What are the Values Statements? [Product Guides]

Spend without guilt

Sitting in the emotional wellbeing category, ‘Spend Without Guilt’ allows clients to allocate a higher amount to their spending budget, while retaining the peace of mind that their financial position won’t be negatively affected. Clients who prioritise this value may feel comforted by the fact they have a financial adviser looking after their assets, and wish to allocate leftover funds to being spent without needing to factor in saving and paying off debts.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
How do you feel about the way you normally spend your money?
What would your life ideally look like if you could spend without guilt?
How does your current spending compare with your desired spending?
What do you currently do to monitor your spending?
Quantify - How much would this cost you?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Nurture my relationships

This value sits alongside ‘Spend Without Guilt’, in emotional wellbeing. It ensures clients have enough financial security to allocate time to those they love, as well as the available funds to treat those closest to them.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
Which relationships do you wish to nurture?
Is this something you are currently doing, or needs changing?
What would enable you to nurture your relationships?
Quantify - How much would this cost you in allocated funds and time?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Live in a better place

Clients who feel their immediate environment is a priority may select this value. The motivation behind choosing ‘Live In A Better Place’ may be for clients to find themselves in a more comfortable home by upsizing or downsizing, or it may be to change locations. Either way, by prioritising this value, they may need to reallocate funds.

Prompts:

What does your ideal living situation look like?
How far away do you believe you are from achieving this?
When do you wish to achieve this goal?
Quantify - How much would your ideal living situation cost you?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Protect the environment

Sitting in the environmental wellbeing category, this value refers to the environment beyond a client’s immediate home and location. They may have a strong connection to the environment, and a desire to give back some of their resources to ensuring its longevity. It could be through allocating funds to local environmental groups, or on a larger scale. It may also influence the type of investments they wish to make, prioritising green investments over larger returns.

Prompts:

What do you mean by this?
What would you ideally like to do to protect the environment?
Quantify - What would this look like in terms of money and time?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Feel confident in my finances

Contributing to both an individual’s financial and emotional wellbeing, ‘Feel Confident In My Finances’ refers to the peace of mind that comes with knowing that there is a plan in place. Clients who prioritise this value find comfort in knowing they will be able to support themselves and their loved ones throughout their lives, and are likely to be avoidant of risk. It may refer to feeling confident they will see an increase in their financial position over a set period of time, or knowing that they will have enough funds to continue with their current lifestyle. Whatever their goals, the client wishes to feel confident and secure that they can achieve them.

Prompts:

What do you mean by this?
How do you wish to feel in relation to your finances?
What would make you confident?
What things would you like to do, that you currently are not, that will increase your confidence?
Quantify - What would this look like in terms of money and time?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Support and protect those I love

Clients who select this value from within the financial wellbeing dimension, wish to apportion some of their funds to ensure those they love can pursue their best life. There can be many motivators for this. A client may have loved ones who require financial support, or support from the client themself, in turn reducing their own income. Or clients may feel comfortable with their lifestyle, and wish to share their wealth with loved ones to increase their living standards. Those selecting this card value provide for those they care about.

Prompts:

What does supporting and protecting mean to you?
Who do you have in mind when you select this value, if there is anyone specific?
If there are specific people you wish to support, what are their needs?
Quantify - What would you ideally like to allocate to supporting and protecting your loved ones? How regularly? What are the costs and timing of this support?
What effect on your time and money are you happy to have in order to achieve this goal?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Master new skills or knowledge

Within the intellectual wellbeing dimension, ‘Master New Skills or Knowledge’ allows for clients to comfortably pursue further education, a career change, or hobbies. This may require upfront investments, and/or dedicating an ongoing budget. Depending on the client and the type of new knowledge they wish to pursue, it may also reduce income for a specified time period, which would impact the advice provided to them.

Prompts:

What do you have in mind for new skills or knowledge? Is this a hobby, a career change, further education, etc.?
What effect on your time and money are you happy to have in order to achieve this goal?
When are you looking to engage in this goal?
Quantify - What will the costs be in financial investment, and time away from work?
How regularly will these costs be, and over what time period?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Educate loved ones

Education is expensive, and can often require upfront investments. Clients who prioritise ‘Educate Loved Ones’ within the intellectual wellbeing dimension value seeing their loved ones pursue their passions and further their careers.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
Do you have specific loved ones in mind that you wish to help with their education?
What effect on your time and money are you happy to have in order to achieve this goal?
Quantify - What will the costs be in financial investment, and time if required? How regularly will these costs be, and over what time period? When are you looking to support these loved ones through education?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Make work optional

