Noel Whittaker, do you know the name? In home budgeting circles he is a living legend. But even outside budgeting circles he is extremely well-known for his body of work. In fact, he has written 17 books and achieved sales in excess of two million copies internationally. Not to mention his weekly newspaper articles which reach over seven million people.
Taking Noel’s advice, you would find it near impossible not to make your bank balance grow. He talks in plain English and delivers results.
Tell us about how you started to get smart with your money?
Until I was in my early 30s, I was like most people of my generation – I lived from pay packet to pay packet and didn’t really think about managing money properly. Then I read the wonderful book, The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason which changed my life. That was the start of a journey that led me to hundreds of other books.
Has there ever been a time in your life when you struggled with the home budget and how did you handle it?
When I was first married at age 23, we had innumerable quarrels over money because we didn’t communicate, and both of us went out and spent. I have since learnt that it is critically important for couples to do a budget together and stick with it. They should also both have an allowance each week they can spend on whatever they wish.
If someone came to you really drowning in debt, what would be your first bit of advice?
The best map in the world is no good if you don’t know where you are – therefore, the first step should be to draw up a statement of assets and liabilities. If the situation is hopeless, they should then approach a debt counsellor. If there is hope, they should start to budget strictly.
What is your opinion on credit cards and why?
They are a wonderful tool, but the problem is that spending money on credit cards never feels like spending real money. Occasionally I find myself in possession of a $100 note, and it is an absolute trauma to draw it out of my wallet and hand it over. In contrast, I can hand over a credit card and have it swiped for $175 and feel no emotion whatsoever.
What do you think of the marketing of credit cards?
Unfortunately, they promise all the wonderful things you can buy and the places you can travel to; they don’t tell you that everything has a cost, and most likely you will be paying interest of 20{74755d553577f4b6a67c31abdd5acf6d2003392b8684840fa8d5e29ee9555d89} for it.
If you could go back in time to your 21st birthday what advice would you tell yourself about money and budgeting?
Make sure you save something out of every pay and have concrete financial goals for the future.
When people get a windfall of money (for example, a work payout) they have zero debt and own their own home. Where would you suggest they look to invest it? And as a 2nd part, what do most people do in this situation?
I suggest they start an investment program by talking to an adviser about a quality share trust. This gives them experience in the ups and downs of the share market and also how money works. Unfortunately, most people treat that as a reward and give themselves a buzz by having a holiday or buying some new clothes.
In all that time have you ever come across or helped someone who has really stuck in your memory; a Special Case?
I vividly recall being stopped in the street by a well-dressed “executive” type who said, “When I bought Making Money Made Simple I was in terrible financial strife and your book showed me the way to get out of it. It also enabled me to buy my mother a house. Reading that book totally changed my life – my mother and I thank you.” He then gave me his business card and he was a very senior executive.
Since your first book, to now your 19th book, has your view on money changed over that time? And in what aspects?
When I worked in the bank in the 1960s there were a few financial products about – now there is a plethora of products and they are getting more complex by the day. Also, the world is now a global village and world markets and currencies are on the TV and news every night. Investing is now a much more complex process made even more difficult by the fact that people can now expect to live past 85.
Due to doing what you have done for so long, what is the one thing you hear over and over again from people who have trouble with debt?
They didn’t have a budget and it crept up on them slowly. It started small and then got bigger and bigger as their debts grew.
