Matt Hern

My first career in the 1990s was as a graduate Engineer in the Oil and Gas industry. What struck me from my time working offshore was that many people told me “I want to quit working away, but feel I can’t afford to.”

Honestly, that scared me! It prompted me to start learning about money, which eventually led to my career change into financial planning.

In applying what I was learning to my own life I quickly realised, it’s not about the money. What mattered more were the life experiences the money helped facilitate. I also realised that it didn’t really matter how much I knew about money, the actions I actually took were what made a difference.

Those realisations reignited the interest in human behaviour and the meaning of life that I’d had since being a typical angsty teenager. I studied life coaching and spent a lot of time reading research and books about how we can live a flourishing life. Philosophical life discussions over coffee is one of my favourite pastimes.

As a financial planner, I love blending social science with personal finance to help you afford a life you love and lights you up!