Dynamic Planner CEO Ben Goss and the team at DP have published a book designed for advisers to share with clients and prospects, setting out what works and what doesn’t when helping people fund the life they want at a level of risk that’s right for them.
Funding Happiness: How to fund the life you want at a risk that’s right for you has already become an Amazon best-seller and is written to be given by advisers to their clients to act as a conversation starter on goals, risk and financial wellbeing.
For prospects the book provides insight into the risk-based planning process, the value of advice and encourages consumers who don’t yet have an adviser to work with one.
The book draws on a dataset from more than 2 million clients advised through Dynamic Planner by thousands of advisers, and draws on stories offered by 100 advisers. It tackles some of the fundamental issues which see people seek out advice, starting with the central dilemma of what truly makes us happy, and how much risk are we willing to take to achieve it?
It makes the evidence-based case for the trusted human adviser with the right tools as the single most powerful counterweight to loss-aversion, inertia and regret, the behaviours that quietly erode lifetime outcomes.
It is complemented by digital content, made available in Tram, Dynamic Planner’s white-label client app, as part of its off-the-shelf content programme to support ongoing client education and engagement.
Ben Goss, CEO Dynamic Planner said: “At a time when the advice gap is firmly in focus across the industry, our ambition with both the Financial Happiness Index and Funding Happiness book is to provide a fresh perspective and fresh evidence for the value of trusted advice and help firms and advisers engage in new and innovative ways driven by the latest data and models.
“Funding happiness means resolving one central dilemma: what truly makes us happy, and how much risk are we willing to take to achieve it? It is a deeply human dilemma and our instincts naturally lean towards avoiding risk. That is where human advisers play a crucial role. A trusted advice professional gives clients the confidence to make choices their instincts might otherwise prevent them from making and the Index now gives the industry a way to prove it.”
The book is available for sale on Amazon or direct from Dynamic Planner for larger quantities.
All of the profits from the book are being donated to Urban Synergy, a UK based youth empowerment charity delivering financial education programmes in schools.
Leila Thomas, CEO & Founder of Urban Synergy Youth Empowerment & Social Mobility Charity said: “Financial knowledge is more than just what you are earning; it’s about understanding how to use it to shape the life you’ve always imagined, and Funding Happiness is a powerful resource in helping people do exactly that.
“At Urban Synergy, we are committed to helping young people thrive in education and careers, and resources like this play an important role in supporting that journey. This new book will help inspire young people to take control of their financial futures and build lives with stability and purpose.”
Professional Paraplanner’s consulting editor Rob Kingsbury was given an advance copy to review. He says:
“What Ben has given the industry with Funding Happiness is an easy to read and understand primer on how financial planning works and why investors should use the acumen and experience of financial advisers to help them manage their financial road ahead.
“For anyone who doesn’t understand what a financial adviser does and how they can help achieve people’s life goals, this book paves the way. It touches on all points of the compass in the financial planning journey, from identifying what happiness consists of for an individual – their wants, needs and dreams – through how fund and portfolio investing works, the importance of asset allocation and diversification, to building a financial plan.
“While giving great insight into how a financial plan is built from scratch, it is not a self-help book but rather encourages prospective clients to seek the help of a professional adviser.
“Taking three scenarios of typical clients – at different ages with different circumstances and different ideas of happiness – Ben uses them through the book as examples in the planning process and makes it easy to see how each can be helped by using a financial adviser.
“As might be expected of a book written by the CEO of Dynamic Planner, the chapters on risk (& reward) deliver a clear explanation of how risk works for the ordinary investor and its importance in building an investment solution.
“Any existing or potential financial advice client who reads this book will have not only a clear understanding of the whats, whys and wherefores of the financial advice process but a confidence that using a financial adviser can be in their best interests in helping them manage and grow their wealth, in short, funding their happiness.”
