
Hosted by Frances Cook · EN

Most of us assume that getting ahead financially means working harder, watching the markets, and making smart moves. The data says that’s wrong.In this episode, Frances talks with Sean Freer, Director of Global Exchange Indices at S&P Dow Jones Indices, about why passive investing consistently beats active fund management, and what that means for everyday investors.We talk about:Why 86% of professional fund managers fail to beat the index over 15 yearsWhat index funds and ETFs actually are, and how to choose between 14,000+ optionsThe NZX 50, the S&P 500, and how market concentration really worksWhy fees quietly destroy your investments, and what to do about itThe behavioural finance traps that cause investors to sell at exactly the wrong momentWhy the "set and forget" approach outperforms almost everything elseWhether you're new to investing or already have a passive strategy, this episode will sharpen your thinking… and probably confirm you're overcomplicating it.This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to http://odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

Frances Cook shares the ten money lessons she wishes she'd known at 20, including the mindset shifts, small habits, and easy wins that made the biggest difference to her financial life.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / Frances Cook - JournalistInstagram / Frances | Money | Investing (@francescooknz) • Instagram profileTikTok / Frances Cook on TikTokJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week Newsletter sign up

It's one thing to build financial stability, it's another to actually let yourself enjoy it. In this Ask the Experts episode, Frances Cook is joined by Katie Wesney from Enable Me to unpack a problem that's more common than you'd think: what happens when the scarcity mindset that helped you build financial security starts working against you? A listener wrote in with a $5 million net worth, and genuine anxiety about spending any of it. Kmart clothes, secondhand cars, no overseas trips in six years. On paper, financially free. In practice, still living like every dollar matters. In this episode, we get into: – Why money anxiety doesn't disappear when the numbers improve – The difference between what you should spend on and what actually lights you up – How childhood experiences with money shape your relationship with it for decades – What a financial adviser actually does to help you build permission to spend – The practical systems that replace anxiety with confidence – Why the 4% rule exists, and how to think about your own number. Have a question you'd like us to tackle? Send it to ask@francescook.co.nz and you might feature on a future episode.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

What does it actually cost to walk away from a successful career and build something that matters?Ali Mau is one of New Zealand's most recognised television faces, including Breakfast, Fair Go, Seven Sharp, One News.She was also made redundant five times along the way.Instead of treating each setback as a dead end, she used them as clarity. Now in her sixties, she’s co-founded Tika, a tech-for-good startup helping survivors of sexual harm.In this episode of Making Cents, Frances Cook talks with Ali about the real financial reality of a major career pivot: the year of zero income, burning through savings, accumulating debt, and why none of that was visible from the outside.They dig into how to fund a passion project when traditional funding streams are stacked against you, how transferable skills show up in unexpected ways, and what you actually need to have in place, both financially and personally, before you make the leap.If you've ever wondered how to afford a career change, how to keep the lights on while building something meaningful, or whether it's too late to start over, this episode is for you.This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

With six in ten Kiwis making impulse purchases from social media every month, Frances Cook joins the TVNZ Breakfast team to explain the manipulative tactics behind online shopping and how to take back control of your spending.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / Frances Cook - JournalistInstagram / Frances | Money | Investing (@francescooknz) • Instagram profileTikTok / Frances Cook on TikTokJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week Newsletter sign upBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter Newsletter sign upAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

Financial freedom is a series of levels, and once you understand them, the whole thing stops feeling impossible and starts feeling like a plan.In this solo episode of Making Cents, Frances Cook breaks down the five levels of financial freedom, from knowing your numbers for the first time, to the point where work becomes genuinely optional.Each level builds on the last. Each one makes the next one easier to reach, not harder. And the first level doesn't require much money at all - just honesty.We talk about:Why knowing your numbers is an underrated form of financial freedomThe one thing that reduces money stress at every income levelWhat "I have options" actually looks like in real NZ dollarsHow compounding returns turn into a second job that requires nothing from youThe 4% rule, and how to use it to figure out your numberWhy level five isn't the absence of work, it's the absence of fearWhether you're drowning in debt and just trying to get a grip, or you're already investing and wondering what comes next, this episode will tell you exactly where you are, and where to aim next.Join the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/investFollow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknz#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

