Kia: Hey, it's Kia, and welcome to the first episode of
Kia: A Little Bit Richer. If you're here, you probably know
Kia: the score. For the next few months, I'm going to
Kia: be bringing you bite- sized financial tips. You know, the stuff that we
Kia: never got taught at school. What comes out of my
Kia: salary? How can I get my own place, or a
Kia: bigger one? What do I need a bank account for?
Kia: Okay, the last one is a bad joke, but you get
Kia: the picture. We're all in this together. It's you, me,
Kia: and a different guest each and every episode. Up first,
Kia: I want to kick things off with Laura Ann Moore.
Kia: Laura's a money and mindset coach. She's all about demystifying personal
Kia: finance in a simple and judgment- free way. She also
Kia: has our own podcast. My kind of woman. We're going
Kia: to be chatting about why all this stuff is so important.
Kia: Okay, let's get into it. So, Laura, it's really tough
Kia: out there at the moment. Everything's going up in price
Kia: and salaries just aren't keeping up. Everyone's stretched and it
Kia: is stressful. Do you have any suggestions on how people
Kia: can cope with this pressure?
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah, I think first of all, I would say it's
Laura Ann Moore: really important to identify where the stress is coming from.
Laura Ann Moore: I think it's so easy to go into this panic of, "
Laura Ann Moore: I feel overwhelmed, I feel anxious, I feel stressed," but
Laura Ann Moore: sometimes we don't know where that feeling is coming from.
Laura Ann Moore: So, the first thing I would say is really try
Laura Ann Moore: to understand and identify it first, because it might be
Laura Ann Moore: a practical thing, but it might also be an emotional
Laura Ann Moore: thing. So, on a practical basis, I would say make
Laura Ann Moore: a plan, make a tangible plan where you can say, "
Laura Ann Moore: What is my next step?" Because it's that classic thing,
Laura Ann Moore: isn't it? Where you go, " Oh my God, I need
Laura Ann Moore: to kind of do everything in one go." And that's
Laura Ann Moore: the overwhelming part.
Kia: Yes, it's true. I do that all the time. All the time.
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah, and it's so easy to do. So, actually going, "
Laura Ann Moore: Where is my money at right now? What is one
Laura Ann Moore: small step that I can take today with this week
Laura Ann Moore: that I know that's going to alleviate a little bit
Laura Ann Moore: of pressure?" It could literally be as simple as checking
Laura Ann Moore: my bank account, making a better budget, paying someone that
Laura Ann Moore: I owe, something little like that. And then on an
Laura Ann Moore: emotional level, I would say really to ask yourself what
Laura Ann Moore: stories you're telling yourself.
Kia: It's a big one.
Laura Ann Moore: It's a big one, because that's what we do. Our
Laura Ann Moore: brains will tell ourselves stories about a situation. So, we
Laura Ann Moore: might read something in the news that makes us scared,
Laura Ann Moore: makes us feel overwhelmed, and then we tell ourselves we
Laura Ann Moore: need to be worried, we're in a bad place, but
Laura Ann Moore: actually, it's more your relationship with money or your money
Laura Ann Moore: mindset that's causing you to feel that anxiety. So yeah,
Laura Ann Moore: on an emotional level, really starting to just see how you're
Laura Ann Moore: talking to yourself, see things that keep coming up, and
Laura Ann Moore: identifying whether they're actually true or whether your brain is
Laura Ann Moore: telling you a lie.
Kia: I think that's a good one, Laura. I think sometimes we
Kia: spin these narratives, like you said, that just aren't true.
Kia: You can sit there and say, " I'm bad with money,"
Kia: and you're going to start believing that because you've said
Kia: it. And I think it is just being aware and
Kia: conscious of what we're telling ourselves and maybe what impact
Kia: that has on how we view things, like you said.
Kia: So, there's been some Legal & General research done recently that
Kia: calls your 20s the lost decade, and that's because it's
Kia: a key time to build money for the longer term,
Kia: yet it's often not made use of. So, what are your
Kia: top recommendations, Laura, for someone trying to make the most
Kia: out of their money?
