was delivered upon. But um, you know, it has been the feedback from clients has been excellent, you know, there's been very little change for them, really. You know, I'm still the face of the business in terms of from their aspect of it. Yeah. Uh, but it just means that I I'm now my time is freed up to be able to just focus on them much more, you know, give my best work to them as well. Yeah. Um, and to obviously grow and help more clients as well, which has which has been great.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. And that's and I suppose that's that's something that we'll we'll touch on now, which is kind of the prospecting side of it. So it's freed you up to be able to go go and find more new clients. How do you find new clients, Adam? What do you do?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so my my business has always been built on referrals, you know, most of the time. So, and I do that by just giving you know the absolute best service I can at all times. Um, and then just you know, making it to clear to clients that I really enjoy helping people like them, and and if they can help me by finding other other people like them, then that would be great. Um, I also used unbiased.co.uk, so I bought leads from them in the early days, and I and I still do. Yeah. Um, it was it was much easier, you know, 10 years ago to do it because it was much cheaper, they've changed their structure and things like that.

SPEAKER_01

But less competition.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, exactly. Um, but it's still an excellent way to find clients. I mean, you know, it's not a it's not a silver bullet by any means because you have to, you know, a lot of you have to go through a lot of rubbish, I guess, in a way, because a lot of people maybe don't require advice or are time wasted and things like that, and you have to kind of chroll through that. Um, but I've I've got a lot of good clients from it, and I still use that today, and then I still do the more traditional stuff of of professional connections and and trying to work with accountants and other professions that that link in with financial advice. Um, and it gives you more time. I've had much more time to focus on those three elements, and and but you know, first and foremost, it's all about creating the best service possible, I think. And then a lot will go from there.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, 100%. And I think you know, when we've talked, that's really come through. And I think, you know, a lot of people see that as common sense. It's like, you know, what can I do to what can I do to prospect more? Well, one of the things you can do is ask more referrals, but you're not going to get any referrals from your clients, which are typically the best kind of introductions or or prospecting methods that you can do if you are not delivering a or you're delivering a subpass service. Yeah. So focus on what your actual job is and be really good at it, providing the best levels, the highest quality of service that you can.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

And actually, as long as you're asking for them, because that's the other point that people miss with referrals, isn't it? They just don't ask. Yeah. But if you ask for them, you don't, it's not every five minutes going, you know, can you can you refer me to someone? No, can you refer me to someone? No, but if you drop it in every you know, once every six months, once every quarter, whatever it is, or once a year, whatever people are comfortable with, it's um, you know, it's uh it's you're you're bound to get them.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, exactly, exactly. And um, and you know, most people want to help, so you know, you've built a very good relationship with your client, and um, and you know, most people are very nice, and if they can help you out, they will do. And and also it's really just you know, at the bottom line, if they've had a really good service and felt they got a lot of benefit from the relationship, they want other people to have that, they want their friends to have it, and so you know, they're not always aware that you're looking for clients or still still building the business, and so once you make that make that aware to them, they you know, they're very happy to help.

