A bit about Emma: Emma is a senior account manager at a public relations agency and the founder of She’s Worth It, an online resource and community that empowers women to rebuild their worth after divorce or financial abuse. She lives in Kirikiriroa Hamilton with her young daughter.
Three pieces of advice have made the biggest difference in my money journey:
First, have an emergency fund. Life is unpredictable, and having a financial buffer can turn a crisis into a manageable inconvenience.
Second, practice delayed gratification. Before making a purchase, I wait to ensure it’s not just an impulse buy and that I can truly afford it. More often than not, I realise I don’t actually need it.
Lastly, don’t compare your financial journey to anyone else’s. It’s easy to feel behind or focus on what others have that you don’t. Instead, I’ve learned to see other people’s success as inspiring, not discouraging, and focus on what I can control.
I used to be just a spender, but these days, I can say I’m both – and that’s a good thing. When I first started budgeting, I was so strict that I didn’t allow myself to spend on anything unnecessary. That approach worked initially, especially when I was building my stage-one emergency fund, but after a while, it got tedious, and life wasn’t much fun.
I compare those days of extreme budgeting to a crash diet – it works at first, but if you never allow yourself a little flexibility or the occasional treat, it’s easy to burn out and blow your budget by dipping into savings or going on a shopping spree.
The best part of my budgeting strategy now is that I have a framework in place. Even if I go off track, I can always course correct. I also took great advice from women like Simran Kaur of Girls That Invest and Frances Cook, who say that spending only becomes a problem when it’s on things that don’t align with your values. That shift in mindset helped me feel okay about allocating part of my budget to things that genuinely bring me joy, like spending more on petrol so I can visit friends and family in other cities.
“Life is unpredictable, and having a financial buffer can turn a crisis into a manageable inconvenience.”
It might sound crazy, but reaching a net worth of $0 in July 2023 was a huge milestone for me. When I first started getting my finances in order, my net worth was a daunting -$39,000. As a single mum on a benefit, the idea of climbing out of that hole of debt felt overwhelming.
Fast forward to July 2024, when I made my final student loan payment and officially became debt-free. Anyone who’s paid off a significant amount of debt knows just how incredible that feeling is! I talk more about that journey on my website.
A few key habits help me feel in control of my finances:
Budgeting with a zero-based budget. That means every dollar has a job, so I know exactly where my money’s going.
Breaking long-term financial goals into annual goals. Big financial goals – like buying a home, growing investments and building wealth – can feel overwhelming when you look at them as a whole. I’ve found that breaking them down into annual goals makes them feel more achievable and keeps me focused. Instead of just thinking, ‘I want to retire comfortably someday’, I set specific targets for the year, like contributing a certain amount to my retirement fund or increasing my investment portfolio by a certain percentage. This approach helps me track my progress and adjust as needed, making long-term success feel much more manageable.
Tracking my net worth. Luke Kemeys of Keep the Change introduced me to this, and it was a game-changer. Seeing my net worth improve month by month kept me motivated while I was paying off debt and showed me how quickly money can come together when you have a solid strategy in place.
Being debt-free. Not having 12% of my paycheque go toward student loan repayments is so freeing. These days, none of my money goes toward servicing debt and that’s a truly liberating feeling.
“Seeing my net worth improve month by month kept me motivated while I was paying off debt.”
I’ll be honest, I didn’t inherit any positive money beliefs from my whānau. To start getting my own finances on track, I had to unlearn a lot and challenge my own mindset.
The most disempowering beliefs I had were ones I think many women can relate to: that I wasn’t good with money, that I never would be, and that managing money was complicated and difficult. I also believed my ex-husband was naturally better with finances than I ever could be, which held me back from taking control.
Thankfully, we now have access to so many incredible free resources and educators online, making it easier to learn and grow. These days, I love talking to my friends about money, something that has often felt like a taboo subject. I truly believe that knowledge is power, and the more we openly share and support each other, the better off we’ll all be.
“We’re doing all right, girl, but please don’t stop bringing your lunch to work! $14 for a sandwich is criminal!”
If I didn’t have a plan in place, thinking about retirement would feel pretty daunting because right now, I’m definitely not where I need to be. Long term, I’m still figuring out what a realistic retirement lifestyle looks like for me, but in the short term, one of my financial goals this year has been to allocate 10% of my budget to my KiwiSaver account. I’m comfortable with that for now but hope to increase my contributions towards my retirement to 15% next year. I haven’t decided whether that extra 5% will go into KiwiSaver or other investments I can access before retirement.
That’s the thing about personal finance – it is personal. Having a loose plan, using online calculators and exploring resources like Sorted has helped me feel more confident about the future, even as I refine my strategy.
Retirement planning doesn’t have to be intimidating – just take it one step at a time. Over the past five years, I’ve gone from being in a lot of debt and on the benefit, to becoming debt free and having a great job and a solid money plan in place. It takes time but the time will pass anyway, so you might as well start today!
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Comments (4)
Comments
Geraldene | 25 July 25
Excellent personal story, thanks for sharing. Excellent advice to create annual goals.
Anonymous | 10 June 25
Amazing story and advice. Inspiring Emma!
Merania | 9 June 25
Thanks so much Emma.
Wonderful wisdom from your lived experiences and you may never know how many you're helping with your website! Definitely one to pass on especially with my line of work at the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Appreciate your other sources of help and support too which I aim to check out.
Love your money advice with the one to practice delayed gratification which makes me smile as I'm an impulse buyer and make excuses for it by saying "Well I don't spend my money on...."
However, I had to laugh with what your bank account would say. I've spent (and continue to do so because of laziness, convenience and downright food lust) my money on "criminal" lunch meals at work and moaned at the time I could have bought 3 loaves of bread with that roll!
Keep on sharing your financial literacy mission!
Sophia G | 31 March 25
Great read, and congratulations on being debt-free! I can completely relate to having disempowering money beliefs that are sadly all too common for women. It's really helped having so many personal finance resources for women, by women (especially NZ women) these days. Like you I've also started a net worth tracker and I agree, it's very helpful and motivational!
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