Adviser Ratings Profiles Andrew Akuoko

Our Adviser Profile this week is Andrew Akuoko, a Gold adviser with 8 client reviews with an average client rating of 100%. Andrew is a Director and Financial Adviser at Wealth Peak Financial Advice, in Pyrmont in Sydney.

1. Best thing about being a financial adviser?

Money matters encompasses all the things we do and dream of yet very few people plan their life stages, leaving a lot of things to chance. As a financial adviser, I enjoy working with my clients to achieve their life goals – be it the first home, holidays, children’s education or managing money to create more wealth. The best thing about it all is working with our clients to come up with a plan and seeing that plan help them achieve their dreams and aspirations.

2. One thing you would like to see improved or changed in the industry?

Financial planning has been tightly linked to products for a long time. Much as you’ll need some products to achieve some life goals, many a times, it’s the strategy behind the life goals that truly matters. I’m looking forward to the day that speaking to a financial adviser has nothing to do with the name of your super fund and investment platform, but focusses on the clients’ dreams, hopes and fears; focusses on the reasons why they want to achieve their stated goals. That’s more powerful than a few dollars and cents saved on a platform fee or insurance product.

3. The areas on their finances or economy that worry your clients the most?

We recently did a survey and asked some of our clients this question. The common theme we got was the rising cost of living and the stagnation of wages. Our clients feared that at this rate, they have to be very clever about their money in order to have a decent standard of living now and in the future. This worry (perceived or real) has made more of our clients seek a different style of advice – advice on different ways to increase their passive income – as opposed to the traditional advice strategies out there.

4. What's the strangest question a client has ever asked you?

We work with our clients in all aspects of their lives as we firmly believe that every part of their lives is interconnected with what we do with their life goals. As such we find some of the questions others might find strange, very normal. However, if I were to pick one interesting one, it’ll be the one question that had me thinking the most. It was when one of our young executives asked me “What should I do to be happy, Andrew?” As you can imagine, there was that awkward silence for a while…

“Well, what does happiness mean to you?” – was my response to that question. But the issue wasn’t that I couldn’t respond to the question asked, it was more of the fact that I had the instant realisation that we do more for our clients today than just generate or save them dollars and cents.

5. If you could get three things into consumers' heads about what advisers do or don't do what would they be?

a) A financial adviser helps you create a positive cash flow to maintain your current lifestyle as well as grow wealth for your future financial freedom through carefully thought out strategies based on your personal hopes and dreams.

b) You don’t need a lot of money to see a financial adviser. Financial advice is working with you to understand your goals, dreams and aspiration in order to achieve them. You need a financial adviser to make your life goals a reality.

c) As a client, you should never leave your financial adviser solely in charge of your money matters and/or life goals. Working with a financial adviser is a two-way street and a working relationship. The more you understand and challenge what you’re doing, the better the outcome will be for both parties.

6. How do you describe your job at BBQs?

“I help my clients manage their cash flow to help them maintain their current lifestyle and grow their wealth for their future financial freedom!”

Article by:

Andrew Akuoko

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