My Sabbatical Experience

After five years of service at First Wealth we are each presented with the opportunity to take a fully paid month-long sabbatical. Whilst some may use the opportunity to travel, enjoy an extended honeymoon or donate time to a special cause, the only thing on my mind was a month at home with my boys!

The timing for me couldn’t have been more perfect, with it coinciding with the summer break. Having two young boys, this meant we could spend an extended amount of quality time together as a family and give the grandparents a little respite as well.

Being a parent with a demanding job, life is often about rushing to and from the school run, after school activities, homework, and preparing for the next day, on repeat five days a week (as most parents would know!). Luckily I have a part-time and flexible working role which helps with all of this, but the last five weeks have really brought home the importance of finding balance amongst all the madness and made me realise just how important taking time for yourself really is.

We spent time enjoying splash parks, going on holiday, enjoying our fair share of ice cream and seeing friends and family. Looking back it was definitely one of the best summer breaks I have ever had, and my boys seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves too.

Alongside making memories that will no doubt last for a lifetime, it also gave me the perfect opportunity to reflect on my career to date. I have worked for First Wealth for thirteen years, it’s my longest relationship to date. In such a short space of time, we have gone from being a relatively small practice to one that has almost quadrupled in size and regularly sees itself being celebrated for its forward-thinking approach and the way we as a firm put the values of ‘What Matters Most’ at the heart of our thinking.

The profession has changed a lot in recent years, with many great changes still yet to come. With more practices turning to the overwhelming evidence behind Evidence-Based Investing and greater attention being given to the next generation of financial advisors, and the importance of financial wellbeing, things are certainly set to become very interesting indeed.

To conclude, the past five weeks have been an incredible experience and one that I will cherish for many years. Having been able to take the time to look at how much myself and the business has come in recent years, I’m excited about what the future holds and I can’t wait to continue on this journey with renewed energy.

This document is marketing material for a retail audience and does not constitute advice or recommendations. Past performance is not a guide to future performance and may not be repeated. The value of investments and the income from them may go down as well as up and investors may not get back the amount originally invested.