Laura Ann Moore: I think when it comes to money, you want to
Laura Ann Moore: think about the step before and really asking yourself, " Why
Laura Ann Moore: do I want money? What role do I want money
Laura Ann Moore: to play in my life?" So, first off, creating some
Laura Ann Moore: goals. Financial goals, like, " I want to save X amount,
Laura Ann Moore: I want to invest X amount," but also some life
Laura Ann Moore: goals. What is the reason of you working and making
Laura Ann Moore: money? So that you're not just chasing the money for
Laura Ann Moore: money's sake, you're going, " I'm going to get the money
Laura Ann Moore: so that I can travel, so that I can build a
Laura Ann Moore: business, so that I can buy a farm and raise
Laura Ann Moore: some ducks." I don't know.
Kia: Whatever floats your boat.
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah, whatever floats your boat, and really starting to connect
Laura Ann Moore: with what your why is. So, creating these goals. Also,
Laura Ann Moore: understanding what your values are. For me, three of my
Laura Ann Moore: values are travel, education, and health. So, that really helps
Laura Ann Moore: me when it comes to spending, saving and investing, because
Laura Ann Moore: I can ask myself is the way that I'm managing
Laura Ann Moore: and growing my money right now in alignment with my
Laura Ann Moore: goals and with my values? And I think they're, on
Laura Ann Moore: an emotional level, a really great way to start to make
Laura Ann Moore: the most out of your money like the step before.
Laura Ann Moore: Because I think people jump into trying to make the
Laura Ann Moore: most of their money on a practical basis, and then
Laura Ann Moore: you're like, " Why am I actually doing this?" and you
Laura Ann Moore: don't have the motivation. So, I think understanding the motivation
Laura Ann Moore: is key first.
Kia: That is, like you said, you hit the nail on
Kia: the head, that is a key one to keep you
Kia: going. I think quite often you'll hear people say that
Kia: they want to save, and there's no real target or
Kia: reason. But when you have that reason, like you said,
Kia: it could be to have your duck farm, it could
Kia: be to travel and see the world, whatever that reason
Kia: is, it helps you. So when things maybe aren't as
Kia: fun or things just feel a little bit hard, you
Kia: can always circle back to that and say, " Right, I
Kia: know why I'm here. I know why I'm doing this
Kia: for my finances, or I know why I'm working." Like you said,
Kia: to keep you on track, because that was often the hard bit.
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah. Like I recently released an episode on my podcast
Laura Ann Moore: about achieving my big happy goal, because I've been running
Laura Ann Moore: my business and I've been keeping the business afloat, but
Laura Ann Moore: I'm like, " What do I actually want this money for?"
Laura Ann Moore: And then when I tapped in, connected with myself, I
Laura Ann Moore: was like, " I do really want to travel more." So,
Laura Ann Moore: now that's kind of like my north star, and it
Laura Ann Moore: might be for the next five years maybe, and it's
Laura Ann Moore: given me the motivation to rejig the way that I'm
Laura Ann Moore: spending and saving. And like you say, when times get
Laura Ann Moore: hard and maybe you do have to cut back for
Laura Ann Moore: a short period of time or whatever that looks like,
Laura Ann Moore: you actually know why you're doing it. So, it feels
Laura Ann Moore: like it's coming from a place of your motivation is
Laura Ann Moore: towards pleasure as opposed to away from pain.
Kia: Yes. I love that, I love that. Laura, we're coming
Kia: onto a big topic now always on people's minds, property.
Kia: So, it feels like that everyone is currently in a
Kia: race to buy their first home, especially when you're on social
Kia: media. That's all we're kind of seeing right now, and
Kia: it is so easy to compare yourself to everyone else's
Kia: journey. So, do you have any advice for our listeners
Kia: who are wondering whether or not they should be saving
Kia: for a deposit right now?