Choosing A Firm Over Going It Alone

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. So since you've come over to Hoxton, I suppose one of the key things that people will want to understand is like, have you had your wings clipped? Have you, you know, have you managed to um, you know, have you managed to retain the entrepreneurial freedom? And this isn't just at Hoxton, I suppose this is for other financial, you know, for in other financial planning practices. I know that'd be difficult for you to talk about, but I imagine one of the things that was probably on your mind the most was am I gonna be told what to do? Like, am I gonna have to report in at 8.30 every morning? And you know, like you go from working, you know, completely on your own to to working within a practice. How have you found that? Has it been like that? What you know, what what's what's been your take on it?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, so that that was absolutely a concern because you know, being on your own, you have absolute control over every element of the business, and and so would I lose control, you're right, would I have my wings clipped and things like that? But it's been quite the opposite. So, you know, that JJ's whole remit is really we just want to put everything in place for you to grow and go out and do what you do, yeah. And that has very much been been how it's been. And so if anything has come up or have needed any more support, you know, I let the team or JJ know, and he's very quick at making sure that that's put in place to help. So I'd say quite the opposite. And um, and really you're still given an awful lot of freedom. So, you know, I've come across on the self-employed model, and so um, you know, again, JJ just wants you to go and and and go and do how you want to do it, and so I still feel like I have the the perfect balance really of being able to kind of grow my business um how I want, but with all of that support in the background and everything that comes with it. So I think um it's a great structure and one that quite honestly I wish I'd done years ago. Um you know, if I think it's the way to do it. So um it depends on your situation and how you feel and how you want to grow. But um, I've just got a huge amount of energy from working within a team now. Um I really enjoy that.

SPEAKER_01

That actually gives you energy because you you you've talked about that quite a lot. And I know in the office, you know, you're uh you're a character, and you know, you you go in and you you spend time with the guys and everything else like that. That's really given you energy, new lease of life.

SPEAKER_00

It really has, and um, and you know, we already touched on it, but just learning from others as well, you know, there's lots of great advisors in the UK office, yeah, and um, it's just been great. And and also there's a bit of healthy competition in a really good way, but you know, you want to you don't want to be the kind of the last out of your peers, and so you know, we do that as well. And and um it's just been yeah, you know, I I look back a year ago where I wasn't at Hoxton and going into the new year, um, and it's just well to part how I feel now. Um, I feel so motivated um and just really excited about the future. Um, and that's a great place to be.

SPEAKER_01

That's really cool. And I think, you know, kudos to you as well. You know, like it's it's very difficult to make change as well. It would have been very easy for you to continue doing what you're doing because it wasn't bad. Do you know what I mean? Like it wasn't, it probably wasn't where you wanted it to be, but it wasn't so bad that you was like pulling out your hair, that you had to like you jumped, you weren't pushed. Yeah, uh, and that's that's you know, that that's that's a really difficult uh thing to do. And I think a lot of people coast mediocrity. Uh I'm not saying you were mediocre in any way, shape, or form, but if you're unhappy with where you are and you know that you something else might make you happier, it's sometimes easier just to stick with what you've got because it's what you know.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, I know exactly what you mean. And um, and it you know, it took me a few years to make this decision in terms of of feeling a bit stuck, a bit unhappy, realizing I needed to change. But I did go through, you know, quite a few stages where you think, oh, I'll just carry on and I'll just keep doing what I'm doing. But I kept feeling these, you know, it kept coming back, that feeling of needing to do something. And yeah, it got to a point where I just thought I can't keep guessing. I'd much prefer to make this leap, um, go for it and see what happens. And then if it doesn't work out, then it doesn't work out. You can you can deal with it from there. Yeah. Um, and it just yeah, I just didn't want to kind of guess what might happen. And so made the leap and and yeah, very thankful it's worked out.

SPEAKER_01

And what what were the things? Obviously, we weren't the only uh person that only company that you you came to. Obviously, it would be different for different people, but did you and you've obviously went away and did your research, but what what were the things that you had on your checklist that were important to you for you to leave the self-employed uh place where you were, where you were where you were you know completely your own boss and all the stuff that goes with it to going into practice, what did that practice have to have?

