Solomons Archives - Financial Planning in Surrey

Can you solve a Rubik’s Cube?

Debbie Harris
April 2026 • 2 min read

Can you solve a Rubik’s Cube?

I spotted a video on social media recently posted by Guinness World Records where a group of people from Hong Kong were building the world’s largest Rubik’s Cube.

Fascinating though it was (I was riveted!), I did have to chuckle at the pointlessness of it – what on earth is the use of making a giant Rubik’s Cube that requires at least four people to move the pieces and solve it … surely the beauty of the ‘simple’ Rubik’s Cube is that you can hold it in your hand and complete it at your leisure.

[Side note – you may also have seen children as young as nine or ten attempting to break the ‘fastest solve’ world record too – they do it in less than 10 seconds! I am embarrassed to admit that I have never ONCE in my life even completed the Cube, so these folk – with their youthful dexterous digits – have my utmost respect!]

Anyway – back to my point about the seemingly pointless ‘scaling’ up of this particular project – it caused me to reflect on ‘growth’ in general.

As you know, Solomon’s has been ‘growing’ over recent years and we appreciate that some clients may be wondering whether our service standards will drop; whether we will become more automated; whether we’ll lose the personal touch (that we and you value greatly).

I would like to take this opportunity to reassure you that we have not ‘scaled at speed’ – our growth has been steady and organic; which has enabled us to maintain all the best bits of what we do here.

We can all probably attest to the fact that firms scaling up usually end up losing some things but gaining others and I am very proud of the fact that here at Solomon’s we are working really hard to ensure that our growth has been thoughtfully and carefully managed so that you (our clients) remain at the very heart of everything we do.

The proof in the pudding is ultimately whether or not you have noticed any changes for the worse – if you have, this would be incredibly useful feedback for us – so do please drop us a line.

We are continuing to grow – steadily and mindfully – as we are looking to serve clients for generations to come.

If you can think of anyone who might benefit from having a conversation with us about their financial planning – please do send them our way.

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Can you solve a Rubik’s Cube?Jemima Thomas2026-04-02T10:16:51+01:00

Are you building a bridge to your future?

Dominic Thomas
Jan 2026 • 2 min read

Are you building a bridge to your future?

Financial planning straddles the past, present and future. Here at Solomon’s, we like to start with the end in mind, the second habit of “highly effective people”. We need to know what you are aiming for and where you are now. It’s helpful, significantly so, to also know enough about the history that has lead to where you are presently.

One of the many problems with great financial planning is that it requires time and therefore patience. A combination that is not something that is easy to master and arguably the antithesis of our current cultural impulses; it’s also problematic because you only get the long-term once.

Compounding investment returns is a crucial part of your plan, in practice we are not magicians and really have three main ‘dials’ to operate – spending, contributing and time. So I wonder if you would consider the example of an actual bridge – the one that you have probably known about since early childhood nursery rhymes and probably crossed more than once … London Bridge. Construction of the first stone bridge started in 1176 and took around 33 years to complete; at the time it was the sole bridge across the Thames.

For hundreds of years, London Bridge was the only crossing of the River Thames. It had a total monopoly.

If you wanted to cross the bridge to get to the City, you paid a fee
If you wanted to sail under the bridge, you paid a fee
If you wanted to fish off the bridge (ill-advised in the Thames most of the time!), you paid a fee
If you owned one of the 140 shops/houses on the bridge, you paid a fee

Since opening in 1209, those payments have been accumulating and administered by Bridge House Estates (now called City Bridge Foundation). To give a sense of scale, the 816 years of being open for business until 2025 is obviously a very long time indeed.

To give you a sense of what compounding can do, if you’d invested the princely sum of £100 in 1209 and made a 3% return every year for the last 816 years, you’d have £2,986,588,300,073 today.

Today, now a charity doing all sorts of work and also the owner of Blackfriars Bridge (1769), Southwark Bridge (1819), Tower Bridge (1894) and the most recent Millennium Bridge (2000), the Foundation has annual income of over £42m a year, of which around £10m is from admissions and visits. The latest accounts report assets worth over £1.6bn. This gives rather a lot of meaning to terms like “spanning the generations” and is some serious legacy planning! Imagine the wealth of history that the bridge has witnessed – albeit rebuilt several times.

