The Making Money Simple Podcast

Tej from @tejtalks joins me on this podcast episode to discuss all things branding (check out the timestamps further below in the description to see what we cover).

Branding is everything. From the perspective of a personal brand or a business brand.

We discussed the importance of branding and where to start, before moving on to how to actually build a brand and stand out.

Towards the end of the podcast we spoke through monetisation. Different ways to monetise, with some more lucrative than others, before moving into Tej’s monetisation journey of his own business brand over the years.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro

0:53 - Importance of branding

3:07 - When to start branding?

6:50 - Where to start?

9:41 - How to build a brand?

14:35 - How to stand out?

19:06 - Monetisation

25:25 - Tej’s journey to monetisation

28:50 - Final thoughts

30:45 - Outro

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Laura Ann Moore from @laura_ann_more joins me on this special audience answered podcast episode. I asked my audience on social media 'what is your biggest financial mistake' and got a number of responses - some funny, some serious, some sad, some relatable.

Laura and I go through a number of these responses (all timestamped below if you want to jump around) where we discuss them and provide guidance where we can, drawing on our own experiences and knowledge.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

Timestamps:

01:01 - Spending £200 on Starbucks

3:08 - Taking out a car loan to help build credit score

7:04 - Not starting to invest early

9:56 - Buying the wrong stock ticker symbol

13:38 - Investing based on on the crowd

14:41 - Buying designer clothes 

17:38 - Getting a 100% mortgage

22:04 - Poor market timing before a market crash

23:56 - Buying a house

27:27 - Buying a hedgehog

29:15 - Having children

31:10 - Staying at the same job for too long

34:18 - FX trading

36:49 - Ex took out debt in my name

40:21 - Going to uni

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🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

100% mortgages are back. In this episode, I give you all of the information that you need to know.

100% mortgages were already available, but you needed a guarantor/financial backing from friends or family.

The 100% mortgage referred to in this episode is a new product from Skipton Building Society, with no guarantor/financial backing needed.

In this episode I go through everything that you need to know about these 100% mortgages - what the conditions are, how the finances work, pros, cons, who's it actually good for/useful for, and more.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Tom from @TomTalksMoney_ joined me on this episode of the podcast to discuss all things matched betting. Unbelievably, Tom started matched betting and then took it full time for 4 years, the perfect guest for this episode.

First, we discuss what is matched betting and how we can actually get started, including the best platforms to use. You can get started from as little as £50, but ideally if you can start with around £200 that would be ideal.

Second, we talked numbers, specifically how much you could realistically earn through matched betting. Through initial sign ups bonuses you could make £500 in your first month from £150. Then going forward, depending on your time investment, how you could look to make £100+ per week.

Third, we dug into Tom’s story to find out how he managed to become a full time matched better. It is a very interesting story from starting matched betting after uni in 2014 to then becoming a full time matched better roughly a year later to then transitioning into building other income streams to step back from matched betting after doing it full time 4 years later.

We also touched on some risks of matched betting. Can you get banned? What happens if you get ‘gubbed’? Can you withdraw your money? How can you track your bets? And a lot more.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

In this episode I’m joined by Brian from The Frugal Spender to discuss the difference between being frugal, being cheap and being tight.

We went through what these terms actually mean. All of them have some negative connotations, but being frugal is: using your resources in the most efficient way possible to maximise your personal benefit. This sounds pretty good and what we want to aim for, as opposed to being cheap/tight.

We also went through a number of actionable ways to be frugal and become more frugal over time. Some ideas are not buying stuff you don't need and only buying things you value, buying things second hand (I recently bought a 2nd hand backpack for travelling Thailand), shopping around for the best deals (like insurance and phone contracts), and so on. We discuss a lot more in the podcast.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

In this episode I’m joined by Sarah from @altstproperty and we discuss what will happen to the property market in 2023.

It's always hard, and nearly impossible, to predict what will happen to the markets. But we tried out best!

First, we discussed what happened to the property market in 2022 and more broadly over the last few years.

Second, we delved into discussing what could happen to the property market in 2023 - given current conditions of inflation, interest rates, house prices, and so on.

Finally, Sarah shared three top tips for people who want to invest in property in 2023.

Listen to the full episode for more information!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

In this episode I’m joined by Kate from @moneymindsetmother and we discuss how to effectively manage your money as a parent.

