Over the past twenty years we have witnessed many changes in investment conditions, and the only thing we know for certain is that conditions in the future will continue to change. However, my three golden rules have not changed and are as follows:

1. Invest for the longer term

Set aside enough money in cash or easily realisable investments to cover your needs and any emergencies for the next few years. Then consider investing the rest of your money, aiming to build up the value of your wealth and achieve capital growth over the medium to long term.

2. Diversification

No-one knows what the future will bring so consider spreading your money between different types of investments and different managers. St. James's Place's carefully constructed, risk-rated portfolios enable you to spread your investments across a wide range of global asset types and choose fund managers with different investment styles to create a balanced and diversified investment solutions.

3. Do everything you can to ensure that your money is in the hands of top quality investment managers

That is the most difficult task: how do you know who is and who is not a good investment manager? The first rule is really a matter of common sense, but the second and third rules hold the key to why I am, and will continue to be, a member of the St. James's Place Partnership.

It is the St. James's Place Approach to Investment Management that, in my opinion, has been the source of the Group’s tremendous success.

It is the reason why I believe that St. James's Place is "...the natural home for the wealth of high net worth individuals." (Sir Mark Weinberg, Joint Founder and Life President of St. James's Place Group plc).

The value of an investment with St. James's Place will be directly linked to the performance of the funds you select and the value can therefore go down as well as up. You may get back less than you invested. An investment in equities does not provide the security of capital associated with a deposit account with a bank or building society.

Please remember that past performance is not indicative of future performance.