Confidence the key with John

John works in the building industry and has just hit his 50s. He and his wife Joanna are both still working and there aren’t any retirement plans on the immediate horizon. But this hasn’t stopped him building his property assets with an eye to his future. While he remains fairly low-key about what he’s managed to achieve, since working with Opeson in 2007, he’s been able to purchase three investment properties. Certainly not a bad position to be in!

When I caught up with John in East Perth, on his way back to the office after being on-site with a client, he didn’t want to go on too much about his property portfolio. But as he says himself, working with Opeson has given him the confidence to pick up some properties when the time is right. This even went as far as grabbing a good buy at auction and then contacting the team at Opeson to sort the details out afterwards!

However, it’s not all about investment with John and Joanna. They’ve benefited from the organisational structures that Opeson have been able to put in place. John admits that he, “doesn’t know exactly how it works,” and leaves much of the detailed planning to Joanna, but the Opeson automated system has provided the structure to allow John to pursue his goals.

Here’s a short version of my chat with John

John 1-minute

John is also pretty shrewd investor and thought long and hard about joining Opeson those years ago. Since then, he’s seen his confidence grow the point where he’s acquired further investment properties and taken it all in his stride.

Joanna, who is self employed, has also seen lifestyle gains through working with Opeson. She’s been given more financial freedom and has been able to bump up the salary she takes home.

To hear more from John, click on the longer version below.

John full version

Click through for a written version of John’s comments.

Steve and Gillian maximise a limited income

Steve is a Primary School Chaplain and with wife Gillian staying home to look after their young and growing family, he had some big decisions to make. The most pressing was, ‘how to make the most out of our limited income?’ Well, with the help of Opeson, he and Gillian now have the home, car and lifestyle they wanted, on the income they had.

With the kids running around and playing happily in the background, Steve and Gillian’s home is pretty much the picture of happiness. But every family goes through trials and are faced with big decisions from time to time. A few years ago, Steve and Gillian found themselves in a quandary, with aging cars, a growing family and a limited income.

But it certainly didn’t mean disaster and with Opeson providing calm, clear advice and structures, their family is happy, secure and comfortable.

It’s only a minute, hear from Steve yourself.

Steve in-a-minute

For a better impression of what Steve got out of being an Opeson member, below is a longer version. When I spoke to him, he had just moved into a new, bigger family home.

When speaking of Opeson, Steve chose to emphasis a couple of aspects in particular. “Peace of mind,” was certainly one of them. He spoke about using the team at Opeson as a sounding board for various ideas and options. Getting their honest and independent advise and then making a decision about how to move forward.

Another thing Steve really wanted to make clear was that, through working with Opeson, he and his family were able to structure their life, the way they wanted to. And often reap the rewards, far faster than they thought possible!

Here’s more from Steve himself.

Steve in-full

Click through, if you’d like to read Steve’s story.

Dianne gets a plan and progresses towards goals

Dianne and Chris have been married for 25 years and have two children aged 20 and 13. It’s a time when there are a lot of expenses for  things like school and university. But since they’ve started working with Opeson, they can see the real progress they’re making towards their goals.

With expenses coming thick and fast, Dianne wasn’t surprised but was frustrated as the family held their own, but often didn’t make progress towards their goals. She really says it best when she describes looking back at the earnings for a financial year and thinking, “where has all the money gone?” It’s a feeling I’m sure many of us has had but it doesn’t have to be the case.  Since they’ve become Opeson members they now have a clear plan in place and have looked at different strategies for setting up their future. “We’re not going to be able to work forever,” Dianne goes on and with Opeson they’re moving towards a future without work.

What’s more, they haven’t had to change their lifestyle to do it! Just, with the help of Opeson, learn a new way of doing things. Here’s just over a minute of my chat with Dianne.

Dianne in a minute

The Opeson strategies have also been flexible for Dianne and her family and she’s positive that they can cope as more challenges arise. Importantly the new systems and way of thinking has freed up time and given both Dianne and Chris peace of mind when it comes to making purchases and planning for the future.

