Today, we’ve published our most recent online Assembly on getting in the right headspace for tax year end as our very first podcast episode.
From now on, we’ll be publishing a podcast edition after each online Assembly – as well as bonus content from time to time.
In addition to the library of videos from more than 100 online Assemblies, it’s another way in which the Assembly hopes – no matter whether you’re a contributor or listener – you’ll be able learn things, fix things and share things that help you become the paraplanner you want to be.
Where can I find the podcast?
It may take a while for episodes to appear on your favourite podcast app but you can already find us on Spotify – and we’ve popped the episode below for good measure. (Depending on the privacy settings you accepted for our site, you may need to click a ‘Load content’ button for the Spotify player to appear.)
What’s in this episode?
Our first podcast episode features the conversation from our recent Assembly on getting in the right headspace for tax year end. Facilitated by Becca Timmins, the discussion involved guests with loads of in-house and outsourced paraplanning experience between them: Zoe Hitchcock from Crowe UK, Emery Little’s Satu Flynn, and Kez Condy and Jo Parkes from Navigatus.
With the upcoming tax year end deadline in mind, our guests tackled three questions:
- What went well at tax year end last year?
- What was a challenge?
- What will you take with you into this tax year end?
Tune in to hear paraplanners share their insights and experiences and perhaps you’ll pick up some ideas, tips and techniques you can apply to your own run in to this year’s tax year end.
Tax year end. ALREADY?
Yes. But it wasn’t just any old hour’s worth of tax chat (attractive though we know that would be).
No. This is all about getting in the RIGHT MINDSET for 2023’s tax year end deadline.
(Like a HIIT workout. But without the HIIT bit. Or the workout.)
What it involved was coach and facilitator, Becca Timmins, being joined by Kez Condy and Jo Parkes from Navigatus, Zoe Hitchcock from Crowe UK and Emery Little’s Satu Flynn to discuss how they were getting in the zone for this year’s tax deadline.
The audience were invited to tune in as the group answer three questions:
- What went well at tax year end last year?
- What was a challenge?
- What will you take with you into this tax year end?
By sharing their insights and experiences from last year – combined with your own contributions in the chat – everyone taking part – on screen or off it – gained ideas, tips and techniques that could prove invaluable in countdown to the tax year deadline.
Far from being ‘soft’ skills, the ability to listen more effectively, give and receive feedback more confidently, and manage your time more productively are vital personal development skills so you can succeed in your paraplanning career.
But how often do you find time to discover, practice and apply new tools and approaches to fine-tune those skills? Plus do that alongside other paraplanners in the same boat as you?
If that sounds familiar, then this is the event for you. Because we asked coach and facilitator, Becca Timmins, to design a workshop exclusively for paraplanners.
Drawing on a decade of insights provided by Assembly participants, Becca has created the power-up you need to grow your confidence and command of these crucial skills – in just three hours.
This workshop has been made possible thanks to the kind support of our friends at Aegon UK.
What you’ll learn
You’ll learn to lean in to listening
Ever feel the need to fix everyone’s problems for them? Or perhaps you feel pressure to come up with solutions when people share their thoughts and feelings with you?
Learning a new way to think about listening can really help us let go of needing to have all of the answers. Plus, it makes for solutions that are more effective and better thought through. We’ll use our time to discover a refreshing approach to listening.
You’ll feel more confident about feedback
Do you ever feel unsure about how best to give feedback? Perhaps you struggle to get your point across and wish you could articulate yourself more clearly? Maybe receiving feedback makes you squirm?
We’re often not taught how to give effective feedback and so we struggle to know how to do it well. What’s more, bad experiences can put us off trying. So we’ll spend some time learning tools that can help us – and think about how we can get out of our own way.
You’ll gain a new perspective on time
Does it feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day? Maybe you feel like you never seem to have control over how you spend your time?
There are so many tools and hacks out there to try and make us feel we can do more in less time. Perhaps it’s time to think about it a bit differently? That’s why we will set some valuable time aside to explore the way we approach time managing.
About workshop facilitator, Becca Timmins
Our workshop will be led by Becca Timmins.
Becca’s workshops give you lots of room to reflect on things both individually and in conversation with other paraplanners.
Her style makes for an energising and enriching learning experience. In fact, you can see for yourself because we’ve added a few shots from Becca’s sessions at this year’s Big Day Out.
Coach and facilitator Becca has not only worked as a paraplanner in the past but – these days – is director of operations at financial planning practice Emery Little.
How to join the event
The event will be taking place online using Zoom. Once you’ve bought your ticket, you’ll receive the Zoom link and details of how to join the event on 12 May 2023.
Price
£25 per participant. This includes VAT and Eventbrite booking fees.
How to book
Just tap the Buy tickets button and book online now.
