Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver. – Ayn Rand The most important conversation that you will have about money is the conversation that you have with yourself. As we set out for a journey, we can have the car, the route, the snacks and the playlist ready on our media centre – but the trip won’t happen if we don’t get in […]
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Don’t forget the rest
“A good rest is half the job.” – Yugoslavian Proverb There’s no time like the present to remember this sage advice as we enter the holiday season and wind down towards the end of the year. And what a year at that. With the overriding belief these days that busier is better, our current hectic lifestyles offer little respite. Most of us find ourselves caught up in the rat race – with constant deadlines to meet, […]
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Who’s advice are you taking, seriously?
Times of festivities and celebrations are often paradoxical in that we want to see friends and family, but we find that when we’re with the ones we don’t often see (only for big occasions and end-of-year-bashes), they have opinions that challenge our own and they’re all too willing to offer advice that we haven’t asked for. This is okay – we don’t have to take their advice too seriously, especially when it comes to managing our […]
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Every cloud…
“Misfortunes make happiness more sweet when it comes.” – Latin Proverb Taking a similar approach to the English proverb, this Latin proverb reminds us that misfortune doesn’t rob us of happiness, it only makes it that much sweeter. No one seeks out misfortune. We try to avoid it at all costs. Aspiring to live a happy, comfortable life with a secure job and stable finances. Sadly, the world isn’t fair and the reality is that no […]
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Investing: How elections matter
There are three things we should never discuss around the dinner table: money, politics and religion. Ironically, the three things we normally always talk about around the dinner table… are money, politics and religion! One reason for this is because they’re all connected, and they’re all HEAVILY influenced by you, me and everyone that we talk to, work with and interact with on a daily basis. The markets, politics and religion all give us a sense […]
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Planting happiness
“He who plants a garden plants happiness.” – German Proverb Conversely, as Benjamin Franklin said, “money has never made man happy, nor will it, there is nothing in its nature to produce happiness.” This is true – money is not the answer to ensuring a happy, fulfilling life. Scrooge McDuck is a wonderful children’s cartoon character who reminds us of this. Despite his amassed gold, it wasn’t the gold that brought him happiness. Money is merely […]
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The gift of compounding interest
Every holiday season, the search begins for gifts that keep on giving. From music to cooking classes and other hobby-related courses – scores of us try to find a gift that won’t be tossed onto the pile of unwanted, unused and under-appreciated thingy-me-bobs. We look for things that are ‘cool’ or ‘trendy’ – but ultimately, it’s precisely the same quality that makes a gift trendy that will give it the shelf-life that we’re trying to avoid. […]
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Being responsible means so much more
Festive celebrations will look a little different this year (and possibly every year going forward!). No matter where you find yourself this December, everyone has had a year of heightened awareness around health and personal space. It has not been easy to follow precautions of preventing the spread of Covid-19. Having to wear masks all day and sanitise at every entrance took time to get used to. These experiences have changed the way we look at […]
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Gifts for the cost-conscious
As our finances ebb and flow, we will sometimes face a festive season where we have to think out of the box for holiday gifts. Gifts are a wonderful way to let our loved ones know how much we appreciate and value them, but they can be expensive and out of reach if we don’t give them enough thought. Gifts don’t always have to be a physical, fit-in-a-box, wrappable item – they just have to be […]
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Sometimes we need to take our eye off the bush
“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” – English Proverb Working with what we have now is more important than what we might have in the future. Life is too short to be lived in conversations that are filled with ‘if only’, ‘should’ve’, ‘could’ve’ and ‘would have’. In financial or investing terms, as one of the most influential economists of the 20th century, Paul Samuelson said: “Investing should be more like watching […]
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