Being a financial adviser is my second career. Prior to my career change, I had worked as an Optometrist for more than a decade.
Personal finance has always been a passion of mine. In the early days, this led me to do a diploma in financial planning because I wanted to better understand and manage my own finance, and the course allowed me to gain a good understanding of what a financial adviser did and how they help people.
Fast forward a few years, when I decided to engage the service of a financial adviser rather than continue to go it alone, the process not only improved my financial wellbeing, it also sparked my interest to become a financial adviser myself.
The elevation in education standards and various regulatory reforms over the years have improved community perception and trust in the profession, and the demand for financial advice has continued to outstrip supply, making financial advice an attractive space to work in.
As I already had a bachelor’s degree, my education pathway into financial planning involved undertaking a post graduate diploma in financial planning with Kaplan. I then worked as an associate adviser and completed my Professional Year and qualified as a financial adviser.
My journey to becoming a financial adviser is relatively fast compared to some, part of this was because I had transferable soft skills from my previous career, having worked in a professional setting working with clients for many years really helped me engage effectively with clients as a financial adviser.
Although my personal experience is not unique for a career changer, a more common pathway school leaver often takes involves undertaking a bachelor’s degree in financial planning, work in a customer service role and/or as a paraplanner for a few years before completing their professional year to become a qualified adviser. This has the advantage of gaining exposure to the different areas of a financial advice firm, learning your own strength and preference, before deciding if being an adviser or working in an adjacent area in financial advice is the right area for them.
The story about how I got into financial planning ends here, but my journey as a financial adviser has only just begun.
Content sourced from FAAA Emerging Professionals Committee