Here’s more of my conversation with Dianne, it’s worth the three minutes to check it out.

Opes Dianne

Click through if you want to read a transcript of these interview clips.

Scott’s path to security and stability

When you have four children under the age of five things are pretty hectic. So for Scott finding stability and security were big priorities. Working with Opeson, Scott’s been able to find both of these things.

Before becoming an Opeson member Scott was working two jobs and wasn’t really happy about the direction things were heading. ”I knew their was a financial path to take, but didn’t know where to find it,” says Scott. Enter Opeson, via and unexpected phone call one night, and that path has become clear.

But that hasn’t been the only positive according to Scott. While previously it may have been difficult to know exactly what represents the best way of doing things, he’s found the experience of working with Opeson has been an enlightening one. With options and different plans for the future mapped out for him, he now has a clearer understanding of attaining the security wants for his young family.

Even if you only have a minute, listen to some of Scott’s story.

Scott in a minute

But that’s not the full story. Here’s Scott in some more detail setting out the difficult position he found himself in and how Opeson was able to empower him and supply him with the tools to set things straight. It’s also nice to hear how, through working with the Opeson team, he was able to deal with an unexpected arrivals.

Scott (long version)

Below is a written version of what Scott had to say.

Warren and Pinky’s new way of thinking

Warren and Pinky are a couple who are thinking about retirement. While neither of them are rushing into anything, they have discovered ways to get the most out of what they’ve got and realise some goals that they thought were way out on the distant horizon.

When I first asked Warren and Pinky about whether they had clear goals when they started speaking to Opeson, they replied with a clear, “yes!” But what they didn’t think was that these goals could become a reality so quickly.

Warren really summed it up when he described the process of working with Opeson as being like, “a whole new way of thinking.” If you’ve only got a minute, hear them for yourself.

Warren and Pinky in a minute

Here’s some more of their chat with, at under four minutes it’s well worth your time. Warren and Pinky are pretty risk averse but with the help of Opeson have literally had dreams turn into reality. Listen to them for yourself.

Warren & Pinky (in full)

If you’d rather read what Warren and Pinky had to say, click through for the rest of the story.

Gary’s confident, prosperous and active retirement!

Gary is a Registered Nurse at a major Perth hospital and he’s getting ready for a happy and active retirement. But that’s not the way things have always been for him. As he candidly described, before becoming an Opeson client, he lost a lot of money and was looking at a grim outlook for later in life. But that’s not what’s happened and with the help of Opeson he feels ready to take the next step, leading the life he wants.

“It’s been a paradigm shift,” is how Gary described working with the team at Opeson. Like having a financial mentor when planning for the future and taking the steps towards your goals. Over the years while working with Opeson Gary has turned his situation around and is focussed on a prosperous future.

If you’ve only got a minute, hear Gary describing the change that he’s seen in the outlook for his life and the very active retirement he plans.

Gary in-a-minute

It really is remarkable turn-around that Gary has experienced. But that’s not the only aspect of Opeson that he wanted to talk about. The other thing that  made a big difference for Gary was that instead of dealing with faceless, bureaucratic and often remote institutions, at Opeson you form personal partnerships with the team. As they work with you, for your future.

“You make all the decisions,” says Gary, “but it’s like having a… mentor.” And it’s obviously mentoring that is apying off, as Gary is in a situation where he’s investing in his future and setting himself up fo rmany happy years ahead.

Take a couple of minutes to check out the longer chat with Gary below.

Gary – in full

Read Gary’s comments by clicking through to the remainder of this post.

Successful strategies and real rewards for Kade & Michelle

Kade and Michelle are a young professional couple who are going places. They love the home they have, have purchased an investment property and Kade has just picked up a new car, in his words, “of my dreams.” How did they achieve this? Hard work of course, but also through developing strategies with Opeson that deliver them the future and lifestyle they want.

