Financial Planner Please!

Hey Scott,

Can the National Debt Helpline assist people who have no debt but need to work out what to do with their dwindling resources in retirement? I’m an accountant who knows a lot of people that really need some help understanding and figuring out their finances (legally I can’t give advice). If they can’t help, is there someone who can?

Thanks, Garry

G’day Garry,

Yes, there is.

Tell your clients to call Centrelink on 132 300 and arrange a face-to-face meeting with one of their Financial Information Service Officers (FISOs). They can help people sort out their Centrelink entitlements and will give unbiased general retirement planning advice that lays out their options, without the hard sell. It’s a free service, and I wish more pensioners knew about it.

Scott.

Barefoot, How Do I Get a Book Deal?

Scott,

I have written a book that aims to help people through the process of getting fired, because I think there is a lack of material out there on this topic and I have unique knowledge on it. I’ve been fired myself, and I’ve fired countless others in my career … so I have experience on both sides.

My book helps people deal with the shame of getting fired, but it also covers practical steps of what to do in the immediate aftermath to secure short-term and long-term income, including how to get your next job and what to say about what has happened. I also cover steps to avoid being fired in the first place if you suspect you might be, or if you’re on a PIP (performance improvement plan).

I’ve reached out to literary agents and publishers I found on the internet, but I suspect I’m not getting anywhere because I’m a nobody. But I passionately believe that the message in my book will help others. A smidgen of help or advice, or an introduction to an agent, would be awesome.

Lisa

Hi Lisa,

What a great pitch!

Here’s my advice: don’t start with a book.

A literary agent won’t help you, because publishers don’t want you … yet.

Instead, start a podcast. Then be a guest on other podcasts. Help people and turn them into case studies, and post their stories on your blog. In other words, own the ‘getting fired’ space.

When you do, you’ll have publishers beating down your door.

That’s when you should email me back, and I’ll introduce you to my agent. She’ll cut you a book deal that will play all the publishers off against each other.

Scott.

We’re Hitting The Open Road

Scott,

We want to leave our comfortable life and travel for the next four years. My hubby wants to sell the house and invest that money into an index fund. He says it will be safer than leaving our property with tenants and will be one less worry and cost while we are gone. Also, it’s likely we won’t end up coming back to this part of the country anyways. I am terrified we won’t be able to get back on the property ladder when we settle down again. Is an index fund good enough to keep our money growing for four years, compared to our home?

Laney

Hi Laney,

You should book in and see a financial advisor and ask them your question.

Their answer should be: “I have absolutely no idea where stocks will be trading in four years’ time.”

Laney, the question you’re asking depends on factors outside of your control. Instead, a good financial advisor should look at things you can control – like your goals, and your fears.

And if you’re “terrified” that you won’t be able to get back on the property ladder then you might at least consider renting out your home while you’re away.

Reason being, the Tax Office allows you to rent out your home for up to six years without subjecting it to capital gains tax (CGT), meaning you could get the income while you’re away travelling and sell it tax free when you return.

Scott.

I Tried CommBank’s New App

A mate of mine is a fireman … so his kids get to ride in his fire engine and even get to blast the siren.

I’m a finance guy, so my kids get to … beta-test the new Commonwealth Bank app for kids.

“Nee-Naw-Nee-Naw, our dad has the most boring job on the planet!”

(Yes, kids, but it pays the bills!)

Seriously, though, last week I received an invitation to venture deep into enemy territory — CommBank HQ! I think it’s fair to say that we haven’t seen eye to eye in the past (and I may have had a bit to do with culling their 90-year-old school banking program, the Dollarmites). Yet they still invited me for a sneak peek of their new pocketmoney app.

They’re calling it KIT, which stands for Keep In Touch (with your money). KIT is basically CommBank’s answer to the NAB-backed Spriggy. Yet there’s one really important difference: whereas Spriggy is designed for parents, KIT is designed for kids. (In fact, there is no ‘parent wallet’, other than a secret code for parents to pay their kids’ money.) I think this is actually really smart.

