#84: Simple, not easy: Personal finance for veterinarians, with Noel Whittaker

We talk about well-being a lot on this podcast, but one thing we don’t really discuss all that often is financial well-being. And while it’s a truism that money can’t buy you happiness, I'm also of the opinion that if the number of shifts you do is purely determined by your level of debt rather than your level of enthusiasm that there is likely to be an increase in sadness! Which is why we invited one of the world’s foremost authorities on personal finance, Noel Whittaker, to set us off on the right path.

This episode is a recording of a Q&A session that we did with Australian finance icon, Noel Whittaker, and several of the team from Animal Emergency Australia to help us with our burning money questions. Noel is a bestselling author, finance and investment expert, radio broadcaster, newspaper columnist and public speaker. He reaches over three million readers each week through his columns in major Australian newspapers and magazines, and also broadcasts on over 50 radio stations. He has over 20 bestselling books, including a brand new one called 10 Simple Steps To Financial Freedom. His first book, Making Money Made Simple, set sales records across the country and was named in The 100 Most Influential Books of the Twentieth Century. For 30 years, Noel was the Director of Whittaker Macnaught, one of Australia’s leading financial advisory companies, with more than two billion dollars under management. In 1988 Noel was named Australian Investment Planner of the Year and, in 2003, he was awarded the Australian Centenary Medal in recognition of his services to the financial services industry. In 2011 he was made a Member of the Order of Australia for service to the community in raising awareness of personal finance. He is currently an Adjunct Professor and Executive-in-Residence with the Queensland University of Technology, as well as a committee member advising the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.

We're joined by the team from AEA to answer questions about financial topics relevant to most of us, including whether it's best to buy or rent, smash the mortgage or start investing, whether it makes sense for younger people to pay extra into their retirement fund, how to think about student debt, insurance planning, balancing debt with investment, planning advice for rising interest rates and much more. (Quick translation for our non-Australian listeners: Super = Retirement fund. HECS debt = Student loan)

If you'd like your financial and professional journey to be as part of a veterinary team that does more than just talk about team well-being, listen to our job add at the end of episode 83 to find out about working with me in one of the best locations in Australia and AES Tanawha, or contact me at vetvaultpodcast@gmail.com to ask all your questions.

Go to thevetvault.com for show notes and to check out our guests’ favourite books, podcasts and everything else we talk about in the show.

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