Money Magazine March 2020

Burst water pipes, train disruptions, flash flooding … there’s no shortage of stuff to whinge about if I really wanted to. But I’ve always viewed the world with a “glass half-full” lens and see these issues as mere inconveniences to get what we really want – rain, and lots of it. The bushfires, compounded by fears about the coronavirus outbreak, made things that would otherwise feel important seem trivial by comparison. It’s hard to dwell on commuting hassles when we’re facing the prospect of a pandemic. While it’s early days, two of our regular contributors, Greg Hoffman and Marcus Padley, share their views on what this health emergency means for long-term investors. An economist I know explained it best when he described the coronavirus as an “event”, not a “trend”, so let’s…

Burst water pipes, train disruptions, flash flooding … there’s no shortage of stuff to whinge about if I really wanted to. But I’ve always viewed the world with a “glass half-full” lens and see these issues as mere inconveniences to get what we really want – rain, and lots of it. The bushfires, compounded by fears about the coronavirus outbreak, made things that would otherwise feel important seem trivial by comparison. It’s hard to dwell on commuting hassles when we’re facing the prospect of a pandemic. While it’s early days, two of our regular contributors, Greg Hoffman and Marcus Padley, share their views on what this health emergency means for long-term investors. An economist I know explained it best when he described the coronavirus as an “event”, not a “trend”,…

Good trade careers are overlooked Regarding Paul’s In Your Interest column (December/January 2020), one issue in job creation is what jobs young people today are prepared to do. Our two sons both finished high school in the late 1980s and unemployment was high, especially for those leaving school at that time. They both had an idea of what they wanted to do and wrote more than 50 letters each to a lot of different organisations looking for work. It paid off for them as they obtained a career in what they wanted to do – they still work in their chosen careers today. What is disturbing is that our younger son is today trying to employ apprentices, as he once was, and almost nobody applies. When he “won” his job,…

I’ve only been a reader for the past eight months, but the magazine has truly helped to solidify my understanding of personal finances. I’m not from a wealthy family and until last year I had barely anything saved. I wanted to build up a safety cushion and with your help I’ve been doing quite well (I’m up to $25,000 now!). As a result of my interest in finances (which is far outside my everyday employment), I’ve become something of a financial adviser to my family. It is thanks to you that I’ve been able to show my parents how to budget, how to pay down debt and seek out the best rate. It is thanks to you that I have uncovered my brother’s overwhelming debt and sat down with him to…

Good trade careers are overlooked Regarding Paul’s In Your Interest column (December/January 2020), one issue in job creation is what jobs young people today are prepared to do. Our two sons both finished high school in the late 1980s and unemployment was high, especially for those leaving school at that time. They both had an idea of what they wanted to do and wrote more than 50 letters each to a lot of different organisations looking for work. It paid off for them as they obtained a career in what they wanted to do – they still work in their chosen careers today. What is disturbing is that our younger son is today trying to employ apprentices, as he once was, and almost nobody applies. When he “won” his job, more than 200 applied…

I’ve only been a reader for the past eight months, but the magazine has truly helped to solidify my understanding of personal finances. I’m not from a wealthy family and until last year I had barely anything saved. I wanted to build up a safety cushion and with your help I’ve been doing quite well (I’m up to $25,000 now!). As a result of my interest in finances (which is far outside my everyday employment), I’ve become something of a financial adviser to my family. It is thanks to you that I’ve been able to show my parents how to budget, how to pay down debt and seek out the best rate. It is thanks to you that I have uncovered my brother’s overwhelming debt and sat down with him…