Financial Planner

A few weeks ago a solicitor found me at home on the weekend, and I agreed to come in to listen to a short presentation on financial planning. Normally I am suspicious and cynical of offers of this type, because if I were interested I would rather get a referral from a friend who is working with one.

I was also lured in by what I thought was a dinner offer, but that didn't happen. Instead, I listened to the planner cover a bunch of information I already knew. I'm not a finance guy or have that kind of background, but in 1997 I took up personal finance as a hobby and have learned my fair share over the years.

It was a bit amusing, hearing an argument for diversification turn into a conclusion for compounding, as the planner got confused midstream. What was also interesting was hearing the planner's background: an engineering degree (hey, that's what I have!) and the training course provided by the parent company, which in this case was Edward Jones.

In the end I left resolved to update and tweak a few things on my own. I have a few friends who use one and I may ask if they think it is worthwhile.