Kate is a mum of 3 and is very experienced at managing her own money and her families money so is the perfect guest for this episode.

First, we discussed the transition to managing money from a non-parent to a parent. One of the most important things is to know your numbers - knowing exactly what is coming in and going out each month. This comes back to budgeting which is the ‘bedrock’ of both building your wealth personally and as a parent for your family.

Another suggestion from Kate, which I’m a fan of, is to print out your bank statement at the end of the month and get two highlighters. In one colour highlight your needs and in the other colour highlight your wants. This will then help you to understand where you’re money is going and if there's any wiggle room to cut back.

Second, we discussed whether the process of managing your money changes as your children grow older. It most likely will and is likely to include using vehicles like Junior ISAs to help save/invest for your children’s future.

Third, we chatted through how much to save, especially if you have multiple children. The bottom line is, if you’re able to, any money saved/invested at all is a bonus. Even if there are points when you can’t contribute, any money previously invested no matter how small will continue to compound over the years.

Lastly, we discussed investing personally for yourself whilst having a family and some top tips to take away for managing your money as a parent.

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🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Richard Brown from @thepropertyvoice joins me (again) on this episode to share some property wisdom. This time on some of his 'Property First Principles'.

This includes:

The 18-year property cycle - what it is, how you can use it to your advantage, and when the next crash might me.

Leverage and 'other people's money' - how property can accelerate your wealth building path.

Being a property investor - including the '3F's', which are forcing the discount, forcing the appreciation and forcing the yield.

We also touched on a few more property related tips at the end. 

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Richard Brown from @thepropertyvoice joins me on this episode to discuss how we can turn our own homes into an investment or an asset.

It is worth saying that it is contentious as to whether a home is an asset or a liability, each person has a different opinion. But, a general definition is that an asset 'puts money into your pocket' and in this podcast we talk through how you can do exactly that.

First, we touch on some tax efficiencies through buying your first home - particularly by using a LISA and paying no Stamp Duty. 

Second, we then go on to talk through the Rent A Room Relief Scheme. In the UK this allows us to bring in a lodger and rent out a room in our home. Doing this we can earn up to £7,500 per tax year completely tax-free. This is exactly how we can turn our home into an asset as we can earn some monthly rental income that 'puts money in our pocket'.

Third, we go through how buying your own home can work out cheaper than investing in property. Mainly through a lower deposit needed - 5% compared to 25% generally for buy-to-lets, and lower interest rates available on residential properties compared to investment propeties. 

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

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🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Inflation is currently at 9.1% in the UK (a 40-year high) and is a large concern for many people as everyday items becoming increasingly more expensive. In this podcast episode I cover everything that you need to know about inflation.

Starting with the basics of what it is and how it is measured. Before moving onto why governments actually want inflation, how they attempt to control inflation, and the impact inflation has on our finances.

Finally I talk through whether you should be worried about rising inflation and what you should do right now with inflation on the rise.

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Ola from @allthingsmoney_ joined me on this episode of the podcast all about the current cost of living crisis.

First, we discuss what the 'cost of living crisis' is and why we're in this position. There are a number of factors that have contributed to the position that we are currently in.

Next, we talked through what this means for us. In short, due to the cost of living crisis and inflation our money unfortunately is not going as far.

Finally, and hopefully most helpful, we go through what we can do. This revolves around reducing expenses and increasing income. In the podcast Ola gives many specific apps and platforms that we can use to both reduce expenses and increase income. 

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

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🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

In this podcast episode I run through 13 tax-free allowances that we should know about in 13 minutes. This is just in time for the end of the tax year on 5th April and for the start of the new tax year on 6th April.

The majority of these allowances are 'use or lose', so if we don't use them up they do not rollover and are lost forever. We then get a fresh, new set of allowances whenever a new tax year starts on 6th April. 

These allowances range from income allowances, such as the £12,570 personal allowance and £2,000 dividend allowance, to investing allowances, such as the £20,000 ISA allowance and £12,300 capital gains tax allowance, to property allowances, such as the £7,500 rent a room relief scheme and £1,000 property allowance, and a lot more that are all covered in this podcast episode.

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Josh from @becomingfinanciallyfree_uk joined me on this episode of the podcast to discuss everything NFTs.

First, we went through the basics of NFTs and web3, what they are and what they actually mean.

