A decade has passed… already!

In May 2017, I completed my tenth year with PFP and how things have changed. Our expertise has grown along with our staff numbers and it feels as though I will shortly have completed a whole economic cycle of advising at PFP. The ‘banking crisis’ recession took hold followed by a lengthened period of growth has followed relatively uninterrupted ever since. We have seen the change in the discount rate and barely a day goes by without the Brexit word raising its head a term which back then had not even been coined…happy days!

However, it has not all been work, work, work. A decade ago (now eleven years) I joined a younger fitter version of myself but as my family has grown and my professional life dominated the working hours my focus on fitness became a little more blurred and, whilst others in the team seemed to be placing ever more fitness challenges before themselves, it is fair to say I had relaxed to a point that something needed to be done.

To try and defy the ageing process, I returned to a former hobby of mountain biking, living in Cheshire there was more ‘biking’ than ‘mountain’ but the odd jaunt into the peak district would always get the lungs working a little harder than was initially comfortable.

As my tenth year of service arrived, having picked up on my biking enthusiasm, the team at PFP kindly paid for me to join a three-day mountain biking tour in the Peak District taking in some of the routes much famed in the mountain biking community. Such as Jacobs Ladder, Ladybower Loop and the Cut Gate Path.

The biblical levels of rainfall were insufficient to dampen the spirits, my co-riders nothing but encouraging as I tried to keep up with the pack around the various routes. I think I would struggle to think of a time when I have been so wet, muddy and happy. For those that know me of course, burning so many calories a day did of course fully justify my equal enthusiasm for food and a thorough enjoyment of good honest pub-grub in front of an open fire for lunch and again at dinner.

So thanks again to the co-riders who proved great company and good fun. Thank you too to the team at PFP for providing the opportunity to experience such a great trip and the ability to tick off some mountain biking Mecca’s from my bucket list.

But most importantly, the biggest thank you goes to all of the clients and introducers that have entrusted me over the past decade or so and have enabled me to follow a professional life that I am so passionate about and proud of.