You know what you should be doing with your money. So why aren't you doing it?You know you should ask for the raise. Start investing. Stop spending on things you don't care about. And yet, somehow, you don't.Counsellor and change therapist Charlotte Cummings has a name for what's stopping you, and it's not laziness or lack of discipline.It's your unbearable feeling.In this episode, Frances Cook sits down with Charlotte to unpack one of the most powerful concepts in psychology: the one or two feelings we hate so much, we structure our entire lives around never experiencing them.And in doing so, we sabotage ourselves financially, professionally, and in our relationships — without ever realising why.We talk about:- What an "unbearable feeling" is and where it comes from- How to figure out what yours is- Why it's often behind the very thing making you successful, as well as being the very thing holding you back- Common unbearable feelings that block people from investing, saving, or asking for more- How to stop being run by your own fears (and what changes when you do)This one will make you think differently about every money decision you've been putting off.This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

The war in Iran is already moving mortgage rates, and it's not done yet.Interest rates are moving, and this will change everything with your money. Beyond the mortgage, it’s also your savings, your investments, and even your job.So what's actually happening, and what should you do about it?Frances Cook is joined by Massey University’s Christoph Schumacher and EnableMe financial coach Katie Wesney to break down the chain reaction from a conflict on the other side of the world, straight to your bank balance.We're covering: – How a war in the Middle East ends up pushing up your interest rate – What the Reserve Bank is likely to do next, and when – The key decisions to help you be smarter with your money, and especially your mortgage– How to build genuine financial resilience when the future is uncertainYou can’t control the war. But you can control how you prepare.

The New Zealand property market is shifting, and the latest data from http://realestate.co.nz tells us exactly how.In just the last three months, sellers dropped their prices enough for a total of $54 million to be wiped off asking prices across New Zealand.But strangely, it could be good news, as it’s slowing from previous falls.So are we at a turning point?In this episode of Making Cents Ask the Experts, financial journalist Frances Cook sits down with Vanessa Williams from realestate.co.nz, to break down what's actually happening in the NZ property market right now. Not the vibes, the real numbers.We cover:Whether New Zealand is still in a buyer's market, and how long that might lastHow the Iran conflict and rising oil prices could affect propertyThe best strategies for sellers in this marketHow buyers can negotiate hard, and where the best opportunities are hidingWhat the data hints at for the next 6 to 12 monthsWhether you're buying, selling, or just watching the market, this episode gives you the real picture on New Zealand property in 2026.If you have a letter you’d like us to answer, send it through to ask@francescook.co.nz and you might feature on our next episode!Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock

Made redundant in your 50s? It might just be the start of something.After decades as one of New Zealand's most recognised news presenters, Wendy Petrie was made redundant from the 6pm news. No warning, no plan B, just the sudden reality of starting over at a stage of life when most people assume the big career moves are behind them.So she bought a business. Built it from the ground up. And figured it out as she went.In this episode of Making Cents, Wendy Petrie opens up about what redundancy really feels like when it hits, why she chose to bet on herself instead of looking for another job, and the raw truth about buying and building a business in your 50s - the financial risk, the steep learning curve, and what nobody tells you before you take the leap.This is the episode for anyone who's been made redundant, anyone who's wondered whether it's too late to start over, and anyone asking themselves: could I actually do this?Spoiler: you might be surprised.This episode of Making Cents is proudly supported by Odoo. Go to https://www.odoo.com/r/hpl now and try it for free, for 15 days.Follow me everywhere!Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/FrancesCookNZInstagram / https://www.instagram.com/francescooknzTikTok / https://www.tiktok.com/@francescooknzJoin the Money Memo newsletter for a free weekly money tip in your inbox each week https://www.francescook.co.nz/subscribeBecome a confident sharemarket investor by signing up to the Market Memo newsletter https://www.francescook.co.nz/invest#MakingCents #FrancesCook #MakingCentsPodcast #InvestingPodcast #MoneyPodcast #FinancialFreedomThis podcast was filmed & produced by FanaticalsVideo editing & content production by Lana ByrneAudio engineering by Tash Chittock