References:

Report and Accounts: https://www.citybridgefoundation.org.uk/about/governance/annual-reviews-and-reports

Charity: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1035628/assets-and-liabilities?_uk_gov_ccew_onereg_charitydetails_web_portlet_CharityDetailsPortlet_organisationNumber=1035628

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Are you building a bridge to your future?Jemima Thomas2026-03-24T16:26:11+00:00

Could You Provide a Review?

Jemima Thomas
Dec 2025 • 1 min read

Google review – it ain’t sexy

I’m afraid this now may seem like ‘old news’, but we’re going to keep asking!

As one of our past Spotlight contributors pointed out ‘people would rather talk about their sex life than their financial life’ and so knowing this, we understand and accept that recommending us isn’t easy.

We know it’s hard for you to make a referral, we are keen to provide you with a variety of ways to do this that are less ‘blatant’. One way you can do this is to spend a few moments of your time providing a Google review. It’s a small, yet strong and effective way to help us and our Team here. It’s potentially a risky one from our perspective – we can’t edit what you say about us, but ultimately, we trust our clients (you) and are confident that our services are of a high enough standard that would reflect positively in Google review form! If you’d rather not add any comments, you can still provide a review by simply rating us with stars!

Please note that if your comments or ratings include any ‘negatives’, we will be in touch privately to see whether there are any changes we can make. It is always our aim to make your experience and relationship with us better. As ever, we want to improve what we do and how we do it and to ensure that our services are ‘five star’ (the Google stars are simply a nice touch to reaffirm that we are doing a great job for you!).

GOOGLE REVIEW BUTTON

We also have a section in our website called “Refer Us” (found here) which provides you with a sense of the sort of people we work for. Dominic is keen to continue growing the business and ensuring that consistent advice is provided by all our advisers (a growing team designed with a long-term view in mind). In short, we have capacity and want to help more people like you.

We hope you have a wonderful Christmas filled with joy and warmth. Thank you for being a part of our community—your support is truly appreciated!

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Could You Provide a Review?Jemima Thomas2026-03-24T16:28:23+00:00

How can I tell if I’m being ‘scammed’?

Debbie Harris
Aug 2025 • 2 min read

How can I tell if I’m being ‘scammed’?

The very short answer to this question is that sometimes ‘you can’t’

Not very reassuring is it?

Scams (and fraud attempts) are now so sophisticated and ‘believable’ that it is often impossible to tell from first glance whether something is genuine or not – whether it’s an email, a text message, a phone call, a private message on an app. In just the last few months I can think of a scarily large number of occasions when I have had to channel my inner Sherlock – a flavour of the wide-ranging nature of some of these:

~ a client received a text message querying a transaction we were organising for him … my antennae tingled. We worked fast and contacted the client using all methods available to us … he was grateful for our vigilance on his behalf, and I am very relieved to report that fortunately the message was authentic, but it was jolly stressful at the time for all concerned

~ my credit card provider texted me to ask whether I had authorised a £3,000+ payment to an overseas firm (I had not) – so I immediately got on the phone to them and I am glad to report that MBNA’s fraud department was excellent and resolved very quickly (all whilst I was on the phone to them) – card cancelled and all recent transactions checked thoroughly

~ a client called to express concern about a telephone call she had received from ‘her Bank’ regarding a transfer of funds (fortunately this was legitimate as well, but the client was very upset because as soon as she had done what she was asked to do, she thought she had fallen for a scam). We were able to reassure her and to let her know what steps she needed to take to ensure her funds were ’safe’

~ a relative of mine purchased something via Shopify which turned out to be a scam – as soon as he realised this, he reached out to Shopify who were hopeless, but his bank applied for a ‘clawback’ to return his money

~ a client had her HMRC government gateway account hacked – this is a slightly different type of case, but a fraud attempt nonetheless. No money was lost thankfully on this occasion, but she did have to set up a new government gateway account (which as you may be aware – is something of a headache!)

So what are our ‘top tips’ for spotting/avoiding scams and fraud:

BEFORE THE FACT – ACT SLOWLY (take your time to ensure that any messages you receive are authentic – make your default position “any unsolicited message should not be trusted”!
AFTER THE FACT – ACT QUICKLY (this is key – sometimes if you are quick enough, you can stop the scam/fraud before you have lost any money)

There are a myriad of other ways to protect yourself from scams/fraud and you can get some great advice here https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/

If you are ever in doubt – PLEASE check in with us – we will do whatever we can to help.