Laura Ann Moore: I think the house deposit one is a really interesting
Laura Ann Moore: topic, because there's so many stats out there that shows
Laura Ann Moore: people or house prices versus wages now, there's such a
Laura Ann Moore: bigger gap between it or a disparity between it versus
Laura Ann Moore: 20, 30, 40 years ago. Our parents and our grandparents, it was
Laura Ann Moore: so easy for them to say, " I need financial security
Laura Ann Moore: for the future. I'll buy a house." And it was
Laura Ann Moore: so much more accessible. Whereas now, for young people, I
Laura Ann Moore: think in general it's like the go- to, especially in
Laura Ann Moore: the UK, is, " I should buy a house." So, what's
Laura Ann Moore: happening is we have this generation of young people wanting
Laura Ann Moore: to buy a house but not really knowing why or
Laura Ann Moore: if that's something that they want. So, my first thing
Laura Ann Moore: is always really understand what your why is. Do you
Laura Ann Moore: really want to buy a house? What is your motivation
Laura Ann Moore: there? Is it because all you've ever dreamed of is
Laura Ann Moore: having a beautiful home that you can make your own,
Laura Ann Moore: you can raise a family in, or are you just
Laura Ann Moore: doing it because society tells you to do it, your
Laura Ann Moore: parents are telling you to do, it's what your friends
Laura Ann Moore: are doing? So, asking yourself if it's actually what you
Laura Ann Moore: want first.
Kia: Yes.
Laura Ann Moore: Do you know what I mean?
Kia: That's a big one, that's a big one.
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah.
Kia: I think it's a massive financial undertaking, and I don't
Kia: think that should be minimized. I'm going to touch on
Kia: property more in this podcast, but it's such a big
Kia: thing to purchase. It's probably likely to be the biggest
Kia: thing you'll purchase in your life, that you need to
Kia: understand, like you said, why are you doing it? Are you
Kia: doing it because you want a property or because everyone
Kia: else is doing it? And I think once you understand
Kia: that, then you can decide, is it for me, should
Kia: I do it? Like you said.
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah, exactly. And I think, so when you ask yourself, "
Laura Ann Moore: Why is it I'm asking myself should I be saving
Laura Ann Moore: for a house deposit?" I always think when the word
Laura Ann Moore: should is in there, you've got to question what's going
Laura Ann Moore: on. So, if that is how you feel, if you say, "
Laura Ann Moore: The reason why I want to buy a house is
Laura Ann Moore: financial security," maybe just ask yourself are there other more
Laura Ann Moore: accessible ways that I can look to build wealth for
Laura Ann Moore: the future that allow me to create that financial security
Laura Ann Moore: and that wealth for the future that don't require me
Laura Ann Moore: to save 30, 40, 50 grand for a house that maybe is
Laura Ann Moore: going to take me however long to save, giving this
Laura Ann Moore: anxiety around doing that? So, when you understand your why,
Laura Ann Moore: that's definitely kind of key. Then I would also say
Laura Ann Moore: it's okay to save for a house deposit and then
Laura Ann Moore: you change your mind. Right?
Kia: Yes, that's a big one as well. Yes.
Laura Ann Moore: Because goals can change. When I was 19, I saved
Laura Ann Moore: 15 grand to go to drama school, and then at
Laura Ann Moore: the very last minute, two weeks before I was due
Laura Ann Moore: to start, I ended up going traveling, so that I
Laura Ann Moore: had that money there saved, but the purpose of it
Laura Ann Moore: completely changed. So, if you right now can't decide, you
Laura Ann Moore: could go, " Okay, well, maybe I'll put a bit away.
Laura Ann Moore: I'll start building that pot up." We're always going to
Laura Ann Moore: need money for something, whatever that thing is, and if
Laura Ann Moore: your life changes, your goals change, at least you have
Laura Ann Moore: a nest egg that could be then maybe put into
Laura Ann Moore: a lump sum for investing, or maybe you do something
Laura Ann Moore: that's investing in yourself like travel, or whatever that looks
Laura Ann Moore: like. So, it's like don't be afraid of putting money
Laura Ann Moore: away for a goal that might change.
Kia: Yes.
Laura Ann Moore: And then the final one I think is speak to
Laura Ann Moore: your friends or family that are homeowners, or people that
Laura Ann Moore: have gone through the house buying process within the last
Laura Ann Moore: few years.
Kia: Yes. They will definitely give you the truths and the
Kia: realities of that journey, and I think sometimes you need to hear that and say, "Is this something I
Kia: want to undertake myself, or can I give it a pass for the minute?"
Laura Ann Moore: Yeah. A lot of people that I've spoken to always
Laura Ann Moore: say there are a lot of hidden costs. I haven't
Laura Ann Moore: gone through the process myself. It's just from people that
Laura Ann Moore: I've chatted with. And that's not to say, not everybody
Laura Ann Moore: regrets it. Some people will say, " There's loads of hidden costs,
Laura Ann Moore: but I wouldn't change it for the world," or, " There's
Laura Ann Moore: loads of hidden costs, I wish I didn't do it."