After years of accumulating wealth, clients who prioritise their occupational wellbeing as a focus for their financial decisions, may wish to ‘Make Work Optional’. This could lead to an early retirement, or reducing their hours to allow more time for other activities. Clients with this goal in mind may wish to work with an adviser to put a plan in place for this in the future, or to help begin this transition immediately.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
Are you looking to retire, semi-retire, work fewer hours, change what work means for you, etc.?
What timeline are you thinking to achieve this goal?
What effect on your time, money, and living standards are you happy to have in order to achieve this goal? (i.e. this may mean a decrease in income, living off existing assets)
Quantify - How much do you wish to live on weekly, and where do you wish to draw funds from?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Pursue work with purpose

Along the same vein as ‘Make Work Optional’, sits a clients’ desire to pursue the work that brings them joy and purpose, in order to increase their occupational wellbeing. Many times this comes in the form of a career change, starting their own business, or it may be to reduce hours in one role to dedicate more time to another. The financial implications of these decisions may mean the client is unemployed for a period of time, may require upfront costs for education or to start a business, or it may mean their income level changes.

Prompts:

What does purposeful work mean to you?
Do you have a specific line of work in mind?
What is your ideal timeline for this work? Are we planning for the future, or organising it now?
What effect on your time, money, and living standards are you happy to have in order to achieve this goal? (i.e. this may mean a decrease in income, living off existing assets)
Quantify - How much do you wish to live on weekly?
Quantify - What are the costs to pursue this work? (e.g. upfront investments and time out of work)
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Dedicate more time to those I care about

When clients speak about how they wish to allocate their time, they are indirectly speaking about how they wish to allocate their finances. Within the social wellbeing dimension, ‘Dedicate More Time to Those I Care About’ directs the focus of financial advice to decreasing the time spent generating an active income, to leave space for loved ones. It may require planning for reduced hours at work, or career change, to allow for this dedicated time.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
Do you have specific people in mind that you wish to spend time with?
How much time are you currently dedicating to this, and how does it compare with your ideal state?
Quantify - How much time are you wishing to dedicate? What are you giving up in order to redirect this time?
Quantify - What are the costs to dedicate this time? (e.g. funds and time out of work)
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Be more socially active

To improve a client’s social wellbeing, they may prioritise the value of being ‘More Socially Active’. This means they may wish to increase their allocation of funds and time to things like going on holidays with friends, going out to dinners, and other social activities.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
How socially active would you say you currently are?
How socially active would you like to be?
What kinds of activities do you wish to participate in when you’re more socially active?
Quantify - How much money are you wishing to dedicate to this goal?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Become more active & healthy

For a client to live their best, fullest life, they should have a consistently active and healthy lifestyle. Some clients value this more than others, and will choose to apportion some of their time and money specifically to ensuring their physical wellbeing. Those clients who select this value as one of their prioritised five are likely to dedicate more time and money on an ongoing basis, to living a sustainably healthy life.

Prompts:

What does being active and healthy mean to you?
Why is this important to you? Has this changed over time? Have there been any changes? What prompted this value?
How do you see this value manifesting in your life?
What do you currently do to ensure an active and healthy lifestyle?
What other activities would you like to bring into your life?
Quantify - How much time are you wishing to dedicate? What do these activities cost?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Avoid being a burden on my family

A concern for those seeking financial advice is relying on family to care for them if something went wrong and they became unable to support themselves. This may be a financial burden, or otherwise, and the stress of this possibility can have a negative impact on the clients’ physical wellbeing. Those who prioritise this value wish to ensure their own financial security, to avoid burdening anyone else.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you? What situation specifically are you avoiding?
Why is this value meaningful to you? What triggered this thought process?
If there were to be an accident or unfortunate situation, what would you like to happen in terms of your finances?
What are your concerns if you were no longer able to contribute to your family’s wealth?
What are you currently doing to mitigate this risk? (e.g. disability insurance, benefits, etc.)
What would you like taken care of, to avoid burdening the family?
Quantify - How much would this cost on an ongoing basis? For how long?
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Volunteer my time

Within the spiritual wellbeing dimension, ‘Volunteer My Time’ allows clients to give back to society through their select charitable causes. By dedicating some of their time to volunteering, this may impact the amount of time they are able to work, and income they can receive.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
Why do you wish to volunteer your time?
Do you have specific causes you wish to dedicate your time to? Why is this?
How much time are you currently dedicating to this, and how does it compare with your ideal state?
Quantify - How much time are you wishing to dedicate? What are you giving up in order to redirect this time?
Quantify - What are the costs to dedicate this time? (e.g. funds and time out of work)
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?

Help others live a more purposeful life

Knowing they can help others live a purposeful life can improve a client’s own spiritual wellbeing. This will mean different things to different people, so it’s important that advisers understand how clients see this manifesting in their lives.

Prompts:

What does this mean to you?
How do you wish to help with this goal?
Do you have specific people or groups in mind that you would like to contribute to?
Quantify - What kind of contributions do you wish to make? Time or money? How much and for how long?
How are you currently doing this, and how does it compare with your ideal state?
Quantify - What are the other associated costs? (e.g. time out of work)
What are the current barriers to you achieving this?