Carissa Fairbrother

As business owners we get bogged down – it is not unusual to be carrying the weight of the world on our shoulders. 

As a mother of three children, who are very close in age, a business owner, financial adviser, wife, daughter, friend and all of the other hats many of us wear, to have the business we have today – there was compromise, sacrifice and in the early days the sacrifice was a work/life balance. 

After 12 years in business, finally, I have more freedom of choice of who I want to work with and help. But in those early years, it was about head down bum up. We created our own luck through focusing on our goals and knowing our end game, incredibly hard work and outsourcing jobs that the others could do so that we could focus on what we were good at – client advice and growth.

We all have a different story to tell but the one thing that remains the same is that we need to fund it.Our story, our dreams, our homes and our lives all require monetary input to make it happen.

All businesses if they focus are their plan A, understanding their market, setting goals, building a team – the day to day working of earning a revenue, if they are in a healthy state. 

But financial resilience is ONLY born when we have a Plan B. By that I mean when you have assessed your risks, have access to cash reserves and you have the welfare of your team at the front and centre of all of your business decisions, that’s when the bumps along the road won’t finish off your business.

You would have heard the saying “There are only two things certain in this Life, Death and Taxes”, So I want people to answer some of the hard questions that plague them, so they can stop sweating it and focus on business and life. 

Focus on prioritising, articulating and revisit their Financial Goals. Get their Plan B done well, so they can focus on their Plan A! 

I truly believe the biggest gift you can give someone is the tools and education to take control of their financial future. 

My passion is helping people to articulate their financial goals and creating a solid plan to get there – it’s simple really. 

The upside of when people are financially organized is they are happier and more productive – because they free up the headspace to focus on what’s truly important 

Rival Wealth were Finalists in 2016, 2017 and 2019 in the Wellington Gold Awards 

In 2018, we achieved the unthinkable for a small provincial business at the prestigious Diversity Awards dinner – winning the best business in the country for the ‘Work Life Balance” award. 

In 2018 & 2019, our co-founder was recognised by our industry Body as the Top Financial Planner in NZ.