Do I think apps like this are going to change the pocketmoney game?

Maybe.

Then again, we still mainly use jam jars with our kids. After all, kids are visual … and I don’t have to remember any passwords or pay expensive annual fees for kid apps.

Still, I’ve committed to having the kids be part of the beta test and give their thoughts. I think they’ll enjoy it … if only because they rarely get to play on a screen. (I reckon I could load up a CommBank Annual Report on an iPad and they’d sit there swiping at it for hours.)

Stay tuned.

Tread Your Own Path!

You Prick, Barefoot

Hi Scott,

So for the last 10 years all I have heard is ‘Barefoot this, Barefoot that’. (Not that I have minded, as we have just hit net zero debt thanks to Barefoot — having no debt is amazing!) But while cooking the barbecue the other night my wife and I had an argument on whether to prick the sausages or not. So I said, that’s it — I’m asking Barefoot!

Clinton

Hi Clinton

I’ll refer you on to The Wiggles, who sing:

“Ten fat sausages sizzling in the pan … one went pop, and the other went BANG.”

It pays to prick.

Scott.

After Midnight We’re Going to Let it All Hang Out

Scott,

I have owned a small coffee shop for eight years, but since Covid started I just haven’t been able to catch up. I’ve been taking on credit cards to keep suppliers off my back, and also for wages. Now I’m desperate and so embarrassed and ashamed of my situation. Can you PLEASE answer my question as I can’t speak to anyone on the phone, as I don’t want my partner or my employees to hear what’s going on?

Helen

Hi Helen

So I went looking in my inbox to see if you’d given me more info, and I saw that you sent your email at 1:08am. I get a lot of questions coming through after midnight when people can’t sleep. I’d like to help you get some sleep again, so here’s what I want you to do.

The Small Business Debt Helpline (sbdh.org.au) has a web chat feature on its homepage where you can chat discreetly with a qualified financial counsellor – someone like me. They are experts in helping small business people in exactly your situation. They are government-funded and free from any conflicts (and they do amazing, life-changing work).

I often say that financial counselling is the best-kept secret of the finance industry. Well, both the Small Business Debt Helpline and the National Debt Helpline (ndh.org.au) have this chat feature. It’s a great first step to help you get the support you need.

Scott.

Your biggest financial worry right now

My long-suffering editor, Wally, loves to joke that you can tell the financial pulse of the nation from a glimpse at my inbox. After all … thousands of people of all ages, from all across the country, write to me about what’s stressing them out.

So, after doing this for almost two decades, I can tell you exactly what worries Australians the most:

Whatever the media is banging on about at that moment.

It’s true. Right now the ‘threat’ of rising interest rates is at fever pitch. It’s been spurred on by some experts predicting that interest rates will hit 3.5% by next year. To put that in context … that would be thirteen additional hikes in almost as many months.

Personally, I find that hard to believe.

However, the surging inflation that is happening around the world will require much higher interest rates going forward … yet I have no idea how high they will go, or when.

My main point is that higher interest rates were entirely predictable — heck, I’ve been talking about them for years! In January 1990 the cash rate was 17.5%, and they limboed it all the way down to 0.1%.

Where did we think they’d go next?!

Now I am not saying that interest rates will get back to 17.5%.

Yet the one takeout from the last few years is that the world is a risky and unpredictable place. Weird stuff happens when you least expect it. Bad stuff happens if you haven’t prepared for it.

So what can you do?

Well, if you’ve been following the Barefoot Steps, the answer is: you’re already doing it! You’re aggressively paying down debt, building up a cash buffer, and investing long term into shares via your low-cost, tax-effective super fund.
In other words, focus on what you can control. More Date Nights, less TV news.

Tread Your Own Path!

