We all like to think we have more control over our decisions in life than perhaps we really do.

And this is particularly common when it comes to our personal money matters.

It's nothing new - our beliefs usually dictate how we react to life events; but what if you've forgotten what you believe and are living and deciding on autopilot?

Refinancing isn’t for everyone or every financial situation.

Refinancing a mortgage can put you in a better interest rate, but still increase your debt. Before you jump on the refinance-the-mortgage ride, here's six occasions when it might not be right for you

Both successful people and unsuccessful people have very different patterns of thinking about money.

Not surprising I hear you say, but where do these money attitudes come from? Is it about finding new ideas or more about losing the old ones?

The question is more about 'when', not 'if'.

Financial life is.... complicated. We all experience a dry spell from time to time and if you're in business a cash flow squeeze. It's the part of life that happens to everyone.

But then to make matters worse comes retrospective investment property land tax (thankyou OSR), slow debtors, perhaps a sickness or accident forcing time off work, supporting frail aged parents with declining health or maybe a family law court financial settlement after a relationship change. Financial life is complicated.

When should a business express a moral opinion?

A few years ago, I attended a conference for business owners discussing the importance of ethics and purpose in business.

Things were going great until someone stood up and asked ‘that’ question. But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself.

The other day when talking with Little Miss 5 about the cost of having her birthday party at the local gold class cinema, she casually gave me some financial advice to, "just go to the money machine in the wall and get the money".

I realised it was time to begin to explain where money comes from, after all, it's up to the adults in the lives of children to model helpful behaviours as our children begin their journey of understanding money.

[The Heart+Head=Matters Series.]

How do you start ‘the talk’ with your kids?

"No, not that talk... the other big talk."

Parents all ask the same question

After 17 years working as a financial adviser, you get to see patterns in people's actions and, more importantly, their questions.

The number one question I get asked by parents of all ages is,

‘How can I help my kids get ahead in life?’

Need to get early access to some of your super?

Nothing starts a heated conversation between mates at a BBQ quicker than a question about superannuation and whether you should be allowed to get access to it before you retire.

The government's stated purpose behind our national compulsory super savings plan is to provide people income in retirement to substitute (or supplement) the Age Pension. This is known as the sole purpose test.

Marriage Equality means in Australia you're now free to marry who you love.

If you're a same-sex couple, there might be some unique challenges to meet with your partner for life

While LGBTI people are as diverse as the rest of the population, their shared experience of discrimination creates many common financial issues.

• The problem isn't with LGBTI people, but with the attitudes and behaviours of the society around them.
• While this may not apply to everyone, there are many barriers to same-sex families who need detailed financial advice because most financial and insurance decisions are about family structures, relationships and priorities.

You can read more about the original eGuide here.

Equality

Sapience celebrates the hard-won progress of the Australian LGBTI community.

You're an inspiration.

Why we wrote this eGuide

Research shows LGBTI people have reduced access to health services and reduced access to relevant discrimination-free financial advice.

• Now while many financial advisers like to claim they ‘treat everyone the same’, this usually means they treat everyone as heterosexual.  
• Members of the broader LGBTI community do not need special treatment, but they do need access to relevant, high-quality financial advice that’s judgement and discrimination-free. 

Our latest eGuide - 7 Financial Decisions Same-sex Newlyweds Need to Make - is a free gift to the LGBTI community.

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Just add your name and email to the waiting list below and be the first to know when the workbook to this eGuide is available.