Second, we discussed the reasons why NFTs could be a good investment, but also why they are an incredibly risky investment to make.

Third, we went through the 3-step process to start investing in NFTs in reality. This includes opening up an account on an exchange, opening a wallet, and then buying NFTs through a marketplace like OpenSea.

Lastly, we touched on Josh's own investments, of which he has 50+ NFTs. This includes the 3 things he does before investing into any NFT project.

Listen to the podcast for more details!

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💻 Need somewhere to track all of your investments in one place? https://payhip.com/b/9tB2

📈 How to start investing in 2021 & beyond workshop - https://payhip.com/b/1fic

🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Jack from MakingTaxSimple joined me on this episode of the podcast to discuss how we can invest tax efficiently. 

First, we talked through Stocks & Shares. These are powerful as they give us a £20k yearly allowance with all gains, dividends and bond interest being tax free. Not to mention that they are flexible and we can withdraw money whenever we like.

Second, we talked through pensions. If you have an employer match these accounts are certainly the most lucrative. But, whether its a workplace pension or a private pension (we talked through both), a pension still gives tax relief so we have more money compounding over the long term. The downside being that they are inflexible and we can't access them until later in life.

Third, we talked through general investment accounts (GIAs). Although these accounts don't have any built in tax advantages, we are able to use the £12.3k capital gains tax allowance and £2k dividend tax allowance to reduce the amount of tax we may have to pay each year.

Finally, we touched on some scenarios and how we would approach them, including: investing from a young age and not using a pension, investing from an older age and not using a S&S ISA, and what to do if you're self employed.

Watch the video/listen to the podcast for more details!

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💻 Need somewhere to track all of your investments in one place? https://payhip.com/b/9tB2

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🎥 Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MakingMoneySimple/

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makingmoneysimple/

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/makingmsimple

Anna from @pandabossanna joined me on this episode to talk about passive income streams and side hustles.

Building up passive income streams, whether that's through investing or a side hustle, is a goal that many people have so that they can be 'free' from working a 9-5 job.

We started off the podcast by defining passive income and how it compares to active income. Anna and I also touched on the reality of building passive income streams in that they require a lot of upfront work by us which is why it's important to think long term.

We then segwayed into talking about side hustles and how starting a side hustle in something you're interested in is a great way to build up passive income streams as we can monetise through ad revenue, affiliate schemes, and more.

Listen to the episode for the full details! 

Laura joins me on the podcast to discuss how she saved £15,000 and then £25,000, before taking the plunge to making her first investment in 2020. 

Many people are in a similar position where they are able to save money but struggle to get started investing, whether that's out of fear or out of procrastination, or a bit of both.

In this episode we talk through Laura's journey of how she managed to save huge sums of money even on a relatively low salary. We then discuss how she started to educate herself on investing before making her first investment. As well as finishing the episode by touching on how she feels now that she is an investor and whether she plans to keep investing going forward. 

Listen to the podcast for more details.

Timi from @mrmoneyjar becomes the first person to make his second appearance on The Making Money Simple Podcast to discuss all things index funds.

Timi starts us off with the basics and breaks down exactly what index funds are, before we move onto discussing the pros and cons of using index funds when investing. Ultimately, index funds 'track the market' and are low cost in comparison to active funds that try to 'beat the market' and are higher fee. Aside from this pro, other pros include that index funds are very passive and hands-off investments with the goal being to buy consistently, and buy and hold for the long term, to one day live off of our investments. 

We move onto discuss index funds vs active funds in more detail, drawing on Jack Bogle's wisdom from The Little Book of Common Sense Investing which showed that over a 45+ year period 80% of active funds didn't only not beat the market... they no longer existed. 

Listen to the full episode as we discuss index funds and active funds in detail and explain why index funds are the easiest, and arguably the best, way to invest for the long term.

Mr Avo joined me on this episode of The Making Money Simple Podcast to discuss money discipline.

The conversation was free flowing and we discussed a range of topics, from opportunity cost, to instant vs delayed gratification, to lifestyle inflation, to how to set yourself up for success on payday.

In particular, we talked about frugality and how it is important to strike a disciplined balance. Whilst having an avocado toast on the weekend won't be too detrimental to your wealth building journey, daily expenditures can certainly rack up over the course of the year.

