The Financial Wellbeing Podcast

Episode 13: Philanthropy – Behind The Scenes In our last episode, we looked at some of the principles behind Philanthropy. Today, we delve further into the world of giving by examining how Charities apply these principles practically. We are joined by two respective experts: Edward Thomas of Oxfam and Julian Withers of Jessie May. Need a quick reminder of the principles discussed in the last episode? You’ll find just that at 1:45 into this episode. At 2:46, you’ll hear Chris and David’s views on ‘Chugging’, and David’s well-honed script for such instances. At 4:15 we have our Tweets from Financial Planners, with thanks this time to @davidpenney10, @philbillingham and @nicksdd1 – the last of whom gave us the wonderful line “It’s only a bargain if you really need it.”. At 6:20, we have our first interview. Edward Thomas of Oxfam works in the Fundraising Department, with a specific focus on Philanthropy in Partnerships. This means he works with Businesses, Trusts and High Net Worth Individuals. He describes how the job requires both thick skin and a soft approach, as he often finds himself dealing with intermediaries – in his words, “wealthy individuals will employ people on a rather high salary to keep fundraisers away from them!” Learn more about how Oxfam operates behind-the-scenes, and how Impact Investing is the buzz word as of late. The two also discuss LiveAid at 10:45, and Edward gives his opinion on Mark Zuckerberg’s pledge to rid the world of disease at 12:23. Finally, Edward tells of the different attitude toward Philanthropy around the world – comparing China, the USA and the UK at 14:29. At 18:05, we have our second interview. Julian Withers works for Jessie May, a local hospice which works with terminally unwell children and their families. Julian explains how Jessie May employ the principles we spoke about in the last episode, specifically how they make it personal for their investors at 19.25. At 22:50, Chris brings up a video which Julian had played at a recent Ovation event. The video, available here, tells the story of a young boy named Joe and his Jessie May Nurse, Andy. It featured on Children In Need and achieved a tremendous number of donations, which Julian believes is due to the fundamentally positive nature of the video. There’s also a lovely story about a lucky 2p coin at 27:00, and Chris reveals the work Ovation do with Jessie May at 29:45 – before reminding all our listeners that all proceeds of the Financial Wellbeing Book go to Penny Brohn UK, another wonderful charity.  

Episode 12: Philanthropy In Episode 4 & 5 we talked about how to work out our “Disposable Income” and ways in which we could spend it to enhance our wellbeing.  One of the ways we can spend our money to make us happier is by giving it to causes that are close to our heart or people who are in more need of it than ourselves. The word “Philanthropy” doesn’t just include the Bill Gates Foundation, but any level of giving from a £5 monthly subscription to your own small charitable fund. In this episode, David & Chris discuss Philanthropy and some of the ways you could gift your money to help enhance your wellbeing. This is the first of a two part special on Philanthropy. In part 2 we will be speaking to a couple of special guests who head up their charity’s fundraising teams. 1:20 – David has been decluttering… 6:14 – Special delivery… 7:18 – Tweets – @murraymcewan, @mrxmastree, @pensionmonkey, @howardbullock 9:38 – The principles of giving 14:33 –   Giving and the removal of dependence on a sum of money 17:12 – The practicality of giving 19:12 – Community Foundations 21:03 – We can all do our bit 21:51 – GiftAid 22:54 – Legacies in a Will 24:05 – Giving Is Good For You, by John Nickson

Episode 11: Community Wellbeing with George Ferguson Community Wellbeing is one of the Five Elements of Wellbeing which, according to research conducted by Gallup, makes up our overall Wellbeing. We sat down with former Mayor of Bristol George Ferguson to have a chat about Community Wellbeing and how it relates to happiness. As always, we share the Industry Insights tweeted to us @FinWellbeing, giving you tips and advice from Financial Services Professionals. Chris’ talk with George, who in 2012 became Bristol’s first democratically elected Mayor, starts at 8:15 into the Podcast. The meeting was held in George’s flat above the Tobacco Factory, a creative hub which he hopes will inspire more of its kind across the city, making Bristol a more polycentric place. They speak about the acceptance of others, the implications this may have had on Brexit, the importance of local traders, Urban regeneration, homelessness in Bristol and public transport in Bristol compared to our continental counterparts. Shortly before the interview, George had returned from a conference in South Korea – back from which he brings the theory of ‘the economics of happiness’, as well as a deeper appreciation for localism. The two discuss Bristol’s being awarded the European Green Capital, and the two capacities in which Mr. Ferguson has affected change: via private enterprise as an entrepreneur, and by legislative means as Mayor – and which of the two was easiest. We also learn of a Bristolian initiative called Happy City, which indexes happiness and moves to improve it. A podcast for the future, perhaps… 3:30 – Knight Foundation survey 5:20 – Tweets – @londonmoneyfs, @rayvay, @merichardellis, @imstevewilson 7:15 – Interview with George Ferguson 9:00 – Tobacco Factory & Real Regeneration 12:50 – Acceptance of others 13:50 – The future of the Tobacco Factory project 17:40 – The benefits of non-career politicians 17:57 – South Korea & The Economics of Happiness 20:44 – “I can’t think of anything more fulfilling than suddenly being able to give £1000 away.” 22:08 – Seoul & The Economics of Sharing 26:47 – Chris asks George: “You’ve been affecting change through private enterprise with the Tobacco Factory, and through legislation as Mayor – which has been easiest?” 32:21 – www.thehappycitylab.com TedTalk

Episode 10: Financial Options In Life “Nothing outside of your own mind can be truly said to be positive or negative.” Financial Options is one of the five strands of Financial Wellbeing. One way to increase Financial Options in life is to simply have more money, but in this Podcast Chris and David explain what to do when having more money isn’t an option for you. They discuss how the largely unstudied area of permission and self-limiting beliefs can be an obstacle to creating more options in life, as well as the role of luck – citing the immortal words of Gary Player: “The more I practice, the luckier I seem to get.” We have tips from professional Financial Planners @hattipnick and @cashquestions, one of which involves footwear… Chris and David weigh in on that famous question “Does Money Make You Happy?” and examine more specifically the question of “When does money not make you any happier?”, discussing a study comparing the wellbeing of amputees and lottery winners – the results of which may very well surprise you. The two books discussed are Wellbeing by Tom Rath and Jim Harter and The Antidote by Oliver Burkeman. Most importantly, though, we have an update on Chris’ famous canoe. 0:28 – Canoe Announcement 3:05 – Tweets – @hattipnick, @cashquestions 7:26 – Gallup survey linking happiness to GDP 8:55 – The basics of a Financial Plan 10:40 – The importance of conscious decision-making 11:00 – Selling a business 11:35 – The sound engineer 13:00 – Permission 14:22 – Financial Wellbeing Workshop 16:00 – Motivations 18:30 – Peer pressure & stoicism 18:50 – “Nothing outside your own mind can be truly said to be positive or negative” 20:30 – Survey comparing the Wellbeing of amputees and lottery winners 23:44 – The role of luck