Help! The Tax Man is Beating Up My Kid

Hi Scott,

I have a very hardworking 13-year-old who has amassed quite a bit of money: she has saved up $200,000! She would like to purchase a property but as a minor she will have to pay 66% on any income earned from the property. (Clearly she’ll still live at home until she’s old enough!) The goal is to own it outright in a few years and invest in more property, but I’m way out of my depth here. What is the best way for a minor like her to make their money work for them until they turn 18 — in their own name, not mine?

Helen

Hi Helen

Two hundred grand? That’s amazing! You must be very proud (and a fine role model).

You’re right about the penalty rate on kids under the age of 18 – however, this only applies to unearned income, like a bank account, rent or dividends from shares. It does not apply to income from the sweat of their own brow.

I wouldn’t limit your research just to property. It would be a good idea for her to learn about investing in the share market as well. To kick off her portfolio, all you’d need to do is set up an account as trustee for your daughter and purchase a hands-off portfolio of local and international shares. You’ll need to pay tax on the dividends – though franking credits mean it’s not much of an issue. To minimise this, open the account in the lower-earning spouse’s name. Then the shares can be transferred to her when she turns 18.

Finally, I’d give her my book (or audiobook) so she can learn all about investing and how to manage her money, as she seems to have the earning part all worked out!

Scott.

My Son-in-law … Is an Abuser

Hi Scott,

Our daughter has just left an emotionally, verbally and financially abusive relationship. Her husband is busy cashing in their assets and spending or hiding their money. She and the kids were left only in the clothes they were wearing, as he refuses to let her into the house to collect anything. He even took the Christmas gifts the kids had received from family and friends. We have offered her accommodation, but it means leaving the rural area she lives in and she does not want to take the kids away from their dad by moving away. We don’t know what else we can do to support her. We’re worried sick. Any suggestions you could offer would be gratefully received.

Cheryl

Hi Cheryl

I’m so sorry your daughter is in this situation. It must be heartbreaking to watch her and your grandkids go through this.

Let’s call it out:

Your son-in-law is an abuser.

There’s a name for this abuse: it’s called ‘coercive control’, and it’s a crime in other parts of the world (though not yet in Australia).

What would I suggest?

Well, as a first step I’d get your daughter to read the book See What You Made Me Do: Power, Control and Domestic Abuse by Jess Hill. If she’s not much of a reader, it was made into a television show that she can stream on SBS.

It’s a confronting read.

All too often, abused women downplay what’s happening to them. Hopefully your daughter will see her own situation in the book, and it will convince her that she doesn’t need to take his crap. Then she can get the support she needs by calling 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732). They can help with counselling, accommodation and accessing financial support.

Your daughter is in a better situation than most: she has loving parents who care about her.

Good luck.

Scott.

The Hyperfund

Scott,

Some colleagues at my work are retiring quickly in their thirties and forties after investing money into Hyperverse. They are trying to sign everyone up to it and they are earning anywhere from $150 to $1,500 a day just in the Hyperverse that was originally called the HyperFund. Any help would be muchly appreciated.

Belinda

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Hi Belinda,

It’s all pretty exciting.

While you’re eating the cake from your co-worker Darren’s retirement send-off, here’s what I’d like you to do:

First, head back to your cubicle.

Then, google “Hyperverse + Hyperfund + Scam”.

Click on the first reputable link, from the Australian Financial Review, entitled: “Collapse of crypto platform a cautionary tale”.

Scan the first paragraph: “Around 200 investors are understood to have lost as much as $10 million in this little corner of the investment world’s Wild West.”

Hmmm, the article talks about the previous business of the Hyperfund founders.

Have another click, this time to an article in the West Australian which talks about their new venture: “The promoters of Hyperfund have created a multi-level marketing scheme that promises big returns … the pitch to investors includes incentives to sign up more people so they can prepare their network for a $300 billion stock market float.”

Holy crypto, Belinda!

On those numbers the Hyperfund could be worth more than BHP and Telstra combined!

My view?