It's important to strike a healthy balance between treating yourself but also investing for the future. As ultimately the goal of investing is to one day build up your 'nest egg' to a point where you can do whatever you like on a daily basis.

Listen to the full episode for more details.

In this 15 minute episode I break down everything you need to know about ISAs. ISAs are the best way to grow your money as all of the gains are tax-free!

The things covered in this episode include:

- The basics - what are ISAs, how they work, the £20k annual allowance and how this works

- 4 types of ISA - Cash, Innovative, Stocks & Shares, Lifetime

- I look at S&S ISAs and Lifetime ISAs in more detail, including the different approaches to S&S ISAs and which Lifetime ISA is best for your situation

- How many ISAs you can contribute to each year

- 2 ways to switch your ISA

- ISAs vs Pensions

And a lot more. Listen to the entire episode to up your ISA knowledge!

Oli joined me on this podcast episode to draw comparisons between the UK and Australian financial systems.

I asked Oli a range of questions from taxes to investing to property, to see how the financial system works in practice in Australia.

First, we discussed the tax efficient account that you can use in Australia - the superannuation - and then drew comparisons to how this is similar to what we have in the UK in pensions and ISA's.

We then moved on to discuss the tax system in Australia, specifically income tax and capital gains tax (which doesn't exist!). When it comes to income tax both the UK and Australia have similar approaches.

We also touched on financial education in schools in Australia, or the lack of, and then finished by with a discussion on the housing market and getting on the property ladder in Australia. 

Through our twenty minute chat Oli and I discovered that the UK and Australia were more familiar than we thought. Listen to the podcast episode to hear all of the details!

Katie from @thepennymix and I discussed all things income protection in this podcast episode.

This is a product that I had absolutely no knowledge on, so I spent twenty minutes firing questions at Katie! 

If you also have no knowledge of income protection then this podcast episode is the perfect beginners guide.

Firstly, we discussed what income protection actually is. I mistakenly assumed that it was only necessary for older people, however Katie made it clear that income protection is important no matter what age you are as we never know what could happen. 

We then moved onto talk about how it works in practice, when a claim would begin and then stop, whether a claim would affect your premium going forward, as well as the fees/premiums that would be involved in an income protection policy. I then asked Katie about the providers that offer income protection and how the fees/premiums differ between small and large providers. 

Katie shared some crazy stats - one being that the average claim is seven years!

Listen to the full podcast episode to increase your education on income protection. 

Brennan from @budgetdog and I discussed all things debt in this podcast episode.

We first talked about how Brennan paid off $76k of debt in a single year by being 'intentional'.

We then moved onto talking about debt payoff strategies. The two main strategies being the snowball method and the avalanche method. We agreed that for the majority of people the snowball method is the way to go due to the positive psychology effects of paying off debt.

We then talked about how to have to right mindset to get your debt paid off, with Brennan giving us some specific tips on how you can frame your mindset in the right way to firstly get your debt paid off and then stay debt free.

Finally, we briefly touched on if Brennan is now 'anti-debt' and about the way that people use credit cards to get cashback. 

The start of the year is the perfect time to look at your personal finances.

In this short episode I will give you four tips on how you can do this. 

These four tips are:

- Set goals

- Open your banking apps

- Track your net worth

- Automate your finances

I delve into each tip in more detail in the podcast.

Ato from @savvywallet and I discuss getting on the property ladder as a first time buyer

We talked about the two key elements - the mortgage and the deposit.

For both the mortgage and the deposit the best thing you can do is to increase your income. This means you can get a larger mortgage and also save quicker for the deposit. Throughout the podcast we also share other tips such as budgeting and buying your first house with someone else.

We also go through the Help To Buy ISA and Lifetime ISA and talk about which government scheme is better.

As well as ending on talking about gifted deposits, which can be another useful tool to help you get on the property ladder.

Ola from @allthingmoney_ and I discuss all things budgeting (see what I did there?). 

Ola shared two of her top budgeting tips and I shared two reasons why we all need to have a budget.

Ola's tips included taking physical cash out when she was a student to know how much she was spending, as well as using a budgeting app.

My main reasons for budgeting where that through budgeting we are able to achieve our financial goals, as well as being able to understand exactly where our money is going each month.

Not only this but Ola and I discuss a lot more about budgeting and talk about how it is more important than ever given COVID-19.

