The Meaningful Money Personal Finance Podcast

A few people have asked about the NEST pension scheme in the MM Facebook Group recently, and so I thought I'd try and put together a five-minute guide to the default workplace pension that many of you will have.

For many of us, retirement is more of a process than an event. Rather than a hard stop where one day we're working and one day we're not, many of us will reduce our hours, or move to a less stressful, lower-paid job for a few years before we finish altogether. Phasing retirement is easier than ever thanks to flexible pensions, and today I want to run through the practicalities and the implications...

As I record this, There are almost 3,500 people in the MeaningfulMoney Facebook group asking questions. I get tons of emails every week and there are social media comments, podcast reviews and lots of other ways for people to get in touch me here. I've noticed a trend in the comments and questions I get of using absolutes when they shouldn't, and it has to STOP!

There's a reason lottery winners and Premiership footballers sometimes go bankrupt. If you're spending more than is coming in, you're getting poorer; and as you prepare for retirement, you're going to need to really get a grip on your cashflow.

Spike Keizer approached me about something he found out about the default NEST pension fund. It could have huge consequences for you if you're under age 27 and investing in the NEST pension.

Planning a retirement is complex enough when there's only one of you, but if you're in a long-term relationship and you're planning this together, there are even more variables you need to consider, and that's the topic for this week's show…

As I record this on February 28th 2020, world stock markets are down, quite a bit and predictably, that's making for some juicy headlines and associated investor nervousness. But what about you? Are ya worried? ARE YA?

I've had a few people recently ask about starting a pension. Now for many this will seem very basic, but clearly there's a need for a simple, straightforward video on setting up a pension for the first time:

Last week we spent some time getting current with all our amassed pension plans investments bank accounts and insurance policies. Today we need to decide what we are actually going to do with all that information…

This week is a big deal for many wealth-builders because it marks the official release of a pension plan by Vanguard, the darling of the FIRE movement. I want to go over the basic specs of the plan, and provide a little bit of balance…

We spent some time last week talking about refining our vision and setting our goals for retirement. Now we know where we're going, we need to just stop and take stock of where we are now and really understand what provision we've already made towards our goal of financial independence.

Last week we went over the basic rules of Capital Gains Tax and how it works. Like any set of rules, there are planning angle you can consider to minimise your exposure to this tax.

Before we reach retirement, it helps to have a vision of what it might look like. In this season we're dealing with the things you need to think about as retirement looms over the horizon. It's no longer a hazy, one-day possibility - it's coming up fast, so we need to get serious about what we want it to look like, so we can be ready.

Bizarrely, one of the most frequently- watched videos on my YouTube channel is one from 2010 simply called Capital Gains Tax. Not much has changed since then, but there are a couple of things to mention to bring that video up to date, which is what I'm doing today!

Here we are with a brand new season of the MeaningfulMoney podcast, all about the run-in to retirement after a life of building wealth. Today I want to ask an important question right at the start - What is retirement?

If you're preparing to take over control of your elderly relative's finances it can seem properly daunting. So let's look at some things which you and your parents together can do to make the transition easier.

Buy Now, Pay Later schemes have always been around, but they seem to be gaining in popularity and are presenting a danger, particularly to young people as they are leading many into more serious and greater levels of debt. Today I want to address this subject with someone who has seen the results of this problem…

A power of attorney is an important part of pretty much everybody's financial planning, or should be. But it's especially the case for elderly parents and yet, it's not an easy conversation to have…

Today my guest is Mark Bogard of Family Building Society. They reached out to me because of some research they have done into the cost of supporting children, particularly once they are adults, the implications of this for the parents, and quite a bit more. It's an interesting conversation - I hope you enjoy it…

Today I want to start a short series here on Five Minute Friday dealing with some things to consider and to be aware of when helping older family members with their finances.

Today I get to bring you what is easily my favourite interview in my nearly ten years of the MeaningfulMoney project. It was my privilege to chat with JL Collins, author of The Simple Path To Wealth, which is quite simply the greatest personal finance book ever written.

Dropping something a little different into the feed this Friday, summarising and reviewing a book which has impacted me massively since I read it some 15 years ago - Getting Things Done by David Allen.

A reminder of the basics is never a bad thing. No matter how advanced you are with your personal finances, and no matter what Lifestage you're in, it's always a good idea to review the basic truths about money.

This New Year 2020 I am announcing the public launch of Meaningful Academy - Financial Foundations, a brand new course to help you set your finance off in the right way.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Welcome to 2020 and a new decade! Let's kick things off by affirming some time-honoured truths about money which will stand us in good stead for the weeks, months and years ahead.