Where are you going? – have you made a plan yet?
Why Do Some ‘Make It’, While Others Don’t?
Why do some make it, and some don't? Successful people aren’t always the ‘smart ones’. They’re the people achieving great outcomes, often because their minds are in the right gear when the opportunity shows up. Success often comes about then, based on the way we think, talk, and make decisions. Recent conversations with clients has caused me to become quite interested in this idea that true riches are buried deeper
NZ Super Fund: Their Performance, And Their Take on Bitcoin
I met recently with Rishab Sethi from the NZ Super Fund. Rishab is the Chair of the Investment Committee and a Director in the External Investments and Partnerships team. I wanted to understand a little about their strategy, their performance, and their views on being the first sovereign wealth fund to adopt Bitcoin. To frame this one, let's start with a fundamental question: Why does investing work? The S&P 500,
Are Interest Rates a Red Herring?
Many believe central banks can destroy inflation by raising interest rates. Seems fair enough - after all, if you make something expensive to own, like an extra rental property, less people will buy them. However, this belief overlooks the complexity of competing economic forces like unemployment rates, growth in the economy, in government operations, demographics, and geo-political trends - the result is that tools like the official cash rate (The
Commercial Property In NZ – The Aussies Are Coming!
A prophet is seldom welcome in their hometown. Similarly, Kiwi's have to make it big, before they're acknowledged locally. When it comes to many types of investments, you spot a similar theme. It's not until you see things succeeding overseas, that Kiwi's sit up and take notice. Recently some research came up that showed NZ didn't even feature in terms of worldwide crypto adoption, for example. *source: Milk Road So
When You’re Stuck In The Middle…
Twice a year, we go away as a family – in the summer we'll head up north of Auckland and in the winter, we're often heading south to the bubbling mud and thermal wonderland that is Rotorua. With kids you’re sort of forced to align your holidays with school holidays – Holiday parks and hotels, they see you coming – so it’s a bit pricey as a result. We jam
Investing on Autopilot: Why Does Passive Investing Work?
Investing on autopilot works because of the way our money works. The constant creation of new currency through the act of bank lending and government shell games, creates more money than 'stuff' there is to buy. Over time this cause the price of things we own, and the cost of things we need, to rise. Investing works then, partly because of currency debasement. It's not a perfect model to understand
Was it ‘better’ 50 years ago?
I have kids, so I’ve watched "Guardians of the Galaxy" a hundred times. The soundtrack features the late 60s and early 70s family supergroup, The Five Stairsteps. Their song "O-o-h Child" would have been known to us growing up back then, distorted, of course, by the 1970s family sedan AM radios. It’s an effective tactic Hollywood uses: leap into the next generation by reviving all the hits our parents loved
The Doing and Making Strategy
How to become wealthy? First, learn how to make money, then learn how to keep a lid on your expenses, and then invest the rest, the best you can. Can it really be this simple? Yes Spend less than you earn This principle, originating from the book "The Richest Man in Babylon," is the first step and often the hardest. Income and expenses change over time, and it's easy to
Another ETF slipped past the goalie?
With the recent [first step] in an approval of the Ethereum Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), the crypto community is again abuzz with speculation (although it is rather subdued this time around). The big question on everyone's mind: will it be as successful as the Bitcoin ETF? Bitcoin, often seen as digital gold, is primarily meant for holding and storing digital value. The Bitcoin ETF's success stems from this principle, making
To The Everyday Investor: My Purpose-Based Investment
Being a Purpose-Based Investor: A Strategy for Modern Times Often, what's on my mind or heart connects to my purpose of building wealth. Today, I want to discuss why you should consider a purpose-based investment strategy rather than just a goals-based one. Given the world's current changes, this approach offers both risks and opportunities. Getting on the right side of what's happening depends on your strategy—whether it's goals-based or purpose-based.
The 11-th Hour Leap
It's not uncommon for me to have conversations with people, typically in their mid to late 40s, facing a rude awakening. While they were busy focusing on that next bonus to clear the credit card or pay for their mid-winter family Fiji escape, they spot something they never noticed before. It's about this time when they can see a faint silhouette of their future 'retirement', or that date when they
The Seasonal Investment Paradigm
Warning: Most of this post contains an investment strategy with a high probability of failure. Considering the spectrum between 'safe' and 'volatile' in terms of expected outcomes, this one's off the charts. It's not investment advice, or even a good idea. Investments, whether in property, shares, or crypto, follow cycles, and occasionally, someone claims to have 'figured it out'. Some people think Raoul Pal is just 'Taylor Swift for Crypto
The Compassionate, Comfortable, or Confidence Approach to Retirement
Which 'C-Word' describes your approach to retirement? Compassion, Comfort, or Confidence? If you have kids, and parents still alive, you're aware of the need to make good choices your money earlier rather than later. Retirement is a finite period of time to make sure your life is as awesome as it can be. With the pressures of raising a family and maintaining income security, it's hard to break through and
Don’t Make These Mistakes With Retirement Investing
When it comes to retirement, or 'transitionment' if you prefer, KiwiSaver can be a core ingredient, but many of us treat it as the bit on the side. It's important to consider the most common pitfalls that can undermine your efforts and leave you short at your retirement . In a new world now more expensive than what you originally though, you need to get this one right. Don't make
The Money’s Broken, So What?!
18th century French economist, Richard Cantillon observed that those closest to the money printer, benefited the most financially. Governments, banks, businesses, and asset owners like you and me, can take advantage of the Cantillon Effect too. How? We invest. Investing works, because the money’s broken. It doesn't sound 'right', and how can money be broken anyway? When we put governments and central banks in charge of the money, we give
Can you trust the KiwiSaver scheme?
Can you trust KiwiSaver? Are your investments 'safe'? Should I be cautious using a smaller KiwiSaver provider? Before you can reap the benefits of investing, there are essential steps to take before you can fully embrace its potential. Let’s explore these steps: 1- Earning Money: Work is the foundation. Whether you’re passionate about your job or find yourself stuck in a less-than-ideal situation, hard work is necessary. Even if you
New Wealth On New Rails: Final Call!
Imagine the young child saying goodbye to their parent at the start of the day. From a childish perspective, it doesn't matter where mummy and daddy go - as long as they come back. Have you ever wondered about the incredible journey our dollars go on after we decide to make an investment? Perhaps it doesn't matter what the journey is, so long as they come back, and ideally with
Should YOU Pay Off The Mortgage, Or Invest?
When should you pay off the mortgage, and when should you invest? Over the last few years, this question rolls around frequently on social media. One view suggests that mortgages should be eliminated ASAP. The benefits include not worrying about interest rates, and the ability to invest larger amounts of money into assets other than your main home sooner. Investing over mortgage reduction however, assumes currency used
It’s May, But You Didn’t Sell: Can You Go Away?
Cycles, superstition, and strategy. Money and life often play tricks on each other. Sometimes, some things, can happen around the same times as other things. Occasionally, superstition seems legitimate. For example, can the weather affect the share market? And do English superstitions, work the same down under? Like, what about this one? 'Sell in May, go away... ...then come back on St. Legers Day.' This comes from around the 1770's,
Are There Too Many Mortgage Rules?
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) has seemingly been on a quest to 'bring down' the property market over recent years, in conjunction with our previous government. The Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA), higher taxes for property investors, increased interest rates, and stricter deposit requirements via Loan-to-Value Ratio (LVR) restrictions have all played a role in cooling the property market from 2021 onwards. Already, the central bank