According to Roger Swift from enableMe Otago, New Zealanders as a whole fall short when it comes to managing our money well.
``Most Kiwis don't know what they don't know when it comes to finance. Financial literacy or improving one's financial capability is not taught in schools or at university. Most of us `learn' our financial skills from our parents and peers.
Obviously, this can be problematic as the `teachers' are not experts themselves.''
enableMe is made up of a group of highly trained professional financial advisers like Roger, who believe that when people understand money they are more able to control it. The company regularly appears in the media as ``thought-leaders'' and hosts financial education seminars.
Improving the country's collective financial literacy is a key pillar of enableMe.
``Knowledge is power,'' says Roger. ``We believe that to achieve your financial capability you need to learn how to take control of your finances and create a better lifestyle and more secure future for yourself. When this new-found knowledge is presented in an engaging and relevant way, it can be very empowering!''
Using enableMe's comprehensive 3-step process, clients are guided by their own financial personal trainer, who will help you identify your financial goals, create a plan to make them happen, and keep you on track to achieving success.
The first step is to understand your spending habits and how this has contributed to where you are financially.
We identify the main obstacles you face and tailor a strategy to beat them. The objective is to ascertain whether you will reach your financial goals by yourself or if by partnering with enableMe you can do things smarter and reach your goals faster!
``We are teaching people about money, but they are learning about themselves too,'' says Roger. ``It is proving a real game-changer in personal financial literacy for our clients.''
No matter what your life stage is or how ``unfit'' your current finances are, once you know what you need to do to achieve financial success and you can see a clear path that is attainable, then the final aspect is to go for it!
Getting ahead financially is an ongoing process or ``journey''. Like an elite athlete, having a robust plan or road map for success and an independent coach to help guide you, you are likely to achieve much more than if you tried to do it by yourself.
Roger Swift is the Dunedin-based financial personal trainer for enableMe. He has more than 20 years' experience in business, including numerous senior roles in the banking industry. Now, as a money coach, he is passionate about helping his clients achieve their financial dreams. Be it home-ownership, being mortgage-free sooner, buying an investment property or retiring 10 years earlier than their mates. He provides straightforward no-nonsense advice on improving their financial position, providing the support and motivation for them to stick with it.
Learn more at enableme.co.nz
Roger Swift, enableMe
Otago, ASB House, Level 7,
248 Cumberland Street,
Dunedin.
