All Articles
February 28, 2024
Melbourne to Manhattan: A Podcast Pause for a City Change
A somewhat emotional episode this week as I sit down to record. After 6 and a half years, and 342 weekly episodes, I’ve decided to take a break from producing the Financial Autonomy podcast. Truthfully, at this point I don’t know if this is the end of the podcast or just a pause. It could … Continued
Investment
February 21, 2024
Am I too old to achieve Financial Autonomy?
It’s not uncommon I find, for people to arrive at the desire to achieve Financial Autonomy in their 40s or 50s. Particularly for those with kids, until this point in life it’s largely just been survival mode. Money in equals money out. First it’s saving a deposit for a home, then it’s getting the mortgage … Continued
Investment
December 20, 2023
Beyond Local – International share diversification
I think I mentioned in a previous episode that I’ve been doing a lot of research recently on a possible new book I’m working on focused on investment portfolio construction and evidence based investing. One aspect that’s cropped up is the question of how much international share exposure we should have in our Australian portfolios. … Continued
Investment
December 20, 2023
Should we buy a holiday home?
It’s summer and hopefully you’re kicking back somewhere, recharging the batteries with plenty of blue sky and sunshine. It’s at times like these, perhaps strolling along the beach with our partner, nothing urgent to be done and plenty of time to think, that the thought might pop into our head “wouldn’t it be great to … Continued
Investment
Property
December 13, 2023
Having Goals is Not Enough
Today’s post is prompted by two separate discussions I had with new clients this week. In one case, there was a recent inheritance, the other, the couple had recently paid off their mortgage. In both instances, multiple options existed. I heard about things like home renovations, private school for the kids, cutting back to four … Continued
Investment
November 23, 2023
What is Factor Investing?
You’ve almost certainly heard of index investing, also sometimes called passive investing. Here investment portfolios are constructed to replicate I given a market. The weighting given to each individual stock is determined by the size of each company, its market capitalisation. So for instance in the Australian market, the largest allocation would be to BHP, … Continued
Investment
September 6, 2023
5 Key Steps to Building Wealth for Professionals in Their Prime
1. Create a solid foundation There are three things I consider foundational to successfully build wealth and achieve financial autonomy. First you need to understand your cash flow. What does it cost you to live, how much do you have coming in, and is there a surplus? Without surplus cash flow there’s … Continued
Investment
August 9, 2023
Understanding Risk Profiles: Their foundational role in attaining Financial Autonomy
The relationship between risk and reward is one we’ve explored many times. Anyone pursuing a Financial Autonomy goal through investment needs to contend with the typical desire to achieve their objectives as soon as possible, whilst adopting a level of risk that enables them to sleep comfortably at night. When you start working with a … Continued
Investment
July 12, 2023
The Impossible Question – why it’s so hard for investors to decide between shares or property
For an investor trying to build wealth and achieve financial independence, a question they will inevitably face is whether they should be sending their savings into stock market investments, or paying off an investment property instead. In my experience, most people decide which fork in the road to take based more on comfort and personal … Continued
Investment
Property
June 28, 2023
Could You Be Over-Saving?
To achieve peak performance athletes need to train. Train too little and they risk lacking the fitness and skills to achieve their full potential. Train too much though, and they risk fatigue and injury. A balance needs to be found in order for the athlete to succeed. When thinking about money and finances, the typical … Continued
Investment
Saving Strategy
May 10, 2023
Alternatives to Retiring Early
Winston Churchill was 65 in 1939 when World War 2 commenced. He had his most important, and arguably his best years, ahead of him. Ray Kroc founded McDonald at 52 years of age. And Harland Sanders founded Kentucky Fried Chicken when he was 62. Betty White got her major acting break at age 51. Nelson … Continued
Investment
April 19, 2023
5 Strategies to Achieve Financial Independence in Your 40s and 50s
As you guys know, the focus of our podcast is to help you gain choice through the achievement of what I’ve called Financial Autonomy. A very close cousin of the idea of financial autonomy is Financial Independence. Financial independence is the concept of owning assets that produce income such that it is not necessary for … Continued
Investment