Investing is personal
How would you invest if you were 60 and had an investment portfolio of $5 million? And let’s say you enjoyed a lifestyle that costed, say, $100,000 per year, and didn’t have any desire...
Category: Planning
How much buffer do you need? (Or: four things I agonise over when providing financial advice)
I have clients worth tens of thousands of dollars, and clients worth tens of millions of dollars. I find it much easier to advise clients with millions rather than thousands. First up, I’ll admit...
Questions I ask clients (and why I’m not afraid of roboadvice)
“I’m not racist, or a Luddite, but…” If you want people to listen to what you have to say, a good gambit is to say “I’m not racist, but…”. The room will go quiet....
Stop complicating your financial affairs!
There are a number of terrific, Kiwi-based, personal finance forums online. For some breadcrumbs, look for Facebook groups inspired by Mr Money Mustache or The Barefoot Investor; check out the Personal Finance NZ subreddit; or Sorted’s...
A financial plan should be based on YOUR circumstances, needs, and objectives
When it comes to money, I’m a “set and forget” kind of guy. If you have a good investment strategy in place, you should be able to forget about it and focus on other...
Do health insurers provide consumers with enough information to make rational insurance decisions?
Health insurers don’t provide advisers, let alone consumers, enough information to make rational health insurance decisions. This is my opinion. Let me explain. Last month I attended a professional development event which included presentations...
How money misconceptions can put your life into hard mode
My son is starting to get into video games. In many games, you have the option between playing on “easy mode” or “hard mode”. Sometimes I think we unnecessarily put our lives on “hard mode”,...
How to flawcast your financial future
One of the most valuable exercises I run through with clients is “flawcasting” their financial future. It’s one thing to create a personal balance sheet setting out your existing assets and liabilities, and getting an...
It’s better to suffer pregret than regret
“Maybe all one can do is hope to end up with the right regrets”, wrote Arthur Miller, famed playwright (and husband of Marilyn Munroe for 16 years). There’s a lot of wisdom in that...
