My Financial, Lifestyle And Retirement Planning Coaching Services

Financial coaching

Financial coaching is your personal guide to mastering money management and achieving your financial goals. Unlike regulated financial advice, I don’t sell products or tell you where to invest – instead, I empower you to make confident financial decisions through education, accountability, and structured guidance. As your coach, I help you understand your money mindset, develop healthy financial habits, and create clear action plans for your retirement and investment goals.

How Is Financial Coaching Different From UK Regulated Financial Advice?

While regulated financial advisers provide specific investment recommendations, as your coach I focus on building your financial capability and confidence, helping you understand your options so you can make well-informed choices that align with your retirement vision.

Significantly, and important to note is that I, as a Financial Coach, do not need to sell my clients products to earn a living. After a brief initial no cost no obligation discussion, I work with my clients on a purely fee based/ time charged costing approach where effectively you the client pay me by the hour as and when you feel my services are needed.

There is no ongoing long-term fee commitment or retainers nor does my remuneration derive from your investments and pension funds which is often the case when using a regulated Independent Financial Adviser.

N.B. Please note that Paul Mitchell and YourSmartRetirementCoach.co.uk are not regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and do not provide regulated financial advice.

Why Should You Consider Using A Financial Coach

Here are some very common and important reasons why people might choose to seek out the services of a financial coach:

Understanding Your Retirement Vision

Not knowing where to start with retirement planning can be overwhelming. Many people approach retirement focusing solely on money, without a clear picture of what they actually want their retirement to look like. A financial coach helps you explore and define your ideal retirement lifestyle first, creating a foundation for more meaningful financial decisions.

Money Mindset & Confidence

Years of working and saving don’t automatically translate to confidence in managing retirement finances. Many people feel anxious about making financial decisions or struggle with deeply ingrained money beliefs. Financial coaching helps you understand your relationship with money and builds the confidence needed to make informed choices.

Knowledge & Education Gaps

The retirement landscape has changed dramatically, with pension freedoms offering more choices than ever before. Many people feel out of their depth understanding these options and need help making sense of them. A coach provides education and clarity before you need to make any binding decisions.

Family & Money Discussions

Retirement decisions often impact the whole family, yet many struggle to have open conversations about money with their spouse or children. Financial coaching provides a safe space to explore these sensitive topics and develop strategies for important family money conversations.

Life Transitions & Identity

Retirement isn’t just a financial transition – it’s a major life change that affects identity, purpose, and daily structure. Many people need help processing these changes and understanding how they connect to financial choices. A coach helps you navigate both the emotional and financial aspects of this transition.

Building A Decision-Making Framework

Before seeking specific product recommendations, many people need help developing a structured approach to financial decision-making. Financial coaching helps you understand your priorities, risk tolerance, and decision-making style, making future conversations with regulated advisers more productive and focused.

In summary, a financial coach can help and assist you:

In helping you to take control of your financial future:

Drawing on my 35 years as a Chartered Financial Planner, I help you build the knowledge, confidence, and clarity to make informed financial decisions – but unlike regulated advice, I empower you to make your own choices rather than recommending specific products.

Becoming your Personal Finance thinking partner

Financial coaching provides structured guidance, accountability, and education to help you understand your money mindset and develop strong financial habits, particularly focused on retirement and investment planning.

Providing you with expert guidance without product recommendations

While not FCA regulated, my extensive experience as a former regulated adviser means I can help you understand your options and create clear action plans, all while staying within the bounds of financial coaching rather than regulated advice.

Some Specific Key Areas To Get To Grips With

Company, Personal and Workplace Pensions

Of utmost importance is to understand the different types of pension schemes which you have and to assess the level of benefit which they may provide you and from what age. A recent survey in the UK indicated that over 40% of people do not understand how they are going to access their benefits from their workplace or personal pensions.

Are you aware of the likely tax position on your income and retirement planning schemes once you stop working?

Are there legitimate ways to minimise tax on your retirement income and how do you take advantage of them?

Understanding Investment Strategies

Where are your pension and investments actually held and invested? Do you understand who is managing them and to what strategy? Are they taking too much or even too little risk?

Do you understand your own “attitude to investment risk” or “risk tolerance” and how should this be reflected in the investment strategies which are being followed within your pension and investment funds?

Do you comprehend the concept of “capacity for loss” and again do you appreciate how this concept should influence and affect your approach to investing and saving?

Do you have cash savings and if so what are you trying to achieve with these funds? Could the cash be put to better use?

Understanding Your State Pension Benefits:

Many people underestimate and misunderstand the amount state pension which they and their spouse / partner are due to. Based on 2024 figures , the state pension could be worth as much as £11,502 per year for a single person ,or, more than £20,000 per year for a couple! This could be the bedrock of your financial resources in retirement.