Blog – Page 19 – Jamie Hilsdon

One of the worst things to plan for…

In Western culture we have become very detached from the cycle of life and death. Only those who work in specific industries will be accustomed to the fragility of life, but for most of us it’s something that will happen in the unforeseen future, so we try not to engage with it too often. The […]

What lockdown taught us about wills

When lockdown happened, it happened fast. For some, there were only a few days to prepare for an indeterminate time of severe restrictions. For others, they had more to do and less time in which to do it. Travellers were stuck abroad in foreign countries and had to follow equally foreign regulations. At times like […]

Anxiety and our money

Most of us would gladly jump at the opportunity to have more money. Very few people are likely to say that they would prefer to have less money… One reason for this is that we can see how our future life and our current financial status are linked. And this leads to anxiety when thinking […]

Let food be thy medicine

…and medicine be thy food. Hippocrates adopted this philosophy around 2400 years ago! Before fad diets and modern medicine, he recognised that food has the ability to keep us strong and healthy – both physically and mentally. A nutritious diet is fundamental to maintaining good health and well-being. Just remember that eating healthy isn’t just […]

The next best thing for investors…

Ray Dalio is an American billionaire hedge fund manager and philanthropist who has served as co-chief investment officer of Bridgewater Associates since 1985. As a thought leader and industry pioneer, he also founded the world’s largest hedge fund and firmly advocates that “diversification is a wonderful, mechanical, good way to reduce risk without reducing expected […]

Who wants to save more?

This is not such an easy question to answer. Many of us may shoot up our hands, quickly realizing that what follows is a tough call-to-action: “Then start saving!” So we shrivel back and think we’ll rather start saving next month, or when we get our next increase. Others, already encumbered with tough monthly expenses, […]

Why Mental Health needs our attention

The journey of developing your life can be challenging on your mind and overall well-being. Prioritizing mental health can help us build the resilience we need to find fulfillment at work and in our personal relationships. Often we focus on physical health and the list of things we want to accomplish. It’s important to remember […]

The difference between Medical Aid, Medical Insurance and GAP Cover

It is easy to think that the terms Medical Aid, Medical Insurance and GAP Cover refer to the same thing. Although they all serve to help you afford medical care, there are some subtle differences. Getting a clear understanding of these words will help you get savvy with your options. If you already have health […]

How much is enough?

Medical aid (including insurance products) contributions need to form part of our overall financial planning. Every year these products are adjusted slightly – both in how much they cost in monthly premiums and in what they cover. These increasing costs can feel burdensome and unnecessary to those who seldom use their medical cover, but they […]

Pre-Lockdown vs Post-Lockdown Spending Trends

The largest factor in our wealth creation, and our wealth protection, is our behaviour. How we choose to save and how we choose to spend are the habits that will determine if we are able to grow our money over time, or if we will erode it over time. There are other factors, certainly. We […]

Why we need losers in our portfolio

There is a strange behavioural effect where investors tend to sell winners early and hold onto losers for longer. You would think that investors would offload their losers as soon as possible and hold onto their winners so that they keep winning, but the opposite is often found to be true. This is known as […]

ETF not EFF

Not to be confused with the EFF (the South African political party or the lesser-known Electronic Frontier Foundation…), ETFs have been gaining popularity in investment portfolios for about a decade. ETFs (exchange-traded funds) were first developed in the early 1990s by Nathan Most, they offer both retail and institutional investors a great passive investment option. […]

Stay abreast of your healthcare cover

Whilst October is Breast Cancer awareness month, cancer has become a disease that was touted in 2018 as the second leading cause of death. It’s a tragedy that has most likely affected your family, and the families of your friends, colleagues and neighbours. The World Health Organization claims that between 30-50% of cancers can currently […]

Markets don’t make you money

Markets don’t make you money; your habits… make you money. As creatures of habit, we ultimately become our own best friend, or our own worst enemy. This is why it’s important to be mindful of how our emotions affect our choices and influence our behaviour. We can remind ourselves of this time and time again, […]

Why hobbies help

Time is our greatest investment opportunity – we should invest the time that we have in a diverse portfolio of activities that will provide us with positive returns. Having a solid routine helps us to squeeze utility out of our time. However, if we get stuck in the same routine for too long it can […]

The impact of the economy on small businesses

In a 2018 article, Tim Davis (President of The UPS Store) said this of small businesses: “Small business is the backbone of the economy. … It’s these businesses that are driving local economies, providing jobs for local residents and impacting key community organizations, through charity and service.” Whilst small businesses are crucial to the infrastructure […]

What did you do with your first paycheck?

One thing we can always know for certain is the past; but with far less certainty, the future, and even ‘later today’… eludes us. Despite knowing this, we often fall into the trap of thinking that we should have done certain things better, because we can see (looking back…) what a difference it would have […]

Crack the ice ahead of you

Spring is around the corner – bringing newness, freshness and invigoration. After a long winter, it’s easy to find your attitude has iced-over! Here’s how to crack the ice going forward… Remind yourself of the plan and direction you have Without a plan, we are completely lost. Having a solid strategy in place establishes our […]

Start marketing yourself

Before we can think of saving, spending and investing – we first need to make money. Almost everybody would accept more money if it were offered to them. But, as is often the case in life, we need to put something in to get something out. One of the most effective ways to boost professional […]

Lessons from the lighthouse

Here’s the thing about the lighthouse – it’s focus is always offshore. At the time of writing this article, the world is still flailing under the storm of the Coronavirus and the conditions have caused us all to rethink many of the foundations in our lives that we once thought secure. Just like the view […]

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