This week I was meant to be in Cape Town for the Financial Planning Institute’s annual convention. It’s an event I look forward to every year. It’s a chance to learn, and to reconnect with people I’ve come to know over 35 years in financial services.
Then life happened.
A very dear friend, someone I met through this industry, passed away from cancer. His diagnosis came five years ago and forced him into retirement. He was about to turn 69. I have never known a better or kinder man and saying goodbye to him was never something I would miss. So, I missed the first day of the convention. After the funeral I headed straight to the airport and flew to Cape Town for day two.
When I landed and switched on my phone, I saw a missed call from a client I have worked with for more than 25 years. I called him back right away, and I could hear immediately that something was wrong. He wanted to meet, he said, to “get something off my chest.”
My mind raced. What had happened? Had I done something wrong?
Then he said, “Okay, well, let me tell you. I’ve been diagnosed with lung cancer.”
I stopped dead in my tracks. This is a man who didn’t smoke, and who at 74 was as healthy as anyone I know.
To the man in the street, financial planning is about numbers, markets and returns. Those things matter, of course. But if we do our work as well as we can, it is mostly about people. Over the years we build real relationships, and that means we come to care deeply about the families we work with. The work becomes personal. Usually that is the best part of the job, and sometimes it is the hardest.
Weeks like this one leave me grateful. I’m grateful for the work I ended up doing to feed my family, and I’m aware of what a privileged career I have lived. I know many people view our industry negatively. But I also know how important this work is to the families we serve, especially when life can turn on a single phone call.
At Client Care, we don’t just run the numbers, and we don’t chase the best returns. We do everything we can to help our clients live the best life possible with what they have.
This is meant to be an article about financial advice, so the advice today is: none of us knows when our time is up. So in the end, what matters most is living each day the way we choose by design and not on remote.
Dirk Groeneveld, Certified Financial Planner
t. 083 261 9287
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Disclaimer:
This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute financial advice in any way or form. It is important to consult a financial planner to receive financial advice before acting on any information contained herein. Client Care and PWM and its directors, officers, and employees shall not be responsible and disclaim all liability for any loss, damage (whether direct, indirect, special or consequential) and/or expense of any nature whatsoever, which may be suffered as a result of, or which may be attributable, directly or indirectly, to the use of, or reliance upon any information contained in this article.
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