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

How can I tell if I’m being ‘scammed’?Jemima Thomas2025-09-02T13:48:36+01:00

What month would you be in if life were a year?

Dominic Thomas
Aug 2025 • 3 min read

What month would you be in if life were a year?

One of the most difficult aspects of my work is approaching the subject of death. We covered some practical elements of this in our last edition of Spotlight (Spring 2025). It’s a very difficult topic, one of the last taboos. Most of us would prefer to avoid the discussion, in fact I have even met a couple of people who told me not to talk about it because it would hasten their death, which is one of the more strange responses I have had.

Most of us grow up with the expectation that life will be long, we will reach old age and have a lengthy, good retirement. We all come to experience loss; some of us at a very early age. We are often shocked by the news of someone young, or relatively young who has died. It feels as though their lives have been cut short.

The purpose of raising the subject is not to be the voice of doom, but to enable you to really do two things. Firstly, prepare for your death, which means getting your legal documents in place and ensuring that your beneficiaries are properly taken care of. Secondly, it is a reminder that life is brief, none of us know when it is our time, so we ought to be attempting to live a full life, one that doesn’t have too much deferred into the future, but feels very fulfilling here and now in the present.

You may have seen all sorts of data showing the average life expectancy of a man or woman in the UK. There is even a “death clock” which takes your age now and calculates the expected day of your death based on your health, outlook and country of residence. This of course is an informed guess based on international averages. The reality is that if you have a financial planner, you have money. And if you have money, you probably have the ability to access better healthcare and make better dietary/fitness choices. You probably (not necessarily) have a lower level of stress. As a result, you are likely to outlive the average.

However, most of us rarely think about this and go about our lives with the expectation of a fairly long and healthy future ahead of us still. We tend to think life will stretch out ahead of us, there will be ample time. However, if life was a calendar year, I wonder what month you would be in?

If we were to consider each month representing eight years of our lifetime, then life expectancy would be 96. Turning 56 means it’s July with the expectation of a few summer months. At 72 you have reached October. I wonder if thinking about life this way might encourage us to take each day a little more thankfully – and thoughtfully. The average person would have each month represent seven years, so at 56 it’s August already.

It’s a bit alarming and perhaps morbid, but surely an important reminder that life is very brief indeed. We don’t know what the future holds, but ask yourself, do you really want to be spending a significant proportion of it worrying about money or attempting to manage it? Ultimately, that is the point of delegating your financial planning to us, so that you can go and do the important things that you value most.

Sadly, I regularly meet people with diagnosed conditions that shorten their lives; and whilst we all know that money cannot buy time, actually you can create more time to do the things that you value because of the backdrop of a great financial plan based on what’s important to you. It is never about you spending valuable time managing your own investments.

References:

Death Clock: https://www.death-clock.org/

ONS mortality tables: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

What month would you be in if life were a year?Jemima Thomas2025-08-21T15:39:46+01:00

Why verify my identity when I want my money?

Dominic Thomas
Aug 2025 • 1 min read

Why verify my identity when I want my money?

Scams do not really rely on amazing technology; they rely on human behaviour. Most scams are confidence tricks, luring someone into a false sense of security. This is invariably pretending to be something or someone that they are not.

When you ask to withdraw money from your investment or pension, this is something that we really should know about in advance – after all it should be an expected and planned withdrawal. However, life doesn’t always go to plan and sometimes we find ourselves doing things we didn’t expect – a decision to spend a significant sum on a lovely motor car, moving house and wanting a new kitchen quickly or an emergency of some sort.

We will call you to clarify a few details, things that others would not know. We attempt to do our best to ensure that you are not under duress, from a criminal or indeed a friend or family member who may be coercing you into giving them money.

It may feel impertinent of us, but I can assure you that this is not the intention, but simply to safely protect you from fraud. We are, in many respects, your last line of defence.

Emotionally charged calls or conversations are not always all that they appear to be. Have a look at this video showing how a scammer uses the “stress and distraction” of a baby whilst sounding very warm and genuine at the same time. However, this is all made rather easy due to the technology now widely available. This doesn’t even begin to address the issue of AI where it is relatively easy to mimic you or your loved ones in both voice and appearance.