Avoid the hype. If you’re going to get into multi-level marketing, why not just try flogging Amway? That way at least your friends will have bought some laxatives off you, which could help them when the bottom falls out of this investment.

Scott.

Mojo, Baby

Hi Scott

Last Friday night I was driving home with a niggling feeling in my stomach about how I was going to pay our kids’ latest medical bills. You see, they have both been diagnosed with extremely rare cancers and their outpatient scans are not covered by a Medicare subsidy – we pay full price. Then, like a bolt out of the blue, it hit me – we have Mojo!

Many years ago, when I first read your book, I set up an ING Mojo account – and then clean forgot about it! I’ve even been adding $50 a fortnight to it without noticing. Life was easy back then. Fast forward several years and both of our teenagers received dastardly diagnoses, and our business has been slammed first by Covid and now the floods. So my message to readers is that life can turn on a dime. Set yourself up in the good times because the challenges will inevitably arrive. Thanks for your down-to-earth, sensible advice.

Lisa

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Hi Lisa,

That is every parent’s worst nightmare.

Every so often I have a financial expert suggest that it doesn’t make sense to save money with interest rates being so low. Technically, they’re correct. However, I’ve always viewed savings as a psychological backstop, a safety blanket for times when life comes at you way too fast.

I’m so sorry for your situation, and I hope your kids are okay. Remember, if you need help from a caring financial counsellor you can call the Small Business Debt Helpline on 1800 413 828 or sbdh.org.au.

Scott.

What’s Wrong with My Index Fund?

Hi Barefoot,

I followed all the advice in your book – cleared everything, saved up, paid off my mortgage and invested a lump in a low-cost index fund. And since August 2021 it has gone backwards and I’ve lost $4,000. They are down 2.96%. Is it just my fund or are they all doing badly?

Gutted of Oakleigh

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Hello Gutted of Oakleigh,

Buying an index fund isn’t as simple as grabbing a box of Rice Bubbles.

Let’s think about what’s happened in the last six months since you made your investment:

We’ve had runaway inflation in the US, and in most parts of the world.

We’ve had the threat of rising interest rates in a world awash with debt.

We’ve had the Chinese property market imploding.

We’re still dealing with the pandemic (China is still locking down millions of people).

We’ve had commodity prices surging, and food prices at record highs.

We’ve had ‘once-in-a-century’ floods in NSW and Queensland.

Oh, and then we had the war in Ukraine.

All things considered, I think you’re doing pretty well! I’d suggest you learn to take a longer-term view.

It’s not all snap, crackle and pop, my friend!

Scott.

The luckiest guy around

Today I want to talk to you about a hero of mine.

His name is Steve Edmunson and he’s a famous American fund manager.

He manages the $82 billion Nevada Public Employees Retirement System Fund, which has been in the top 10% of large US super funds over one, three, five, seven and 10 years.

Steve has a unique investing strategy that has allowed him to single-handedly outperform most of the biggest fund managers in the world, who employ an army of analysts.

And today I’m going to share with you his secret.

That’s because last week, on a whim, I googled his funds’ generic help email address and lamely asked if there was a chance I could interview him.

A few hours later I received the following reply:

“Hi Scott,

My calendar is pretty open this week and next. Let me know if you have some times that work

Steve”

No gatekeepers. No personal assistants. Just a dude managing $82 billion with an open calendar.

So I sat down to interview him. My first question was, “What’s your edge?”

“Well, I don’t do a lot”, he deadpans.

He’s not joking.

There are days, months and even years where Steve basically sits on his hands and does nothing.

No frantic buying or selling. Just sitting and holding.

“I think in the world of investing the spotlight goes to the latest hot new strategy, but there isn’t much emphasis on what you don’t do. And if you’ve got a long-term horizon, like we do, the best thing to do … is usually nothing.”

Yet Steve’s real edge comes in the way he thinks about fees:

Every dollar the fund spends is a dollar that can’t go into his retirees’ pockets.