Laura Ann Moore: So, I think just chatting with people in your community,
Laura Ann Moore: and if you don't have any friends or if you're
Laura Ann Moore: the first one in your group that are maybe planning
Laura Ann Moore: to buy a house, get online and have a look,
Laura Ann Moore: socials, different pages, different forums, and try and find people
Laura Ann Moore: in that community that can share that knowledge.
Kia: I love that. Get informed, get informed. That can definitely
Kia: help you. Right. So, I've got another Legal & General factoid
Kia: for you. They're doing a lot of research into this
Kia: thing called the Bank of Family, and it's the idea
Kia: that if you don't have relatives helping you to get
Kia: on a property ladder, it's very hard to achieve. Laura,
Kia: does that reflect what you're currently seeing at the moment?
Laura Ann Moore: A hundred percent. I think in my community of people
Laura Ann Moore: who I chat with in the DMs, different clients and
Laura Ann Moore: stuff like that, or people that I meet at events,
Laura Ann Moore: there is definitely a large portion of people that I
Laura Ann Moore: know have got on the property ladder because their parents
Laura Ann Moore: have been able to pass down money in whatever form.
Laura Ann Moore: But there's also a lot of people really aware that
Laura Ann Moore: that is a privilege. Like people being like, " Oh, my
Laura Ann Moore: mom and dad have helped me out here, but I'm
Laura Ann Moore: really grateful for it." And I always say to them, don't
Laura Ann Moore: feel guilty for it. If you are in that lucky
Laura Ann Moore: position, absolutely grab it with both hands and go for
Laura Ann Moore: it. But if you are someone who isn't in that
Laura Ann Moore: position, that's like me, my parents couldn't pass down any
Laura Ann Moore: money for a house, that's also okay, and that's where
Laura Ann Moore: it's worth looking at other ways that you can start
Laura Ann Moore: to build wealth. But yeah, I've definitely had a lot
Laura Ann Moore: of conversations with people who say, " Yeah, probably a large
Laura Ann Moore: portion of this money has come from not me."
Kia: Yes, yes, it's true. And I think it is, like you
Kia: said, it's acknowledging that, that if you have that help, it
Kia: does make the journey a lot easier, and if you don't,
Kia: it is going to be a lot harder. But I
Kia: think once you understand that and you decide on that,
Kia: that's a good process for you. Laura, we're getting into
Kia: an exciting bit because I'm going to ask this question
Kia: every single time, and you have the honor of being
Kia: the first person to give your answer.
Laura Ann Moore: Woo- hoo.
Kia: So, Laura, what are your top three tips to help
Kia: our listeners get a little bit richer?
Laura Ann Moore: So, to get a little bit richer, tip number one
Laura Ann Moore: is to improve your money mindset, your relationship with money.
Laura Ann Moore: And the great thing about that is it's free, because
Laura Ann Moore: you can just start by acknowledging, " How do I feel
Laura Ann Moore: about money? How would I like to feel about money?"
Laura Ann Moore: and start to change your language around it. So, that's
Laura Ann Moore: tip number one. Tip number two is around money management
Laura Ann Moore: and really getting to know your numbers. Really having a non-
Laura Ann Moore: judgmental, unbiased approach towards your money and saying, " What's coming
Laura Ann Moore: in, what's going out?" Because that's just data that can
Laura Ann Moore: help you then make decisions. And then the third one
Laura Ann Moore: is about, whilst it's important to enjoy your money in
Laura Ann Moore: the now, starting now to invest and prepare for the
Laura Ann Moore: future is going to make you a little bit richer.
Laura Ann Moore: So, they're my top three tips.
Kia: Laura, thank you so much for being the first guest
Kia: on A Little Bit Richer. You've shared so many gems
Kia: that are going to be so impactful to our audience. So, thank you
Kia: so much.
Laura Ann Moore: Thank you for having me.
Kia: Laura was a great first guest, but there's lots more
Kia: to come, so be sure to follow this podcast, tell
Kia: all of your mates. I don't want to leave anyone
Kia: behind here. Next episode, I'm going to be taking your payslip
Kia: apart and making it all make sense. See you then.