Is advicetech getting any better at helping advice professionals deliver a great advice experience to clients? Or are we destined for a future in which we struggle to get platforms, services and software to work the way we really want?
That’s what platforms, pensions and investments consultancy, the lang cat, wondered. That’s why they spoke to paraplanners, advisers and administrators for their latest report – A Fragmented World – published late last month.
The report combines findings from in-depth interviews with nearly 40 financial planning firms with responses to a comprehensive online survey completed by scores of financial advice professionals.
But will the lang cat’s findings chime with your own day-to-day experience of advicetech?
To find out, watch the replay of this online Assembly where the lang cat’s insight director, Steve Nelson, shares what they learned – and what it means for paraplanners and your use of advicetech in future.
From now on, there’s no need to visit Crowdcast to save your spot at an online Assembly. Just tap ‘Book event’ and follow the step-by-step instructions.
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Heather Hopkins of NextWealth and Andrew Nash from Pru joined host, Richard Allum, for an online Assembly at 1pm on 12 October 2022.
During the hour-long event they covered the emerging trends in CRPs including thoughts on the effect that consumer duty is having on propositions.
They also covered other topics such as whether secure income is making a comeback and insights into client perspectives on the information that advice professionals provide to them.
From now on, there’s no need to visit Crowdcast to save your spot at an online Assembly. Just tap ‘Book event’ and follow the step-by-step instructions.
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Planning for small and medium size businesses can often feature in a paraplanner’s role. But guess what? We don’t think we’d ever explored the issues that affect small businesses – and the people who run them – in an Assembly.
So we decided to fix that. And to help us navigate the topic, we were joined by Les Cameron from M&G Wealth.
Whether you already have experience in this area or are new to it we’re confident that this Assembly will be right up your street. Over the course of an hour, we expect to cover:
- how corporation tax works
- what the changes mean and how will they work
- corporate investments for surplus profits
- profit extraction and remuneration strategies
From now on, there’s no need to visit Crowdcast to save your spot at an online Assembly. Just tap ‘Book event’ and follow the step-by-step instructions.
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For the first time in three years paraplanners from all over the country were able to gather for real for the Paraplanners Assembly’s Big Day Out at FarmED near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire on 15 September 2022.
Learning objectives
We opted for a blend of small group sessions – which we called Crop Rotations – and all-together sessions.
Crop rotations: Morning
For the pre-lunch sessions, we split the Assembly into three groups: Barley, Oats and Wheat.
Participants were assigned to a group and each group rotated around the three topic sessions. Conversations in each topic session were facilitated by hosts and experts. Each session lasted for 45 minutes. The topic session for rotations 1, 2 and 3 were:
What will consumer duty mean to you?
Experts: the lang cat’s Mike Barrett and Mel Holman from CATS.
The art of challenging conversations
Expert: Becca Timmins from Time to Think and Emery Little led a session on challenging conversations.
Pep up your paraplanning processes
Experts: LIFT Financial’s Jonny Stubbs and Chris Baigent-Reed from Jigsaw Tree.
After lunch, participants were assigned to a NEW group: Apples, Cherries, Pears or Plums.
That’s because we combined two groups for the session on report writing but – by the miracle of organisation – ensured each group gets a technical Q&A all to itself. So the topics for rotations 4 and 5 were:
Technical Q&A
Panellists: Les Cameron and Neil MacLeod from M&G Wealth, and Transact’s Brian Radbone and Barnett Waddingham’s James Jones-Tinsley.
Three things that get in the way of clear, compliant and client-friendly report writing
Experts: Melissa Kidd of Motem with Mel Holman from CATS.
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Our guests – Guy Anderson from Just, Sarah Lees from Plan Works, Ben Mastel from 7IM and Sam Tonks from Succession Wealth – discussed the case of Holly Gennero – a divorced mother of two. (Can you spot the film reference? It was the last CSI before Christmas). The team covered the following retirement income options:
- traditional invested drawdown
- annuities
- structured decumulation programmes
Plus concepts including:
- sustainable income levels
- how to measure the chance of success
- stress testing
- options for money not needed for income
Interested? Then just tap ‘Book now’ to save your spot. (And look out for the link to the retirement income case study in a couple of days before the event.)
From now on, there’s no need to visit Crowdcast to save your spot at an online Assembly. Just tap ‘Book event’ and follow the step-by-step instructions.
Broken link or duff information?
If something’s not quite right on this page, please tell us what you spotted now at our bug list.
You don’t come across SSAS very often, but when you do you need to know what you’re doing with them. We can help with that.
Learning Objectives
During the session we covered…
- Who they are suitable for?
- How they work – SSAS
- SSAS versus SIPP
- Loan back and self investment
- Planning tips
Brian Radbone of Transact and Richard Allum of The Paraplanners discuss how new regulations designed to prevent pension scams will affect advice professionals and providers dealing with pension transfers.