“We choose to make travel a priority,” says Kade when talking about his travel plans for Thailand and also a trip to visit family in New Zealand. But it hasn’t stopped the couple developing an asset bass many would be proud of. So where to next with Opeson?

“All I can think of is a dream home,” Kade sums up, “something close to the ocean,” adds Michelle. And when you hear these guys speak with Fiona in the two short interviews below, you get the feeling they’re heading there fast.

In only a minute you get an idea that this dynamic couple have there goals firmly in sight.

Kade & Michelle 1-minute

And if you have three minutes to hear more from Kade and Michelle, check out below.

Kade and Michelle full-version

Opeson often equips clients with strategies and ways of making their own way to meet their goals. But I didn’t realize that it could actually be fun.

But that was one of the words that they used when they were describing what it is they like about Opeson.

Michelle also said that working with the Opeson team that she, “feels like part of group”. Which is a pretty cool way to get to where you want to go, with others helping you along the way.

If you want to read what they had to say, click through for a transcript.

Shayne kicking lifestyle and financial goals!

Shayne is a single guy with a good income and having a chat with him really was a lesson is what is possible. Shayne says that since joining Opeson he’s been, “meeting my goals… and had a lifestyle as well.” It’s not a bad outcome so click through to hear how Shayne has been able to do it and what lessons he’s learnt.

You hear a lot about the mining boom in WA, and Shayne’s story really illustrates how using the money from a mining job well, can really set you up. However before he worked with Opeson, Shayne really wasn’t making progress towards his goals and the money he was making really wasn’t working for him.

If you’ve only got one-minute, check out how he was able to turn that around.

Shayne 1-minute

The obvious question then, is how has Shayne’s new progress been achieved? Click on the longer version below to find out in more detail, but in a nutshell Opeson was able to show Shayne the affect his decisions were having on his bigger financial picture. It’s allowed him to know at all times where he was at and where he was heading.

Here he is, in his own words, it’s only just over two minutes and well worth the time.

Shayne in-full

If you’d rather read about Shayne, click through for a written version of these interview clips.

Katishe’s healthy, happy family

Katishe and Ryan are a young couple who have survived a very difficult time. Their first child was born months premature and when they ran into financial problems at the same time, things weren’t looking good. Enter Opeson and with a new direction, structure and confidence they were able to get back on track and stay together as a family.

No-one expresses it better than Katishe herself, so take the time to hear from her yourself. Her’s is a remarkable story and one that really shows the difference the Opeson team can make, not just on bank balances, but on lives.

Here is just one minute of her story.

Katishe 1-minute

Katishe truly is thankful and when she talks of having her baby still in hosptial, having to express every two hours and the stress and worry of making the next mortgage payment, it’s easy to wonder how she kept it all together. But thankfully she did, with the help of a call from Opeson and the courage to step out in new direction.

Hear more from Katishe below.

Katishe full version

If you’d like to read a Katishe’s interview, click through to the rest of this post below.

Building a studio and making savings with Dave

Dave is single and in his early 40s. He’s a busy professional with a keen interest in music, that’s why he had always wanted to build his own recording studio. With Opeson, he’s done it!

Hearing from Dave is a almost a bit of a time-warp in terms of the Opeson experience and service. Dave was a really early member  and the Opeson service has evolved in so many ways since.

But notwithstanding that, with Dave’s busy lifestyle and his focus on making his way forward in his career, Opeson was able to provide a vital service that literally saved him money and time.

But most importantly, Dave was able to realise a lifelong goal of owning a  home and building his own recording studio.

If you’ve only got a minute, check out some of Dave’s story:

Dave – in a minute

The Opeson team have tried to get Dave back to continue optimizing his situation but he reckons he’s always too busy. It doesn’t stop them from trying though!

However at the end of the day, Dave is still delighted with what he’s experienced at Opeson and you can hear it yourself. For a busy professional with a busy life, Opeson can still unlock potential in lots of ways.