So, when Steve joined the fund 17 years ago, he sacked all the highly paid stock-picking hedge fund managers and replaced them with ultra-low-cost index funds. He has 88% of his portfolio invested in index funds and 12% invested in private equity investments.

“I worked out we couldn’t control the investment returns … but we could control our costs … so we keep ours extremely low. And being a lot cheaper than other funds gives us a big head-start.”

This is important: finance is the only industry in the world where the less you pay, the more you get — and the less you do, the better your returns. (I know it sounds like a Dr Seuss riddle, but Steve’s track record proves it’s true.)

Yet here in Oz that message hasn’t cut through. Australians pay more than $30 billion a year in super fund fees, which, according to CPA Australia, are among the highest in the world.

In contrast, for the past 17 years Steve has worked diligently by himself in a small suburban office, bringing leftovers to work and eating at his desk. He drives a second-hand 2006 Honda and, by his own admission, he and his wife live in a tiny home.

“Enough!” I said. “When you manage $82 billion and you shoot the lights out you’re supposed to be a big swinging d …ude! Has it ever bothered you that you’re stuck with the responsibility for managing billions of dollars, for thousands of people … yet you earn less than a fresh-faced kid straight out of college working at a pension fund?”

“Not at all”, he shot back. “Yes, it’s an enormous responsibility, but it’s that part of the job that makes it so fulfilling. I get to work at a job that helps firefighters, and teachers, and police men and women … good working-class people.

“I’d say I’m the luckiest guy around.”

Tread Your Own Path!

You’re Talking Out of Your Backside, Barefoot

Hi Scott,

I enjoy your columns, but I was a little concerned about last week and the ‘cold stethoscope to your nether regions’. A stethoscope is a listening device, and for the life of me I can’t think of a reason to listen to one’s crotch. Bowel sounds, yes, but that’s as far south as it should go. I think your doctor might be taking advantage of you.

Ryan

Hi Ryan,

I think you may be on to something (I’m not even going to tell you how he checks my prostate). Anyway, by all accounts last week’s column on getting a better deal on health insurance managed to temporarily crash the government website privatehealth.gov.au. I feel better now!

Scott.

Budget Warning

Hi Scott,

I’ve just watched the Budget, and I reckon people need to be warned about these 5% deposit government schemes. I am old enough to remember the 1960s and early 70s when I was working in conveyancing. The state government had ‘vendor’s contract’ setps where people purchased homes under a contract of sale, with the title not transferred into their names until it was paid off. These were an absolute disaster as most people could never have paid off the contract, with interest rates too high and repayments too low. Many of them had to walk away as they owed more than the original purchase price of the property. Beware of governments bearing gifts!

Nancy

Hi Nancy,

You’re right, it’s potentially a taxpayer-funded trap for 50,000 families.

Let me explain:

In the Budget, the Government increased the Home Guarantee Scheme to 50,000 places.

The scheme allows first home buyers on low incomes to buy a home with just a 5% deposit. And for single parents it’s even less … all they need to scrounge up is a piddly 2% deposit.

Yet hang on a minute … isn’t this entire Budget about the rising cost of living?

So why is the Government encouraging low-income earners to load up on debt at a time when interest rates are rising?

Answer: for the very same reason that Labor has made this dud policy part of its election pitch:

They want your vote.

Strike me handsome! Giving people extra money to buy a home just filters through the market and makes all houses more expensive. When interest rates rise and house prices fall, many of these people will be underwater. And it’s you and me – taxpayers – who’ll be on the hook for the losses.

Luckily, I don’t need your vote, so I’ll tell it to you straight: avoid this scheme.

Scott.