Timi from @mrmoneyjar and I discuss the lessons we've learnt from the goat himself, Warren Buffett.

If you've been living under a rock and don't know who Warren Buffett is, he is the founder and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway and one of the richest people on the planet. He is arguably the most famous (and one of the most successful) investors in history.  

In this podcast episode Timi gives three non-financial lessons he's learnt from Buffett, and I give three financial lessons.

The non financial lessons include:

- focusing on your goals

- saying 'no'

- defining success

The financial lessons include:

- investing in your circle of competence

- investing in index funds

- long term view

Not only this but Timi and I give an honourable mention of a lessons we've learnt from Warren Buffett. 

Listen to the entire episode where Timi and I discuss each of the lessons we've learnt in detail.

David from @thepfcoach and I go head-to-head to discuss all things relating to credit card.

We first discuss our personal views on credit cards - David isn't a fan and no longer uses credit cards, whereas I am a big fan of credit cards.

After pitching our respective views, David and I go on to discuss the main benefits of credit cards, main drawbacks, whether understanding credit cards are key to becoming financially educated (spoiler: we both say yes), then finishing up on when you should never use a credit card and who should never use a credit card.

In general, if you use credit card responsibly, you are able to benefit from lower interest rates and free rewards - such as cashback and points.

On the other hand, if you misuse credit cards you could rack up thousands of pounds worth of debt and spend years paying it off.

Regardless of your personal views on credit cards, it's important to understand both sides of the argument - as understanding credit is key to becoming financially educated.

If you haven't got the cash, or think you may impulse spend and misuse the 'free money' that credit cards give you then it is best to avoid getting one.

Also, you should never use a credit card to buy high priced, consumer items - such as bags or clothes.

Listen to David and I discuss all of this information and more in this episode on credit cards.

Firstly, thank you for tuning in and welcome to Episode #1 of The Making Money Simple Podcast!

This podcast will provide bitesize 20 minutes episodes on all things money and financial education.

Over the coming weeks and months you can expect episodes:

- ISAs

- Pensions

- Credit Cards

- Saving

- Budgeting

- Investing

- Property

To name a few of the key topics this podcast will focus on.

#1 - Why You Need Financial Education

What Is Financial Education?

Financial education is the ability to make financially sound decisions.

Or put more bluntly - the art of not making dumb decisions with your money.

Why Is Financial Education Important?

I think for 3 main reasons:

- School doesn’t teach us

- Parents doesn’t teach us

- Society doesn’t teach us

School is too busy teaching us that the mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell (or something like that).

Parents often pass on more investing advice, normally either being ‘don’t invest’ or ‘investing is risky’.

In society, money is a taboo subject and people don’t often enjoy discussing money opening.

These 3 reasons mean that we don’t learn and absorb financial education over time, so we need to self educate on the topic.

Common Mistakes That People Make

The three first mistakes that came to my mind were:

- Not investing

- Credit card debt

- Thinking investing is risky (cash is actually what is risky)

Not investing, whether through an ISA or pension, is criminal (slight exaggeration).

By investing you are essentially buying back your future time and freedom. People often put off investing, but this is the exact opposite of what we should do. By investing early and often we are able to benefit from compound interest over the long term.

Credit card debt, specifically high-interest consumer credit card, is completely unavoidable and has some nasty consequences. However, so many people, particularly younger people who are not responsible with the ‘free’ credit card money, abuse credit cards and then find themselves in thousands of pounds of debt.

The way around this is credit education. Even if you are not a fan or do not use credit cards (personally, I’m a big fan of credit cards), it’s important to understand how they work, as well as their benefits and costs.

Investing is not risky; it’s the complete opposite. What is risky is keeping your money in cash.

Once you have built an emergency fund, assuming you don’t need the money for any other reason in the short term, keeping your money in cash is guaranteeing you a loss of 2-3% per year because of inflation.

To illustrate this, at an inflation rate of 2%, £1,000 today is worth £819 in 10 years, £670 in 20 years, and £549 in 30 years.

Isn’t guaranteeing yourself a loss of 2% a year more risky than getting a return of 7% over the long term in the stock market?

That wraps up the first ever episode of The Making Money Simple Podcast. Thanks again for tuning in/listening. If you have any feedback, criticisms, requests or questions please get in touch (Instagram @makingmoneysimple).