All in Financial Independence

124. Learning, Letting Go and Rethinking the Road to FIRE

124. Learning, Letting Go and Rethinking the Road to FIRE

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Financial Independence, Investing, KiwiSaver, Rental Property, Simplicity, InvestNow

MONEY JOURNEY

I had a great chat with Rose and Adam, a warm and friendly duo who came to our conversation well prepared. After moving from Israel to Ōtautahi Christchurch, they built a life through careful spending and a mix of KiwiSaver, shares and property. But after eight years of owning rental properties, they have accepted that the strategy has not worked for them. Now, guided by mindfulness and Zen philosophy, they are letting go of those investments and redirecting their money towards a clearer path to FIRE.

123. Feeling Financially Safe Again

123. Feeling Financially Safe Again

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Financial Independence, Investing

MONEY JOURNEY

Today’s guest is Olivia, a 59-year-old single woman who is on track to pay off a 30-year mortgage in just 10 years, entirely on one income. It is a story about rebuilding financial safety after divorce, relationship breakdowns, solo parenting, financial mistakes, grief, and years of carrying the full load alone. This episode is honest, practical, and relatable for anyone who feels “behind” financially.

122. Renting, Investing and Building Financial Freedom

122. Renting, Investing and Building Financial Freedom

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Financial Independence, Investing

MONEY JOURNEY

Anna has developed strong money habits through years of study, careful saving, and living well below her means. After following the traditional advice to buy a home, Anna and her partner, Thom, began to question whether home ownership really suited the life they wanted. Once they ran the numbers, they made the bold decision to sell their house, rent a home that better fits their lifestyle, and redirect their surplus income into sharemarket investments instead. She and Thom are still early in their journey towards financial independence, but they are already experiencing what it can look like in practice.

121. The Missing Will

121. The Missing Will

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Financial Independence, InvestNow, Smart, KiwiSaver, Investing

MONEY JOURNEY

Petra shares the deeply personal story of losing James suddenly at just 53 and being forced to untangle a complicated financial life while grieving. From a missing will to life insurance, superannuation and learning how to invest, her story is about love, loss, resilience, and creating security, confidence and choices when life changes.

120. Rebuilding After Divorce

120. Rebuilding After Divorce

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Financial Independence, KiwiSaver

MONEY JOURNEY

This episode shares the story of Emma, a solo mum who, from the outside, appears to have it all together: a home of her own, strong finances, and a clear plan for the future. But behind that picture is years of hardship, resilience, and determination to rebuild her life after leaving an unhealthy marriage. Through grit, determination, and a series of deliberate, intentional steps, she has rebuilt her confidence and created a safer, more stable life for herself and her children.

119. Revisit with Rachel and David: Out of Property, Into Funds

119. Revisit with Rachel and David: Out of Property, Into Funds

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education, Financial Independence, KiwiSaver, Rental Property, Shares, Simplicity

MONEY JOURNEY

Back in November 2017, in Episode 04, I sat down with Rachel and David. They had reached financial independence long before the term was widely used, doing it through property. Eight years later, their story has taken a very different turn. They’ve moved away from property and into the share market. We talk about why they made the change, how they approached it, and what it looks like to shift from one asset class to another without losing sight of the bigger picture. Rachel and David are a great reminder that money is not just something to protect and preserve, but something that can be used to create freedom, joy, generosity, and a life well lived.

Part 6: INVESTING

Part 6: INVESTING

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

Investing can be incredibly complex, but I found a way to simplify it. I used to feel overwhelmed by the options available, but now I don't. I’m hoping to help you feel the same way. The Happy Saver was born out of my search for information about what I could invest our money in. It took me years to arrive at our current strategy. I don’t want you to take so long to settle on your own strategy. We had some margin in our budget, and I was looking for something to make us money. Ultimately, I finally found good information, which I want to share today.

Part 5: DEBT FREE

Part 5: DEBT FREE

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

Get out of debt, and stay out of debt. I think of debt as a phase of life that I moved through. That period has passed, and I’ve moved on. Jonny and I have been entirely debt-free since our early 30s, and I encourage you to head down the debt-free path as well. Debt has always had an ‘ick’ factor for me, a feeling I am grateful for. There has never been a day that we regretted becoming permanently debt-free. We never have to seek the bank's opinion about our financial decisions again.

Part 4: KIWISAVER

Part 4: KIWISAVER

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

Joining KiwiSaver is a no-brainer, and it still surprises me when I meet people who are not in it. I’m always looking ahead and doing my best to determine what I might need money for and how much I might need. I keep my ear to the ground about how affordable retirement is for New Zealanders. I talk to people over 65 and ask them what advice they would give me about financially preparing for retirement. Then I ask myself if, on my current trajectory, I’m heading in the right direction.

Part 3: EMERGENCY FUND

Part 3: EMERGENCY FUND

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

The best thing I ever did was set some cash into a bank account, which we could instantly access in a financial emergency. It is an amount of money set aside in a specific bank account to be used for bailing myself out if something happens that I didn’t otherwise plan for, but I need money to pay for. Try as I might, I can’t think of everything. Your emergency fund covers the things you forgot despite your best intentions.

Part 2: BUDGET

Part 2: BUDGET

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

In the first episode in this series of six, I quickly showed you how to calculate your net worth. Today, I want to explain why you need to keep an eye on how and where you earn and spend your money, i.e., budgeting. When you learn to budget, your net worth will begin to increase. Budgeting is simply making a plan for your pūtea (money). If you want to grow your wealth, you must do what wealthy people do. And they know how much they earn and spend. So, I’m sorry, there are no shortcuts here. Most will come to enjoy it as I do, simply because it gives me a feeling of control over my life and removes any anxiety around my pūtea. But for some of you, it will always be a chore. So be it! Do it anyway.

Part 1: NET WORTH

Part 1: NET WORTH

Ruth
Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, FI SERIES, Financial Independence

FI SERIES

Welcome to the first episode in a short six-part Financial Independence Series. Part 1 focuses on ‘Net Worth’. How much wealth do you have right now? If you added it all up and subtracted what you owe, what are you worth? This can be daunting if you’ve never thought about it. However, the objective is not to objectify wealth; it’s to create a level of wealth that makes you feel comfortable and in control of your present and future.

90. Revisit with Bradie and Paul: The First Year of Early Retirement

90. Revisit with Bradie and Paul: The First Year of Early Retirement

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Retirement, Index Funds, Investing, KiwiSaver, Debt Free, Financial Independence, SmartShares

MONEY JOURNEYS

I’m particularly excited about today’s podcast because it is a revisit episode with Bradie and Paul. The elevator pitch for them is that they felt they were drowning in debt just seven short years ago, and now they have just completed their first year of early retirement! Today, I’m really happy to give you an update on a story that keeps getting better over time. 

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