The answer, sadly, is that we might need you to provide a safe word or phrase.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKrTuv0CicF/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Why verify my identity when I want my money?Jemima Thomas2025-08-08T16:23:49+01:00

Setting Sail for (un)Chartered Territory

Daniel Liddicott
June 2025 • 2 min read

Setting Sail for (un) Chartered Territory

Throughout my time at Solomon’s, learning has been one of my primary objectives. When first starting on the journey of becoming an adviser (which now feels like a lifetime ago) this was, of course, an absolute necessity. To ‘learn the ropes’, so to speak.

“Learning the ropes” is a phrase that has its origin in sailing. Each sail has its own set of lines (or “ropes”) and knowing which rope did what was crucial for managing the ship effectively. Sailors had to know this to perform their duties successfully, becoming familiar with the vast and complex network of rigging used to control the ship.

We often talk about having “different levers to pull” when considering your financial plans and the best options available to you. Taking pension income as an example, pulling one lever i.e., taking income by one method can have a vastly different outcome from using another method. We help you navigate your way through the complexities of income tax laws to help to keep your financial plan on course.

Anyway, I digress…

Advisers are always learning. Not least due to the many alterations to regulations and tax law that seem to occur with each passing Budget, but also to continually improve and build upon our knowledge. I have now begun a new journey – the journey to become a Chartered Financial Planner.

This, as before, entails a whole new set of exams and accompanying textbooks that would be fit to anchor the Icon of the Seas cruise ship (no sails on that one!). As you might expect, the process is not a quick one. I am anticipating the exams taking two years to complete at a minimum.

Fortunately, my thirst for knowledge has not waned and embarking on this voyage has been something that I have been keen to do since originally qualifying as an adviser. Some would say that I am a glutton for punishment but, thankfully, the thirst for knowledge appears to be a common trait amongst the wider adviser crew.

No more ships or sailing puns, I promise!

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Setting Sail for (un)Chartered TerritoryJemima Thomas2025-06-26T09:46:58+01:00

Worrying about money?

Dominic Thomas
March 2025 • 2 min read

Worrying about money?

Admittedly, all of us respond differently to pressure and some of us (if not all of us) create our own. I say this as a slight caveat to the statement I will now make. More than half of those aged over 55 are worried that they will run out of money.

This is the finding of research conducted by Oxford Risk, a rather bright bunch that offer services for modelling, measuring, managing and explaining risk to you our clients. As ever, the sample size of the survey wasn’t vast at just a touch over 1,000 people (all over the age of 55). Only 27% of them were not worried about running out of money in retirement.

It won’t please Gen X, Z or Y that around 12% are worried that they will likely be dependent on their children for financial support in their retirement, which when some reports laud the age of an enormous wealth transfer, clearly this will not be everyone’s experience and I suspect the hoped-for inheritance to finally enable joining the property market may be short-lived. It won’t help if your estate suffers a lot of inheritance tax.

Of course, some of this may be merely a reflection of the current cost of living crisis and inflation which at checkouts and cash registers seems to stubbornly ignore ONS official data. It may have something to do with a growing awareness of the exorbitant cost of care or maybe the apparent fragility of the state of the world.

I would love to be able to tell you that we can provide complete reassurance about the future, but it is of course unknown. What we can do is work with your real spending patterns and plans in conjunction with your existing resources and create a plan to avoid running out of money. This relies on regular reviews and sense-checking of our assumptions and your objectives. The intention is obviously to empower you to make informed decisions and have a high degree of confidence about the future, but no one can actually guarantee this, despite what they may be willing to tell you.

We aren’t afraid to wrestle with reality and construct a viable, sustainable plan for your future that will deliver successful outcomes, albeit within the context of a changing and imperfect world.

You don’t need to be worrying, we have a plan that will alleviate this, this is what we do and have done with great success.

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Worrying about money?Jemima Thomas2025-03-21T15:43:07+00:00

Ready for new peaks

Matt Loadwick
Oct 2024 • 2 min read

Ready for new peaks

Joining a new business is always a significant life change; filled with anticipation and, of course, some anxiety. Having joined Solomon’s as a trainee financial planner, I’m looking to follow the path which Dan has successfully navigated, in switching professions for a career in financial planning.

