Our Founders Story

Our Founder’s Story: If you knew you had three years, what would you do differently?

Earlier this year, I went for a routine health check. I expected some reassurance.

Instead, I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma.

Thankfully, it was caught early. But even with that reassurance, my mind went to some dark places.

What if this was only the beginning?

What if treatment lasted years?

What if I wasn’t here to see the people I love grow?

Like anyone in that position, I found myself asking questions I’d never truly asked before.

And unexpectedly, I found myself thinking about something I’d heard from clients many times over the years:

“The worst thing that ever happened to me became the best thing that ever happened to me.”

We’ve worked with clients whose lives changed in an instant.

Some decided to have a health check after we suggested one. Others chose private medical cover through WPA or took out critical illness insurance.

Not one of them would have chosen to become ill. But for some, the experience changed how they chose to live.

They spent more time with the people they loved.

They stopped putting experiences off until “one day”.

They had conversations they’d been avoiding.

They created memories they might never have made otherwise.

Their diagnosis gave them clarity.

For years, I listened to those stories without ever imagining that one day I would have one of my own.

What changed for me

One thing that gave me enormous peace during an incredibly uncertain time was that I’d already made some of the decisions that I’d previously helped our clients make.

I had private medical cover through WPA, and I had critical illness insurance.

Those decisions gave me something far more valuable than money.

They gave me the freedom to focus on my health, my recovery and the people I love.

But something else changed too.

My diagnosis made me think much more deeply about what all the planning, saving, investing and financial decisions were actually for.

Because ultimately, money isn’t the destination.

It’s a resource that can help us create the life we want to live.

And that led me to an idea I’ve started calling The Three-Year Contract.

The Three-Year Contract

It’s not a financial product.

It’s a way of thinking.

Imagine that today you were signing a three-year contract with your life.

Not because you believe you only have three years to live.

But because three years is close enough to feel real, while still being long enough to build something meaningful.

Now think about the contracts you’ve already made.

Your contract with yourself.

Your contract with your partner and family.

Your contract with your friends.

Your contract with your community.

Perhaps even your contract with the people who work for you or depend upon you.

What have you implicitly promised those people?

And are you honouring those promises?

Now imagine yourself three years from today, looking back.

What would need to have happened for you to feel proud?

“Proud” is an important word.

It’s simple. It’s emotional.

And I think most of us instinctively know what would make us feel proud.

When I asked myself that question, I realised something that surprised me.

I didn’t wish I’d bought more things.

I didn’t wish I’d owned a bigger house.

I didn’t wish I’d travelled to more exotic places.

I wished for something much simpler.

More time.

More time with my girlfriend, Oli, and her son, Liubo.

More time with my sister, my brother-in-law, my niece and nephews.

More time supporting the people I work with and our clients.

More time building businesses with longevity and meaning.

More opportunities to honour the promises I’ve made to myself about looking after the people who matter most.

What is your money really for?

My diagnosis gave me something I didn’t expect.

It gave me clarity.

Clarity about what money is really for.

Money cannot buy more time.

But it can change how we spend the time we have.

It can give us choices.

It can create freedom.

It can remove worry.

It can give us the ability to say yes to the people and experiences that matter.

And it can help us honour our contracts.

That’s why I’ve come to believe that good financial planning isn’t really about accumulating more money.

It’s about using the resources we have to create a life we can look back on with pride.

So perhaps it’s worth taking a few minutes to think about your own Three-Year Contract.

Who needs more of your time?

What have you been putting off until “one day”?

What promises have you made that you haven’t yet honoured?

What would you change if you stopped assuming there would always be more time?

And finally:

Three years from today, looking back, what would need to have happened for you to feel proud?

You don’t need a diagnosis to ask yourself that question.

I just wish I’d asked it sooner.

Gareth Williams