All tagged Personal Finance

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.

118. Living Well, Spending Less

118. Living Well, Spending Less

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

Emily loves regional Aotearoa and everything it has to offer. She gets stuck in, makes things happen, and helps out whenever needed. She owns a tiny house and works a variety of jobs. From a young age, Emily decided that financial independence was essential to her. Since the age of 19, she has stood on her own two feet financially, and she told me that doing so is essential to her well-being. She has never been a high earner, but she has paid her own way regardless. More recently, she has invested time in her financial education, and that has led to her investing her money too. She’s focused on living a vibrant life today, while also planning for a secure future.

117. Owning Rental Property Is a Business

117. Owning Rental Property Is a Business

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education, Rental Property

MONEY JOURNEY

This episode explores a form of investing that doesn’t often feature heavily in the wealth-building stories I usually share. I spoke at length with Lilly about the successful property investment business she and her husband, James, built together. The more I learned about how they deliberately grew their rental portfolio, the more I wanted to share their story as an example of how property, when done well, can be incredibly lucrative.

116. Separating Finances After Decades of Marriage

116. Separating Finances After Decades of Marriage

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

Carla lives in a small regional town in the South Island with her husband and their three children. Carla’s story is about money, but it’s also about health. By listening to such a wide variety of people share their money journeys on this podcast has given Carla the courage to make some big changes in her own life, because she knows that no two people manage money the same, and you do what works for you and your whānau. Carla and I have been emailing back and forth for quite a few years now, and those emails tell a story I absolutely love to witness: the slow, steady progression of thought over time.

115. I Feel Like I’m The Only One

115. I Feel Like I’m The Only One

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

Jennifer first emailed me in early 2023. She knew I was a big advocate for parents teaching kids to invest and had a few questions. Her then 17 and 19-year-old children didn’t know they had a small amount of money coming their way at 25. Nearly three years later, Jennifer finally agreed to share a much deeper financial story than she first intended. She genuinely thought she was the only one in her position, struggling to make ends meet, trying to get out of debt, and managing a solo financial journey within a happy marriage. This episode is a frank look at how so many couples who think about money very differently are actually dealing with it today, and why her experience is far more normal than she realised.

114. Engineering a Solid Financial Life Together

114. Engineering a Solid Financial Life Together

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

Today I’m sharing the story of Steve and Sarah, a UK couple who, many years ago, packed up their lives, moved to Aotearoa, and built a really solid financial life together. They’ve had a few financial detours, several property disasters, but their long-term habit of saving and investing has quietly set them up for a strong and flexible future as they approach retirement in their late 50s. This conversation is full of insights from Steve’s engineer’s brain, the steady teamwork he and Sarah share, and the real-life curveballs that have made them rethink what matters most. It’s an honest, practical story about the power of keeping things simple, staying curious, and building the kind of financial life that lets you enjoy today, while still planning for tomorrow.

113. Late Financial Bloomers: Proof It’s Never Too Late to Start

113. Late Financial Bloomers: Proof It’s Never Too Late to Start

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

Maria and Michelle were late financial bloomers who only really got started in their 50s. Now 71 and 69, they’ve paid off their mortgage and student loan, invested in the sharemarket, built up $1,000,000 in savings and investments, and receive NZ Super and a US pension. Through hard work, investing as much of their income as they possibly could, and carefully tracking and measuring their progress, they went from feeling anxious about retirement to completely calm about it. Moving from the US to New Zealand at age 50, however, felt like pressing a giant reset button. Soon after, she met her partner Michelle, who was also late to the financial party. Together, they realised they were well set up to succeed if they put in the effort. And so, they did. They’re a textbook example of starting right where you are, no matter your age.

112. Resilience, Balance, Community, and Happiness

112. Resilience, Balance, Community, and Happiness

Ruth
Money Journey, Personal Finance, Podcast, PocketSmith, Money Education

MONEY JOURNEY

This week, I’m sharing the story of Rachel. Although she just assumed that hers might be a standard life plan of go to school, complete some tertiary study at some point, get a full-time job and work your way up the career ladder, she has ended up veering off on a path entirely of her own making. Aged 32, she now works where and when she wants to and is not afraid to work full-time or not at all. She’s created a financial cushion for herself, which is smaller than you might expect, but plenty enough for her, and that is coupled with a large and supportive family and community, meaning that she gets to go out and be herself, knowing she’s never alone.

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