As I write my final blog for the year, it’s good to take time to reflect on all that 2017 has been. It’s been an interesting year, to say the least, and one which seems to have saved many surprises until the final quarter. But I have to say, it feels like a year that has reignited hope, both in the political landscape, and within our industry.
To end the year with Same Sex Marriage legislation passing through parliament is momentous and cause for celebration. It was hard not to be touched by the joy on both sides of the political fence when the Bill finally passed. It has also been great to see the business and entertainment community taken to task over the ‘silence breakers’ – (mostly) women who have had the courage to add their voice to change.
Since Harvey Weinstein was ousted, there has been a sea of voices rising up, and leaders losing their roles over inappropriate behaviour that has gone on for far too long. For women, the hope is that the world becomes a more equal place, and one that does not tolerate or compensate for harassment.
For our industry, there is the hope of repairing public trust with a Royal Commission starting in 2018. While it was unwanted for so long, it seemed inevitable that it would happen, and I have to believe that good will come from taking a good hard look at the way parts of the industry make money. Change in the favour of the Australian public is always beneficial, and we can already see green shoots coming from the Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) reforms, and other political changes.
For individuals, now more than ever, it’s important to embrace change, and look for growth opportunities from it. Our world is changing faster than ever, and the things we need to think about and prepare for are not small. For we are hurtling toward a future that could be imminently better if we embrace change now, and become part of the movement to benefit from it, and help others to do the same.
This year has been a very big one for us at No More Practice Education. We separated the business formally from evolution media group, appointed our dedicated managing director Marcus Field (he is killing it!) We’ve also just finished televising our biggest Channel Nine series ever: Learn from the Money Masters . All up, and combined with our research with Griffith University, we reached more than eight million Australians, and I am encouraged more than ever with the response from both the media and the public around the need to prepare for our retirement, and set Australia up for long-term prosperity.
We will take on even more challenges in 2018 to get the message out there, and continue to make entertaining education with some of the best and most intriguing thought leaders in the investing and advice markets.
For those who are our Collective, Education and Faculty Partners, I thank you once again. Without you, we could never go about making a difference in our mission to make the pension irrelevant for all Australians.
For you, our readers, I also thank you sincerely for your support. We believe wholeheartedly what you do transforms lives, and we are more than happy to create stories and education that continues to demonstrate that.
I wish all of you a wonderful Christmas with your families. We are closing our offices for two weeks, and I know our hard-working team are very much looking forward to some downtime before we come charging at 2018 with more creativity and intention than ever. I am ever grateful for each and every member of our team that continues to carry the high standards and production values that we pride ourselves on. You are incredibly talented professionals.
Until 2018, all my very best wishes,
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