30-year-old Girl has No Interest

Hi Scott,

I’m a 30-year-old married Muslim woman living in Sydney. Being Muslim makes it very challenging to buy a first home. I am sure you are aware that Muslims are prohibited from dealing with interest. I am ready to take all the Barefoot Steps but I don’t know how I can do so without dealing with interest. My family came to Australia in 1991 – and 31 years on they are still renting because they haven’t been able to save $1 million in cash. Many Australian Muslims are in the same boat. I want to be able to own a home and provide safety for my children and not be in the same situation that my parents are in 30 years from now. What can I do?

Rina

Hi Rina,

What an interesting question!

There are a number of institutions that do Islamic finance.

NAB, for instance, has a product that they claim meets Islamic law requirements by structuring the loan as a lease and charging ‘rent’ instead of interest. (It’s a bit like my kids telling me they’re eating fruit … while digging into a bowl of Froot Loops).

Anyway, I asked my favourite Muslim, Nazeem Hussain, about Islamic finance, and he gave me the following fatwa:

“I think it’s like halal meat. The animal is the same but it’s how it’s slaughtered that matters.”

Touché!

When you’re dealing with any banker, the trick is making sure you’re not the one getting skinned.

I reviewed some rates of Sharia-compliant home loans and they tended to be quite a bit more expensive than the cheapest standard variable loans. However, I still think it might be a good deal for you. Reason being, Rina, it’s almost impossible for a working-class couple to save up cash and buy a house in Sydney. It’s like chasing a moving train.

Toot! Toot!

Scott.

Dirty Money

On Sunday nights my wife and I have a ritual.

We turn on the telly and begin searching for something we both want to watch.

Problem.

My wife refuses to watch anything that’s violent, or sad, or scary … or too ‘finance-y’.

I refuse to watch romantic comedies.

So, even though there are a thousand shows to watch, I inevitably end up reading a book while my wife scrolls Instagram.

Yet in a fantasy world, far far away, where I rule the remote, here’s what I’d click on:

Money For Nothing: Inside the Federal Reserve (YouTube)

This is the story of some of the most powerful people in the world.

If ordinary Americans understood the mistakes the US Federal Reserve has made, they’d be outraged: by keeping interest rates at zero, and printing money, they’ve driven record wealth inequality in the US … and around the world.

This documentary is now 10 years old … but it hasn’t dated one bit. It paints a picture of a Federal Reserve that is arrogant, out of touch, and enslaved to Wall Street interests. And, a decade on, things are even worse. Rates are still at basically zero, and when Covid hit the Fed printed 300 years’ worth of money in just a few months. You’re going to hear a lot about the Federal Reserve in the next few years. This doco is a good primer.

Dirty Money: Payday (Netflix)

Okay, so there’s a theme here: most good finance shows involve greed and stupidity (or both) … like a thinking person’s MAFS.

I love the Dirty Money series on Netflix, and my favourite episode is ‘Payday’, which tells the story of Scott Tucker, an amateur race car driver turned loan shark. He was a financial predator who created payday loans that charged huge interest rates and big fees (with deliberately confusing terms that skirted legislation), trapping millions of Americans. And if you think this isn’t happening in Australia, you’re wrong.

Principles for Dealing with the New World Order (YouTube)

This is an animated presentation by Ray Dalio, who runs the biggest hedge fund in the world. His basic theme is that we are on the cusp of a ‘changing of the new world order’, with the decline of the US as a superpower and the rise of China to top spot. Personally, I’m not sure the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) can continue its reign over the long term. Still, Dalio is a smart guy who has gone back over 500 years of history to study the big economic cycles … and he explains it pretty succinctly in 20 minutes or so.

In truth, Liz is never going to watch any of these.

However, there are a couple of saucy finance series coming out that I might just be able to tempt her with: On Disney+ there’s The Dropout, which details Elizabeth Holmes’s fraud at Theranos. And on Apple TV there’s WeCrashed, which looks at how the co-working space dropped $US40 billion in less than a year.

And if all that fails, the third season of Apple TV’s Ted Lasso is soon to arrive to save our Sundays.

Tread Your Own Path!