A geography graduate from Newcastle University, my career to date has seen me specialise in transport and development planning, through which I sought to satisfy an innate desire to improve society; in this case by helping to make places and spaces better for the people who use them.

Undertaking what is a fairly sharp turn in my career, it would be fair to say that the levels of excitement, anticipation, and yes, anxiety, were amplified. However, my experience so far has been fantastic, thanks to the warm welcome I have received and the generous support provided daily by each of my new colleagues. From day one, the team at Solomon’s has ensured that I am integrated into the company culture; encouraging me to share my insights in team meetings, whilst always being there to help with any questions, of which there have been many at this stage!

A little about me; a proud northerner and good listener who likes to connect with people, my motivation for starting a new career in the financial services industry stems from seeking opportunity to make better use of my people skills; to help individuals realise their life goals through financial guidance, and to further increase my breadth of knowledge – all things I am really looking forward to.

I was born and raised in Poynton, a small town located just outside of Manchester, on the edge of the Peak District National Park. Growing up there inspired my love of hiking and cycling in the countryside; undoubtedly had some influence over my love of alternative rock and indie music (for which Manchester is a real wellspring); and is also reflected in my favourite sports teams – Sale Sharks RUFC, Stockport County and Manchester City (before the oil money made them “everyone’s favourite team to hate”).

Since joining the firm, I’ve had the chance to see first-hand the positive impact that good financial advice can have on the lives of our clients at a variety of key life stages. The initial learning curve has been steep, but rewarding, as I do my best to soak in as much as possible from the incredibly knowledgeable team here. It’s a process I’m thoroughly enjoying. I’m eager to build my knowledge and skills further to grow within this fantastic team, and ultimately contribute to helping our clients achieve their life goals.

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

Ready for new peaksJemima Thomas2024-10-25T11:50:16+01:00

What do you need from us?

Debbie Harris
July 2024 • 3 min read

What do you need from us?

I had a really interesting email conversation with a client today following their recent annual review meeting with one of our advisers here at Solomon’s. I asked him some questions and encouraged him to give his opinions about our process and it was very helpful feedback indeed.

We have been working to improve our review process and will likely be implementing some changes in the coming months. As I said to him; we want this to be client-led and frankly we only want to introduce new things if you (our clients) want/need them!

So I would encourage you to tell us –

~ do you like the fact that each annual review looks and feels the same in terms of structure and content?

~ would you like them to feel different each time (perhaps focussing on different / specific things)?

~ do you like the presentation you receive?

~ would you prefer to have more contact with us before the meeting so that we can update your figures and give you an opportunity to help us formulate the agenda based on your priorities and concerns?

~ do you wish the meetings were shorter? Longer? More frequent?

~ would you like the meetings to feel less structured or do you like that there is a clear plan of action in terms of what is covered?

We absolutely want to hear from you – it’s important that we know what YOU would like those meetings to look like; so that we can do better …

Why are review meetings so important?

In the realm of financial planning, review meetings serve as pivotal moments where financial advisers have the opportunity to understand client needs and develop meaningful relationships. Our clients come with a variety of expectations, and we try and meet these effectively.

Research indicates that people primarily seek advisers who are knowledgeable, trustworthy, and good listeners (what I would call ‘no-brainers’). Digging a little deeper however reveals that clients also look for personalised advice that caters to their unique financial situation. They want the usual discussions around retirement and investments; but also they are looking to enhance their own financial literacy and develop good habits.

The evolving landscape of client-adviser interactions suggests a shift towards more holistic financial planning – which is what we have been offering for many years. This includes discussions on later life care, health, housing, and other aspects of life that directly impact your ‘financial wellbeing’.

People want a financial adviser who not only provides expert financial guidance but also takes the time to understand and incorporate personal values and life goals into the financial planning process. For the team here at Solomon’s … we want to exceed your expectations on this – leading to better and more meaningful relationships with you.

So we urge you … please let us know your answer to the question “what do you need from us?” (or – if it’s easier … “what DON’T you need from us?”)

What do you need from us?

BACK TO ALL BLOGS

What do you need from us?Jemima Thomas2025-01-28T10:02:33+00:00

12 Next