I’m Emma Boardwell, Founder of Emotional Finance
Drawing on my background in psychotherapy and financial services, I help firms pair technical expertise with the relational intelligence that deepens trust, strengthens client relationships, and drives meaningful results
“Having spent 20+ years in finance, I can say first hand that Emotional Finance has the power to revolutionise the industry. Emma can support a much needed change in the way we meet and work with each other and our clients as financial advisors and coaches.”
— Sara, Wealth Coach
I’m the founder of Emotional Finance, a pioneering consultancy that bridges the gap between technical expertise and the relational depth essential to success in financial services.
With a unique background blending psychotherapy training and financial qualifications (DipFA and Wise Monkey certified Financial Coach), I bring an incisive understanding of human behaviour to an industry that often underestimates the role of trust, connection, and emotional intelligence in driving commercial results.
Before founding Emotional Finance, I spent years as a psychotherapist, trainer, and facilitator - supporting individuals, couples, and groups, and honing my ability to spot and work with the subtle dynamics that shape relationships. This expertise now underpins my work with financial services firms seeking to strengthen client engagement, boost conversion and retention, and build cultures where trust can thrive.
My approach starts from a simple truth: in a profession dominated by numbers and technical analysis, it’s often the human skills - listening deeply, asking insightful questions, responding with empathy, collaborating effectively, and challenging constructively - that determine whether clients act on advice, stay loyal, and refer others enthusiastically.
Through Emotional Finance, I offers practical, experiential training, facilitation and bespoke consultancy tailored to the realities of advisers’ day-to-day work. From addressing discovery meetings that fail to convert, to tackling team dynamics that erode trust, I work gets to the heart of what makes relationships succeed.
My philosophy embraces “softness as strength,” seeing qualities like presence, open-mindedness, and compassion not as optional extras, but as essential capabilities for advisers and firms that want to deliver meaningful results.
Again and again, my experience tells me that when technical expertise is paired with genuine relational intelligence, the impact extends beyond client outcomes - transforming the experience of working in financial services itself.
How I got here
My journey into financial services began when I bought a book on personal finance for my teenage son. He never read it, because like many teenagers, he was luckily an expert in everything invented in the history of the world already. But I did. And it changed my life.
That book gave me a sense of clarity and empowerment I hadn’t expected. I wanted to understand more—so much more that I went on to independently study for, and gain, a DipFA in financial advice. At that point, I made the leap and decided to career shift.
I was naive. But still, I was surprised to find that the profession felt one-dimensional, transactional, product-led, and dominated by technical expertise. What I saw was missing was a deeper understanding of clients’ stories, and a more collaborative approach to finding recommendations that truly fit. The kind clients connect with, believe in, and act on—not just the most rational or optimised solution on the table.
So I founded Emotional Finance to pick up where technical training and expertise leaves off. To offer the kind of consultancy, training and support that builds trust, relational intelligence, and soft skills—not just for individuals, but for entire firms. Because that’s where the real value lies: in helping your people become more confident, more connected, and more effective in the moments that matter.
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