Apprehension, Transition Pain, Then Lift

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, there was lots quite a few different elements, and I did. I went through quite a journey of talking to lots of different firms uh before I came across Hoxton. Would you advise someone to do that as well at the start? Absolutely. I think you need to you need to go out and find out what different structures there are and and what different um ways of doing it. And what were the different structures? So, yeah, I wanted I wanted the freedom to be able to still grow how I wanted to. So I wanted to be given the freedom, I wanted the self-employed option, so I you know I'd always been self-employed. Um, I wanted that structure there. Um, I wanted I wanted obviously excellent support in terms of admin and power planning, which is is very much the case um at Hoxton. Um, but I also wanted um I wanted the ability to be able to do other things. And so the cross-border element of Hoxton was very attractive. So to be able to kind of get other licenses and deal with other different clients across the globe was something I wanted to be able to pursue. Yeah. Um, also, how young Hoxton is in and how dynamic they are. I really enjoyed um, or that was a big part of it. I didn't want to go into some massive company that had been there forever, um, that was probably going to be very slow moving and hard to make an impact. Um, you know, Hoxton is relatively new in the UK. Um, you know, you're a very young management team, you know, very tech focused, um, and and very dynamic, and that was very attractive. Um, you know, lots of different firms I looked at. All the management teams were all people to my dad's age, yeah. And um, and no slight on him, but I just I wanted something different. And um, and I wanted to work for a company that had big ambitions to grow um and was trying to improve things in the profession, and that very much aligned with how I felt, and so that is quite a unique mix. There aren't that many firms like that, and so it did take a lot of saying no to firms before I came to Hoxton, and quite honestly, I went into it thinking that it would be a no with Hoxton too, because every other firm I chatted to um it hadn't worked, but the more I got to know Hoxton, the more I realised it aligned with what I wanted. Um, and so yeah, yeah, it worked out.

SPEAKER_01

Awesome, and here you are, and we've we're very lucky to have you. The the the international part as well. I know that was that so you know Adam is again a uh you know, embodies one of the the key values that we um you know that that we that we try and make sure that everyone that works with us has got, which is that growth mindset. And you've gone and done your series 65, so you've gone and done your US exams, having no aspirations to live in the US. No, but like, were you looking for an international firm because you had international advice on your mind, or were was that just something that came afterwards?

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it wasn't something that I was looking at initially, it was just something that once I came across Oxen and realized what you did, I thought, wow, that's actually really attractive. And you're right, it's I think it's really nice and motivating to try and keep moving forward, um, keep progressing. And that was just an element where I thought, wow, if I could do something like the Series 65, and that was going to open up, you know, huge opportunities to be able to service different types of clients and help different clients. And you know, I've now got the exam, and and this year is going to be quite a big focus of it, will be will be on my existing clients and helping UK clients, but also it's gonna be looking at US expats in the UK and UK expats in the US, and I think that's just quite exciting to be able to have another element, another string to your bow if you like. Um, and and I'm excited by it.

SPEAKER_01

Any plans to get over to the US?

SPEAKER_00

Not really. I mean, I've got I've got two young kids, I've got a five-year-old and a four-year-old, two girls. Um, they've just started school. Um, we want to keep things stable for them, I think. So I've got no aspirations to kind of move to a different country, but um, but it's nice to be able to service other clients and have another challenge.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. Yeah, I think it's um it's it brings a different dynamic, doesn't it? And I think it's also nice to know that if your clients leave and go to Europe or go to the US or even come here, like a lot of people are, um, you can still continue to service your clients as long as you obviously do what you've done, which is go and get the exams and just keep up with CPD and and stuff like that. So obviously there has to be a a value in that to you to keep on doing. But if if you're interested in growing and you don't want to just be restricted to one place, it's nice to know that the world is yours.

Freedom Without The Noise

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely. And and clients are much more transient now, aren't they? You know, they do, you know, travel is much more prevalent. Um, and quite a few of my clients, you know, did move to to Europe and things like that, and I couldn't service them back when I was on my own. Um, and so it's great to be able to just say to clients that we can look after you effectively wherever you go and continue that relationship.

SPEAKER_01

So you had a you know nearly 30% increase in the assets that you manage as well last year. Um would you say that that was a lucky year? Would you say that that was you know actually came as a result of you having more time to focus on the areas that that you wanted? Did a lot of that come from brand new clients? Was it more from existing clients? Maybe you know, talk us through that.

