Mike Hesketh: Perspective, Pressure and What Financial Independence Really Means

In this episode of A Taste of Financial Planning, we're joined by Mike Hesketh.

Mike's career has taken an unusual path, from training as a dentist and serving in the Royal Navy alongside the Royal Marines, through to building and selling a successful dental practice, and now working with practice owners through Hesketh Healthcare.

But this conversation goes far beyond career milestones.

We explore how early experiences shape our attitudes towards money, how different types of pressure influence decision-making, and what financial independence really means when it stops being theoretical and becomes real.

Mike reflects on his time in the military, including deployment to Afghanistan, and how those experiences changed his perspective on risk, responsibility and leadership. That perspective carries through into his approach to business, growth, and ultimately the decisions we all face when success arrives.

We also discuss:

• the reality of building and scaling a business
• why standards, not shortcuts, drive long-term growth
• the emotional and practical challenges of selling a business
• and what happens when you reach a financial milestone and need to decide what comes next

At the Table
Fish broth with a light Japanese influence
Raviolo with salmon mousse and a soft egg yolk
Rib of Aberdeen beef with new potatoes and asparagus

A conversation that moves from North Wales to the Royal Navy, from Afghanistan to business ownership, and into the realities of money, pressure and what comes next.

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Host: Dennis Hall

Host: Sarah Steele

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