I Loaned My Friend $500,000 … He Hasn’t Paid It Back

Hi Scott,

About four years ago I trusted a long-time friend enough to lend them over $500,000 to renovate and sell his house. After renovating, he and his partner had a contract signed to sell the house, but it fell through. They couldn’t afford to relist the house, and ended up signing over the house to his brother in return for having a bridging loan paid off. Since then I have had a negligible amount of the money paid back to me. At the time I loaned this money I was in a bad way emotionally and not thinking clearly, so the only evidence I have is my bank statements. I’m still in regular contact with this ‘friend’, and he says he’s intending to pay me back soon, but I’m not seeing any hard evidence. My psychologist suggested I write to you to see what you recommend – so do I try to get my money back?

Michael

Hi Michael,

What a horrible situation to be in!

You must feel a bit taken advantage of … and perhaps a bit powerless.

If I were in your shoes, I’d stop talking to your friend and start talking to a lawyer.

Your lawyer will want evidence of the money transfers (you sending money to him, and the small repayments you’ve received), together with any email or text conversations you’ve had regarding the loan. They may also want a supporting letter from your psychologist.

Then they’ll send them what’s known as a letter of demand, which is exactly what it sounds like: “Pay back the money by a certain date or we will commence legal proceedings.” Ideally, you’d hope to be able to settle this via mediation before going down the costly court route.

Either way, until the money is repaid in full, I’d strongly suggest you do not speak to this person.

Scott.

My Aussie Boyfriend Should Pay For Everything

Dear Moneybags,

I have a boyfriend of a few months who is Australian (I’m Indian) and in my culture it is customary for the man to pay for dinner, or at least ‘do the dance’ and insist that he pays. I am financially stable and can afford dinner but I would at least like the offer. It’s not like he doesn’t pay sometimes, it’s just that when I reach for my phone he doesn’t protest. What should I do to explain that doing the dance is polite where I come from?

Shiraz

Hi Shiraz,

Come on.

It’s just you and me.

You don’t need to play the games with old Barefoot.

It’s not really about the money, is it Shiraz?

It’s that you believe that a man proves that he cares about you by spending his money on you and treating you like a princess.

I’m not saying that’s wrong. It’s just what you believe.

Yet what is wrong is that you’re telling me about it … and not the poor bloke!

He’s wandering around the parking lot looking for a co-share Uber thinking he’s giving you respect and equality … but you’re waiting for the horse-drawn carriage!

When my wife and I began dating, we did this merry-go-round … but in reverse.

I thought I was being chivalrous by wanting to pay for everything.

Yet, as an independent woman, she thought I was a backward country boy (and still does, actually).

We sorted it out, though. We had to. After all, no relationship can thrive if you’re on the wrong bus.

What did we do?

We set up a monthly Barefoot Date Night.

So, Shiraz, if you are serious about this bloke, you need to tell him that’s how you expect love and validation to be shown. Don’t blame it on your culture – and don’t feel shame. Just tell him.

Good luck.

Scott.

Revenge of the Maths Nerd

Hi Barefoot,

Following the steps of the Barefoot Investor, I have turned a crippling financial anxiety into a point of personal strength. I was a pure mathematics undergraduate who could integrate the most obscure of orthogonal projections, but I seemingly couldn’t change the trajectory of a $12,000 credit card debt. You made me realise that CommBank’s ‘present’ of a credit card on my 18th birthday was the worst thing I could have received. It’s now blended! In all seriousness, thank you.

Simon

Hi Simon,

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Often when I’m talking to educators about getting money taught in schools, I get cornered by the ‘Maths Mafia’ who assure me that financial literacy is their bag.

And when they do, my heart sinks a little.

That’s because I firmly believe that managing your money successfully is more about literacy than it is about numeracy. Money is a language, and if you don’t know how to speak it you won’t understand it … and you’ll be manipulated by fast-talking behavioural marketers who do.

Your story proves it.

Scott.