MoneyMind Lab

“Money makes the world go round" like Liza Minnelli sang in the 1972 Cabaret movie.

Money is a ubiquitous part of our daily lives.

But what is money, really? Is it piece of paper or a digital entry in the bank account? Or something else? Let's explore...

MINDSET MATTERS

I'm a firm believer that everything starts with the right mindset.

Scarcity and negative mindset
🚫 Holds back
🚫 Limits
🚫 Prevents actions
🚫 Cultivate stagnation

Abundant and positive mindset
✅️ Motivates
✅️ Empowers
✅️ Takes action
✅️ Unlocks potential
✅️ Stimulates growth

If you're barely making ends meet, it can feel like you're stuck in a trap and powerless to break free. While it can be difficult to end the cycle of living paycheck to paycheck, there are actionable steps you can take to slowly start saving money.

✍Pay yourself first
✍ Live below your means
✍ Create a budget
✍ Renegotiate your bills

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced the 0.5% increase in OCR. This brings Official Cash Rate to 5.25%, which has been the highest rate since December 2008.

Here are some thoughts on what OCR increase might mean to you and how to prepare.

I just finished reading "The Psychology of Money" by Morgan Housel.

Here's 7 Lessons from the book you are gonna want to hear and learn:

1. Luck and Risk are siblings
2. Having enough is crucial
3. Staying wealthy is not the same as getting wealth
4. The desire of freedom is what drives us to become wealthy
5. No one is impressed with your possessions as much as you are
6. Save money
7. Be reasonable more than rational.

Being an accountant, I LOVE checklists.

Let me share this Personal Finance Checklist with you.

It might seem like heaps to do all at the same time.
Don't worry. If you are doing at least one point from the checklist, this is amazing! You are already on the right pathway towards you financial wellbeing.

Keep going and use this personal finance checklist to ensure you are taking the right steps towards your money goals.

What is a nomadic mindset?
What skills could we learn on our nomad journey?
Where in life the nomad spirit could bring us?
Where is home?

Rimma Gaifullina is answering above questions through her personal life story at the below blog post.

EMBRACING A NOMADIC MINDSET It is a freezing February night of 1985 in a small town at Ural Mountains in Soviet Union. A 9 months pregnant woman is climbing the truck. The driver is 18 years old soldier. He is terrified to st…

Economists expect New Zealand economy will slip into recession in 2023.

📌 House prices have fallen by an average of 15% across the country with prices in Auckland down 20%

📌 Inflation remains uncomfortably high with consumer pricing rising by 7.2% over the past year

📌 Borrowing costs are pushed to the highest levels in more than a decade

It is important to get practical and prepare for a recession. Here is how you could do it.

In order to be ahead in the game of building wealth, we should be willing to drop some expenses which do not server us anymore without any regret.

Here are 3 things I stopped spending money on in the last couple of years.

Our founder Rimma Gaifullina is sharing 4 main pillars of her finance leadership

THE FOUR PILLARS OF EMERGING FINANCE LEADER Last year I won the New Zealand Emerging Finance Manager of the Year award.  This award recognises, celebrates and encourages the exceptional finance talent under the age of 40, and looking fo…

Albert Einstein once said "Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it; he who doesn't, pays it”.

This is so true. Once you learn the magic of compound interest, your life would never be the same again.

Warren Buffet started investing at the age of 10 and he had a net worth of $10m by the age of 30. By age 50, Buffet's worth was $300 million. By age 65 - $3 billion. Today 91 year old Buffet is worth $93 billion. And 97% of his wealth has been accumulated after the age of 65.

Clearly time and compounding interest were Buffet's friends. His financial success is tied to his early investing journey and longevity.

Never underestimate the power of compounding over time. Start today.

Do you want a little secret...
I've never purchased a lotto ticket in my life.

Maybe because I studied the probability theory at school and I know how tiny the chances of winning are. For me it is a waste of money.

However every time I go to the supermarket I see a line of people near the lotto kiosk.

Do you know that in 2021 New Zealanders have spent $1.5 billion across Lotto, Strike, Poweball etc. Just think about it.... $1.5 billion!!!

I understand the phycology behind buying lotto tickets, but let's be realistic. There are better ways of spending this money:
- Emergency fund
- Investment
- Holiday
- Personal development

Grocery is the SECOND biggest expense category after Housing in the regular household.

If you are on the journey to optimise your expenses, I'm pretty sure you can find a room for improvement in your grocery spend.

And I'm not saying stop buying food. Not at all. I'm just saying there are smarter ways of spending grocery money which will lead to savings.

It becomes even more important this year with the rising cost of living and interest rates.

Here are just few tips how you can save on your grocery bill. Following those tips might not be simple as every change requires breaking an old habit and creating a new one. But it is worth it.

And remember that saving on the grocery bill does not mean buying junk food and eating unhealthy.

It only means more planning and awareness.

Let me tell you a story.

It was 2013, and I just received a 2 year contract to work in Auckland, New Zealand.

I've never lived overseas before.
My English was good, but far away from the fluent level.
And I had a very limited knowledge about New Zealand.

I was scared and exited at the same time. I did not realise that I was immigrating back then. I was just going on an adventure. I was just testing myself and collecting life experiences.

The post picture is the first view of Auckland that came up 10 years ago in a google search. This is how I first met the city, which would eventually become my home.

When I saw this picture, I felt safe and calm. I knew I'm going to the amazing place. I knew that everything would be OK.

Today is Auckland Anniversary Day.
For some reason, this year, Auckland is crying with lots of rain to the point that we have a state of emergency right now. Like any organism, the city has its own emotions and mood swings, and sometimes they are very unpleasant and create lots of trouble.

I hope this rainy period will pass soon and that Auckland will shine again with sun and rainbows. Love you, Auckland!

We all can choose to take control of our money and our life by shifting our mindset. Shifting money mindset is a journey. Here is a formula we designed to get you started.

HOW TO SHIFT MONEY MINDSET WITH A SIMPLE FORMULA Often we are looking for the quick tools which could help us to manage our finances and become rich. Having a practical toolset in hand is essential, but unfortunately it will not lead to the finan…

I HAVE A CONFESSION TO MAKE...

Being an auditor and accountant all my life I never seriously thought about my personal finances. I earned money and I spent money. I did not think of my financial future.

Things have changed since then. My mindset shifted and I'm on the different financial path now.

Everybody has there own journey but if you skip money mistakes that I made earlier in life, you could achieve your financial goals faster.

Remember it is much cheaper to learn from other people's mistakes, not your own😊

Personal budget is a plan that tracks individual or household income and expenses over the set period of time.

Budget is a crucial step in taking control of your finances and making sure your money is working for you.

Grab my FREE Personal Budget Template so you can start your financial planning for 2023 now.

Link:
https://moneymindlab.com/resources/