Who doesn't like a sale? But be cautious before geting sucked into the temptation of Black Friday. Research shows that the vast majority of Black Friday deals aren't any cheaper than normal prices. Stores use psychological tricks like anchoring to make sale prices feel exciting compared to inflated original prices. The time pressure of limited deals can make shoppers feel compelled to buy. Read on for insights and tips on resisting the urge to succumb to deals ..read more

I was chatting to my hairdresser the other day, having the conversation we’re all having at this time of year: “You all set for Christmas? Done your shopping yet?” She said she was all ready, excited for her young children aged 7 and 10, and revealed that her budget was £600 per child. I left the hairdresser contemplating this, and the wider implications of that kind of spend. It set me thinking about what we’re actually giving our children at Christmas. Every parcel under the Christmas tree is wrapped not just in sparkly paper and ribbons, but in many layers of belief and attitudes and values ..read more

I'm not a great fan of New Year’s Resolutions. If you want to get yourself motivated to make changes, spring is a great time to set realistic, achievable goals. So, here’s a simple springtime challenge for you... Pick one of these 10 suggestions and decide to do it. If it helps find a friend or partner, pick a task you both need to do and do it together. Sit down one evening, open a bottle of Rioja and browse price comparison websites together. Or take turns to help sort each other’s paper mountains over a packet of chocolate biscuits. Do whatever you need to do to make the tasks more palatabl ..read more

Right now in the UK there’s a frenzy of drivers queuing for fuel. Whilst there’s no actual shortage of fuel – just a shortage of HGV drivers to transport it to petrol stations – people are responding emotionally to the Government telling us “don’t panic buy” and the contrasting media coverage of queues at forecourts. This has inflamed the situation and we’re seeing similar results to the lockdown stockpiling of March 2020. The emotional reaction of many people to this situation makes me think of “The Chimp Paradox”, a concept created by Professor Steve Peters in his bestselling ..read more

In my role as Financial Coach, I have the pleasure of meeting some incredible people - clients and colleagues alike. Jane Thurnell-Read is one of them. In her 70s, she embarked on a big new project – an international membership website for healthy ageing  – www.upliness.net. The idea was to offer a more positive view of ageing, inspiring people to become happier, healthier and fitter as they age. I really enjoyed my conversation with Jane as a guest on her membership site. In this video, I explained what Financial Coaching is, what drives our emotional relationship with money and how we c ..read more

So many of us have things we’re passionate about, but assume we have to fit in around the edges of sensible, earning lives. But over the last year or more – with Covid and Lockdown – everybody’s routines have been disrupted. And some of that disruption has proved really fruitful.   We’ve been forced to stop, and look at what we’re doing.   One Lockdown success story is Hanri van Wyk’s. Hanri, a long-term client of mine, has ..read more

Like so many other businesses, we had to quickly move our in-person training to an online learning space. The challenge was to make this just as dynamic and engaging for everyone. But what we discovered far exceeded our expectations.  We hear from some of our trainees on how they found the experience ..read more

We were hugely excited about bringing everybody who’s trained with Wise Monkey together for the first time this year – in spring 2020.  Our trainings have always been held in small groups, and we’d never before organised a big event. But we had one all planned and scheduled for April 2020. Of course, by then, the pandemic had struck and it was not to be. As a substitute, we convened a meet-up online.   Still, we had no idea what was about to happen: a one-off check in has turned into a regular weekly fixture. The sense of community that has emerged has surpassed any expectations: it ..read more

Our relationship with money is challenging at the best of times. But right now, with reduced salaries, business losses, savings being depleted and stock markets falling sharply, it's testing the financial health and anxiety levels in all of us. While there's a lot of support and help out there, it's not always easy to navigate when we're emotionally charged. Dr George Callaghan and Simonne Gnessen were asked to put together a webinar to help people through this difficult period, in particular to recognise that they have substantial personal resources and energy they can draw on during this cha ..read more

Do the names Monzo, Starling, Atom Bank and Revolut mean anything to you? I often discuss with my clients how these type of digital banks help make money management more accessible and fun than a traditional bank by using your smart phone to track your spending.  These digital banks offer easy-to-use budgeting tools, instant notifications when you spend and straightforward ways to save. And this is all available at your fingertips, via your mobile phone.    They’re also helping to create conscious, mindful spending.  ..read more