SPEAKER_00

Um, I yeah, no, I don't think it was a lucky year. I think it it really came from freeing up that time and focusing on the right things. So, you know, I really could take a step back from all the admin and the power planning and focus purely on clients, um, my existing ones, you know, getting new ones. And and it just shows the proof was in the pudding in terms of if you do that and you focus on the right things and when you deliver the most value and what you enjoy and are passionate about, you know, the results come and the growth, and that has been shown in the growth this year. Yeah. And and so, yes, some has come from existing clients, um, but lots have come from new ones as well. You know, the prospecting has gone well this year, yeah. Um, so it's been a real mixed bag, but I think it has it has just really shown that that doing that and freeing up um and spending the time on the right things really does work.

SPEAKER_01

That's really cool, and I think like that's the real test, isn't it? Like that, you know, actually, yeah, okay, great, you feel better, that's fantastic. And I'm sure you know it's nice not to have as much on your shoulders and and a burden of doing some maybe the penny tasks. And I'm not saying that you shouldn't be doing them the penny tasks, but they obviously need to be done. But generally, if you can get someone to do those other tasks for you and you can focus on the bits that are going to move the needle, great. But actually, the needle moving as quickly as it has done uh is you know absolutely fantastic. And that's you know, again, kudos to you because you could have just said, all right, well, I might take life a little easier uh and and moan about settling in. But not only have you moved, got settled in, you've also brought in, you know, you've had your biggest year, which is absolutely fantastic.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, it's been it's been brilliant, you know, it really has. Um, you know, all of the worry of the transition and the and and making that leap and then to come through that and to um, you know, to grow so well has been great. And it's been a real, a real team effort as well. You know, I really thank all of the admin and the power planning staff for their support because without them I couldn't have kind of gone and done what I did. Um, and so it's just been really nice to see that and and yeah, see what the next steps will go because you know, you never want to stop and and want to keep growing. So this year is going to be an exciting year, and um, and you know, I feel like I'm just getting started, you know. It's only nine months in. Um, so yeah, very excited about the future and where it can go.

SPEAKER_01

I think so as well. I think you've got a fantastic year uh ahead of you. Just one last thing before we kind of wrap things up. I'm really interested in to understand what a great service means for you. Like what does a great service and delivering that to your clients actually mean?

Prospecting: Referrals, Unbiased, Partnerships

SPEAKER_00

I think I think you've got to start with the basics. So if you I think you have to be incredibly responsive, you have to, you know, really do what you say you're gonna do and deliver. Um, and then also just have the absolute best interest of the client at heart with everything that you do. And I think if you do those three things, I think that puts you ahead and you do that consistently, that puts you ahead of 90% of advisors out there. And then if you can layer on top of that and give advice in a in a very goal-based way, you know, lifestyle financial planning, and and try and get the most out of the client's money for them and give them the most benefit from it. I think if you put those two things together, you have a really powerful service and a really powerful business. But um, that's what I've always tried to focus on is the basics first and go from there.

SPEAKER_01

100% agreed. That's fantastic. And obviously, our our goals, uh, goals align nicely. So, very last question advice for advisors feeling stuck elsewhere, what would you say?

SPEAKER_00

I think you know, make sure you go out and look at all the different options. So there isn't just one way of doing it, and and there's lots, you know, I don't think there is a profession like ours where you can do it in so many different ways. But if you feel stuck and you're not happy, go out, talk to other firms, you know, find out what options there are, and then and then just go with your gut. You know, it's um it's a bit of a cliche, but I think it does work, and and just don't be afraid to make that leap because I think that sometimes when you do it, you can come out the other side and be be much much happier. 100%.

SPEAKER_01

Well, it's been absolutely fantastic having you on. Thank you so much for being part of uh Don't Shoot the Messenger, and hopefully we'll see you back here in the not too distant future. Yeah, brilliant, thank you for having me. Brilliant.