The best financial planners understand that good advice starts with understanding people rather than products.
That lesson runs through the experiences of the Moonstone Business School of Excellence’s four top achievers in the Advanced Certificate in Financial Planning (ACFP). Although they come from different backgrounds – a wealth manager, a funeral director turned aspiring financial planner, a banking professional, and a retirement fund consultant – they all describe the qualification as changing the way they think about helping clients to navigate some of life’s most important financial decisions.
The ACFP is a key milestone in MBSE’s structured learning pathway, equipping professionals to provide holistic financial planning to individual and business clients. It also fulfils the education requirement for the Financial Services Advisor® (FSA®) designation awarded by the Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa and forms part of the journey towards becoming a Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®).
For Candice Lubbe, the journey reinforced that “if you put your mind to it, you are capable of doing anything”. For Sifiso Thela, being recognised as a top achiever was “confirmation that this is really something I should be pursuing as a career”. Hayley Pillay discovered that “growth begins when you’re willing to step outside your comfort zone”, while Fiona Francis emerged believing that “you are never too old to learn”.
Each story is different, but together they reflect a shared belief that learning never really ends.
Candice Lubbe: Finding confidence one step at a time
Candice jokes that she is “a morning person” who likes tackling the hardest tasks first. It is perhaps no surprise then that when balancing a full-time career as a wealth manager, family life, and two years of study became overwhelming, she found herself setting her alarm for 3am to fit in an hour of revision before the day began.
The 36-year-old, who works at Efficient Wealth, enrolled for the qualification to deepen her understanding of financial planning and grow professionally. The journey, however, demanded far more than technical knowledge.
“Studying over weekends, or at night after a long busy day at work, still having to see to the kids, and then studying once everyone was sleeping – it was emotionally, physically, and mentally draining,” she says.
What kept her going were the handwritten notes her young daughter would leave on her desk.
“Thank you for everything you do for us and all your hard work, Mommy, we love you.”
The night before her final examination, self-doubt almost got the better of her.
“I closed my books, burst into tears, and just started praying. I left my worries, nerves, and stress in God’s hands and asked Him to give me a focused mind during my exam.”
Being named MBSE’s top achiever came as a complete surprise, but the qualification has left her with something even more valuable than the result.
“It has given me a huge boost of confidence. Going forward, I will believe in myself that I am capable of doing anything if I put my mind to it.”
That confidence may come in handy. Lubbe describes herself as “very competitive”, saying she enjoys pushing herself “to my limit where it gets a bit uncomfortable” – a mindset that, in hindsight, may have helped carry her through the demands of balancing work, family, and study.
Sifiso Thela: A second career inspired by life’s hardest moments
For more than a decade, Sifiso worked as a funeral director, helping families through some of the most difficult moments of their lives. It was there, he says, that he saw first-hand the consequences of poor financial planning.
“Working in the funeral industry allowed me to see the consequences of not having proper financial plans. This ignited a passion for financial planning and a strong desire to help people establish financial plans that will put their families in a good financial position.”
At 38, he decided to follow what he describes as “a leap of faith”. He completed MBSE’s Higher Certificate in Wealth Management, wrote his regulatory examinations, and enrolled for the ACFP. In June, he joined Sanlam Sisonke as a branch consultant while continuing to work towards his long-term goal of becoming a CFP®.
The journey was not without setbacks. Financial difficulties meant he could not complete the qualification as originally planned, forcing him to postpone his studies and make significant sacrifices to return the following year.
“I was determined to finish it… being named as one of the top achievers really made the financial sacrifice worth it.”
Finding time to study was another challenge. Permanently on standby as a funeral director, he carried his study guides wherever he went, reading whenever an opportunity arose instead of reaching for his phone.
Today, he is already applying what he learned. When clients consider withdrawing money from their retirement annuities, he uses the knowledge gained during the course to show them how even a R2 000 withdrawal can affect their retirement savings over time.
Being recognised as one of MBSE’s top achievers, he says, felt like confirmation that he had found the career he was meant to pursue.
He also admits, with a smile, that another accolade he still claims is being his school’s rugby camp eating champion.
“If there’s one lesson I learned from this journey, it’s that you are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
Hayley Pillay: Growing beyond her comfort zone
After 18 years in banking, Hayley knew the financial services industry well. What she wanted was a deeper understanding of the people behind the numbers.
“I wanted to better understand the bigger picture of my clients’ financial journeys. Financial planning allows you to positively impact people’s lives by helping them make informed decisions that secure their financial futures.”
The 40-year-old, who works at Standard Bank, says the qualification came at a turning point in her career as she looked to expand her skills and remain relevant in a rapidly evolving industry. At the same time, she was balancing a full-time job, a move to a new department, and family life as a wife and mother of three.
“I’ve always believed that learning should never stop.”
Rather than studying for long hours, she credits consistency and discipline for her success, reminding herself of her goal even on evenings when she felt exhausted after work.
The qualification also changed the way she approaches clients. Instead of focusing on individual products or transactions, she now begins by asking more meaningful questions to understand a client’s overall financial circumstances before discussing solutions.
Despite being recognised as one of MBSE’s top achievers, Pillay says most people would be surprised to learn that she often doubts her own abilities whenever she takes on something new.
“What’s surprised me over the years is that I often end up proving myself wrong.”
For her, the experience reinforced one lesson above all others.
“Growth begins when you’re willing to step outside your comfort zone.”
Fiona Francis: One step at a time
Fiona believes financial planning is about helping people make informed decisions that will shape their future long after today’s conversation has ended.
The 47-year-old trainee consultant at Liberty Group enrolled for the qualification because she wanted to deepen her knowledge and better support clients navigating retirement planning, risk protection, and long-term financial security.
“What attracted me to financial planning was the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.”
Studying while working full time required discipline, careful planning, and making the most of every spare moment. As a single mother, many of her study sessions took place while waiting outside her son’s tuition classes.
Francis says few people know that she lost her eldest son in a tragic accident in 2020. Navigating that loss while continuing to move forward in both her personal and professional life required resilience, faith, and determination.
Rather than measuring success by the number of hours she studied, she focused on understanding concepts, applying them to real-life situations, and building a steady routine.
The qualification also changed the way she approaches her work. Today, when assisting members with retirement fund benefits, she looks beyond the immediate query to consider the broader financial implications for each individual.
She describes herself as someone who is constantly challenging herself to improve, measuring success not against others but against the person she was yesterday.
Being recognised as one of MBSE’s top achievers strengthened her confidence and reinforced her belief that learning has no age limit.
“You are never too old to learn, and the sky is truly the limit. Success is not achieved through perfection, but through consistency, perseverance and faith.”
For more information about MBSE’s range of qualifications, visit www.mbse.ac.za or contact MBSE at help@mbse.ac.za.
