There are many reasons why we try to do everything ourselves, from satisfying our need to be in control to trying to save costs, or simply “wanting the job done right”, all of us find ourselves doing too much when we forget, or haven’t learned to delegate. Taxes and financial planning are two areas that we often feel we can go it alone, but inevitably find ourselves turning to a professional down the line and realise […]
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A bird’s eye-view of your financial plan
Most people don’t enjoy financial planning. It’s a practice filled with stigmas of confusing concepts, complicated products, and expensive choices. But the fact is that none of us can live without it costing us money. Even if we simply want to go for a walk, we need to buy the time to do that. We need to earn enough money during our working hours to buy the freedom to choose what we want to do in […]
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It shouldn’t be about wants or needs
One of the fundamentals of setting up a tighter budget often oscillates around the conversation of separating wants from needs. When money is tight, we tend to think that we can start to eliminate the luxuries, or the ‘wants’, from our spending and focus on the necessities, or the ‘needs’. However, according to Sarah Newcomb, PhD, this may not be the most helpful way to approach this task of pulling in the purse strings. She believes […]
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Make better powerpoints
Powerpoint presentations have become a vital tool in communication, whether it’s to source funding or support for new business ideas, presenting feedback to management or your team, sharing research findings or creating content for social media, knowing how to make powerpoints that attract, connect and engage with the audience has become a crucial skill for almost all of us. But it’s more than just a skill, it’s also an art, and this is where most of […]
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Don’t under-inflate the effects of inflation
When life gets a little out of hand, we might say that things are blowing up! Sometimes it comes out of the blue, and other times we can see it coming, but generally, when we look back at how events unfolded, there were signs of a crisis looming. Inflation is much the same; it’s happening all the time, but every now and then, we suddenly feel the effects. Just like the aging process, it happens slowly […]
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Is there still value in setting goals?
For the last decade or so, many coaches and financial planners have encouraged clients to connect their financial planning with their personal life goals. This has been a helpful journey to plan better, engage more with a budget and stick to the plan. But in recent months, with life continually being so unpredictable and so many people struggling to meet the goals they set years ago, it’s possible to wonder if there is still value in […]
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Healthier uses for your phone
In recent years our cellphone and mobile device usage has increased significantly. In a recent Irish survey, it was found that the average smartphone user picks up their device more than 50 times per day; a third of people check their phone within five minutes of waking up and 70% within the first 30 minutes. So, if you feel like you’re on your phone a lot, you’re not alone! One challenge with this 21st-century phenomenon is […]
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Articulate and action
We need to be strategic about growth and not just hope it will happen organically. Through a recent interaction with business coach Grant Newland, the importance of this was brought to the fore of our conversation. But it is not just about growing businesses; it’s about developing people, families, and communities. It’s easy to think that growth will ‘just happen’ organically, but if we don’t have a growth mindset, it probably won’t happen at all. Change […]
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Do as I say
“Do as I say… not as I do.” This has been a popular phrase for many, many years. In fact, it was first recorded in John Selden’s Table-Talk in the 17th century. Possibly, for as long as we’ve had structured societies, we’ve noticed a disconnect between what we say and what we do. In the 19th century, this recorded awareness grew with books such as MacKay’s Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, which show […]
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Insecurity can lead to insight
It is normal to feel anxious, confused or stressed during times of insecurity and crisis. In fact, we might not entirely accept the fullness of a situation if we don’t feel emotionally engaged with it. These emotions do not make us weak; rather, they give us the chance to overcome our insecurity with the benefit of broader insight. Our strength will be determined by our actions, not our emotions, in the aftermath of a crisis. It’s […]
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