Talking with Goss Lumsden

Goss Lumsden, Financial Planning Consultant at Prosser Knowles Associates Limited, met with Kay Crooke to reflect upon his time working in the financial services industry so far…

How did you end up working in the financial services industry?

My mother!  As a teenager I was always unsure of where I wanted to end up.  I always knew I wanted to deal with and help people but I didn’t have a specific direction of where to go to fulfil this criteria.  My mother who is also an IFA suggested getting involved in the financial services industry where you talk to and help people every day.  I went to an interview over 10 years ago now and got a job as an ‘archiving’ assistant where I would archive the company’s old client files. This was not my dream job of talking to and helping people every day, but it was a start!

As it turns out it was a fantastic place to learn the industry as I had all this knowledge passing by my fingertips every day.  I loved it.  We’re now 10 years on and in that time I have moved from being an archiving assistant to a section manager looking after 15 people to being a financial adviser servicing dozens of clients and I still love the industry as much as I did after opening my first dusty file.

Who is your role model?

I’ve had several people who I have deeply respected over the years who I have aspired to be more like, but no specific role model. I had a teacher in school once who said my best friend was my role model but I think that was because he had a cool hair do and the girls liked him, so I’m not sure whether he could be accurately given the grandiose title of role model.  If I had to pick a role model it would probably be my dad, he’s the one I go to when I need advice and because he is someone who gives advice for a living, I feel he fits the bill as my role model pretty perfectly.

What’s the most valuable lesson you have learned?

Time is precious.  I know it’s cliché but it’s something which we all take for granted.  Whether it’s at work or at home, it is so important to know the value of your own time – it is your most precious possession.

What do you associate with success?

Happiness.  As long as you have a genuine smile on your face, you’ve made it.  You are successful.

What do you still want to achieve?

There are a lot of things I’d still love to achieve.  Some big like getting married and starting a family and some small like being a better cook.  I’m good at making toast and marmalade but the rest of my cooking ability leaves quite a lot to be desired.

I think it’s important to have both big and small targets in your life and to have fun with them. Don’t always have them all as achievable, don’t always use the SMART model (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely) – have some ridiculous targets that make you smile.  Dream big!

How do you relax?

Rather generically unfortunately, I’d love to be one of those people who relax by going for a run or by inadvertently doing something productive like relaxing by mowing the lawn or cleaning the house, but the unfortunate truth is I like to relax with a take-away in front the telly.

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