Are you like me and suffering from serious information overload at the moment? It seems like everyone you speak to has an opinion about how quickly things will return to ‘normal’, what the economic impact is going to be long-term, and whether you should invest in a lifetime’s supply of toilet paper.
Let’s face it – none of us have been through anything like this before. So no-one is going to have all the answers. But what you can do is ...
Continue Reading →I have a confession to make – I had a very different blog planned for this month. But in a matter of weeks, the world has completely changed. We are all facing into an unprecedented challenge, which is not just a threat to our physical health, but also our mental health and happiness.
It’s never been more important to acknowledge the effect stress and social isolation can have on our mental state.
With that in mind, I’ve put together some ideas for ...
Continue Reading →With International Women’s Day just around the corner, I thought it was a good time to talk about the financial challenges that many women experience.
You’ve probably heard the statistics about how Aussie women retire with half the super savings of men. But this is only part of the story.
Yes, women are also more likely to live longer than men, and often retire earlier than men. Which means there is a serious risk that women will outlive their retirement savings and ...
Continue Reading →Welcome to a new year and a new decade! One of the things the Monarch team particularly looks forward to each new year is seeing how our clients have progressed along their financial journey. Life is always throwing surprises at us – some good, some not so good – but when you have a solid financial plan in place, you don’t have to be worried about what the future may bring.
Which brings me to the topic of our first blog ...
Continue Reading →Posted by: Tatiana Coulter
The countdown to the holidays is on. It’s the time of year when work starts to wind down, and you hear people say, “That can wait until after Christmas,” or, “I’ll get to that in the New Year”. But there are some things that are just too important to put off, even for the sake of a few weeks.
Six months ago, I met with a couple who wanted help with their insurances. They listened to my recommendations, but then they ...
Continue Reading →When it comes to your finances, we often talk about the importance of asking an expert – a financial adviser. But how do you find one? And how do you measure their expertise?
Recommendations
By far the best place to start looking for a financial adviser is by asking your friends and family. If someone has a great experience with a product, shop or service, they’ll be only too happy to refer you to it. The same definitely goes for financial advice.
You ...
Continue Reading →Posted by: Tatiana Coulter
You might have noticed there have been a few reports in the media (again) about life insurance commissions. As you know, I’m extremely proud of the work the Monarch team does and firmly believe in the role financial advice plays in helping people secure their financial future. Which is why I felt it was important to outline just some of the ways we add value to our clients…
What we do – Build a strategy
Our role is not simply to get ...
Continue Reading →When it comes to predicting the future, it turns out that most of us are pretty bad at it. Not a surprise really, but here are a few facts we’ve collected over the year that will highlight just how far off our thinking can be…
Underestimating the likelihood of illness or injury
Posted by: Tatiana Coulter
Do you have any bad habits? Things you do all the time but wish you didn’t? What about something your partner does that really annoys you? We tend to view habits as negative – something to be broken – and along with that goes the guilt and frustration when we can’t quit our bad habits.
But what about good habits?
We recently got the whole Monarch team together for a professional development session and the topic was ‘Improvement as Habit’. As facilitator, ...
Continue Reading →Posted by: Tatiana Coulter
I know I’ve previously shared my thoughts on asking strangers to pay for your medical bills (see: Is crowdfunding your medical bills fair?), but a recent story has persuaded me to revisit the issue again. This article highlights just how much people underestimate the cost medical treatment in Australia, which is ultimately one of the main reasons that people turn to crowd-funding sites.
You might have heard about Milli, a 12 year old from Perth whose family was trying ...
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