How can a financial adviser help me

Having your finances organised – and in a comfortable position – can be one of the most satisfying and stress-relieving states you can feel in life.  

Here at Aegon, we fully believe in the value of seeking financial advice – and how advice can add to people’s overall financial wellbeing. 

While it may be possible to reach your financial goals alone, you could improve your chances of getting there with the help of a professional financial adviser. If you’re still unsure whether speaking to a professional is right for you, we’ve broken it down to help you decide.

They can coach you towards your goals

You might know where you want to be in 10, 15, 20 or even 40 years time when it comes to your financial goals – but do you know exactly how to get there? According to research from the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association more than three-quarters of us don’t know how much we’ll need in retirement.¹ If you fall into this category, this is where a financial adviser can come in.

Think of advisers like a ‘financial coach.’ They can tell you based on your goals exactly how much you’d need to put aside each month to match your expectations. And what those expectations would total up to.

Having any type of professional coach in an area you want to focus on can help you stay better motivated, accountable – and most importantly on track.

They can set you an actionable plan

The first thing most advisers would draw up after you both set goals is a plan to get there. Having one that allows you to achieve both your short and long-term goals is really important. This could include a plan on how to achieve a comfortable retirement, taking time out of work to travel, moving abroad to your dream home, or saving for a rainy day. 

You can, of course, create a plan for yourself. However, without professional help and guidance, there’s a chance you won’t meet your aims. This comes back to ‘the how’.  Getting a professional to pull together an individually personalised plan could prove invaluable.

They can guide you through life's financial challenges

Although your ability to save and invest may be high, the difficulties can come in thick and fast.

These challenges can be external. The impact of stock market moves, rising inflation which reduces your spending power or poorly performing investments. They can also be personal – saving to get married, divorce, the cost of having children or losing your job.

Each of these, whether positive or negative, can present challenges to your wealth management capabilities which is where an adviser can practically help you.

You might not have the time, energy and knowhow to manage all of this effectively. A financial adviser can either do a lot of this for you or has direct access to experts who can.

All of which gives you a better chance of your financial plan staying on track.

Helping you when things aren’t going well

Advice from a professional can help you feel supported during a stressful or complicated processes such as moving home, planning for retirement or writing your will.

Whether things are going well or not, keeping your plan on track to help you reach your goals takes effort. A financial adviser can help you with changes of direction, at times it may even mean reassessing your goals if things don’t go as planned. 

Working together with an adviser is likely to make things easier than working on your own.

Protecting you, your family, and assets

Once you’ve started to build your wealth, your adviser can then make moves to help you to protect it. 

This might include maximising your tax efficiency, looking to reduce costs and even providing access to additional policies, such as critical illness, income protection and life insurance.

This includes protection long-term too. Advisers can help make sure any wealth you build up throughout your lifetime can be passed on to your family in the most tax-efficient way. 

What's next?

With all this in mind you might be best placed to achieve your goals without a financial adviser if you have the interest, time and experience to do so. If working with a highly qualified, regulated and trained individual takes your interests – it could bring serious peace of mind when it comes to achieving a lifetime of financial security. Remember, there is a likely to be a charge for this.

You can search for a financial adviser by visiting MoneyHelper. Or if you're part of a workplace scheme, reach out to your scheme's adviser, if you have one.