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It's My Money with Mags Heystek · Strictly Business

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  You're listening to Strictly Business Podcast with Lindsay Williams.
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  This edition of It's My Money is brought to you by Brenthurst Wealth, your partner
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  for global wealth creation.
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  Welcome to It's My Money.
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  It's My Money is brought to you by Brenthurst Wealth, South Africa's
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  multi-award winning boutique wealth manager.
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  Now, have a listen to this.
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  Most of us have heard of the saying January.
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  If you haven't, it's South African slang for the financial stress people often feel
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  at the start of the year.
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  a portmanteau of course, of January and worry.
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  Here now is South Africa's very own Scrooge himself to talk about what January
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  means and what causes
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  January.
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  It's Mags Haystack from Brenthurst Wealth.
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  Mags, you're not going to rain on Christmas already.
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  It hasn't even started.
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  It's only early December, but I do know what you mean.
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  No, Lindsay, as always, thanks so much.
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  And, you know, it's really more about, you know, it's called the festive period for a
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  reason.
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  And we're all having...
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  you know time with family and friends and and it's it's it's the time it's i think
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  it's the one time of the year where we can all you know let our
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  hair down and really have a good time but it's really more just of a let's say a
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  cautionary
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  tale of you know what happens once the party's finished you know the music's the
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  music's gone you're putting all the
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  empty bottles away and and you actually still you
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  know have to come back to reality and the the article that i is really just about...
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  you know how do you prevent that financial stress you know you know what happens in
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  the weeks after new
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  year's and christmas and you know just you know keeping a little bit of a bit of
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  sense in your spending and
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  and you know just trying to help people just to you know rain in rain in their
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  spending i can remember horribly horribly
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  the memories really haunt me is when you get paid um you get paid early in december
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  normally sometimes you might get a
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  bonus that was the old days.
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  And so you've got all this money sitting there and you think, OK, it's the time of
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  year where I'm going to let my hair down.
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  I had a bit of a year.
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  So let's let's splurge.
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  And it comes to mid-January and you're still two or three weeks away from your
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  paycheck.
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  And everything's gone.
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  And it really is the most depressing time, Max.
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  No, 100 percent.
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  It's the it's the post-holiday blues.
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  You know, for a lot of families, it's the start of the new school year.
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  And that comes with its own.
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  let's say, list of expenses and it's clothing and shoes and books and
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  everything else.
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  And for those who don't have kids, you know, you still have quite a bit of time,
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  you know,
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  before that next paycheck hits your bank account.
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  And like you said, you know, for a lot of people who do actually, you know, have
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  the, let's say,
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  benefit of a 13th check, you know, first and foremost, very, very fortunate.
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  Not everyone is, you know, going to be getting something like that.
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  But it's just a very good time, you know, just, you know,
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  kind of have a checklist before you start your festivities.
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  Yes, indeed.
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  And the first check is on your list anyway.
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  Avoid credit.
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  Why do you say that?
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  Is it because it's so tempting just to whip that credit card out in the shops and
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  away you go and don't think about it without what you might
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  normally do during the year?
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  And that is sort of calculate what you've spent.
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  You just get carried away with the whole situation.
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  What's your point here?
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  Yeah, so, you know, I'm going to...
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  give you a little bit of, you know, insight maybe from friends or family just
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  over the years.
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  And, you know, a comment that, you know, stuck with me is that someone said, oh,
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  you know,
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  I've had to max out my credit card because they had to buy X, Y, and Z.
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  And that always stuck with me because it's such a risky maneuver when you're using
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  credit because the
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  biggest problem with credit is those extremely high interest rates that are,
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  you know, that are going to catch up with you.
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  and very, very quickly.
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  You know, obviously, you know, in my opinion, again, you know,
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  the commentary and whatever we write,
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  it's not aimed at anyone specifically and everyone's circumstances are completely
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  different.
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  But credit is a very, very difficult way of trying to rein in your spending because
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  it's the proverbial
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  kicking the can down the road.
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  You know, if you're using credit for...
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  gifts and travel and holidays and all of that, it's just going to actually put you
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  in an even worse off position, you know,
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  next year.
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  So it's just to say, you know, if you have the ability, try not to dip into that line
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  of credit unnecessarily.
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  I've spoken to colleagues of yours before about credit and credit cards and credit
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  cards can be very,
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  very useful indeed, if managed properly.
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  So don't let...
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  that your discipline of the previous 11 months run away with you in the 12th
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  month.
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  In other words, just stick to your guns on that one.
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  Second point you make is be realistic.
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  And I would add to that, Mags, manage expectations as well,
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  because other people have expectations of you during this period.
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  Yeah.
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  And, you know, again, it's the lead up to Christmas and then it's Christmas and, you
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  know,
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  all the other religious holidays during this time period.
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  and it's a time where...
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  Families are getting together and Those events cost money.
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  It's food.
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  It's, let's say, you know, everything else that comes with it.
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  It's gifts.
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  It's traveling and petrol.
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  All of these things, you know, they can add up very, very, very quickly.
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  And it's just to say, you know, if you've been spending a certain way, don't let
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  your guard down completely.
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  You can still have a good time and, you know, definitely enjoy it.
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  Go out and, you know, have a fantastic time,
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  but just be realistic in the sense of you know how much you have let's say, to work
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  with.
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  You know that there are obviously expenses coming your way.
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  Be realistic in the sense of, you know, don't overspend and then worry about it
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  next year.
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  Don't, you know, start the, let's say, the new year on a bad foot.
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  Quite right.
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  Set a budget.
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  Now, that's very difficult when you're getting nagged by partners, family,
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  children, etc.
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  And you're under emotional pressure.
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  So to sit down and set a budget at this time of year takes a lot of discipline,
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  Max.
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  Yeah.
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  No, I fully agree with you.
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  And I think, you know, we're all guilty of it.
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  And, you know, someone made a comment, you know, I was talking about this podcast
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  earlier.
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  And they said, you know, this is the time when people change their palates.
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  And, you know, they've been ordering, you know, and excuse anyone who doesn't drink,
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  but, you know, they've been ordering.
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  KWV, three-year-old the whole year.
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  Now they decide they're going to go for a 10-year-old.
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  You know, I thought it was quite funny.
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  And it's, you know, that can apply to anything.
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  It can apply to, let's say, your standards of going out and everything else.
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  And setting a budget is just an easy way of saying, okay, I know exactly how much
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  money I'm going to be earning because we obviously,
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  only at the beginning of December now, you know how much you're going to be earning.
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  Just put enough away that, you know, will get you through.
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  the rest of the 300 days of January.
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  You know, the budget is just a good way to understand, am I on the right track?
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  Am I maybe a little bit behind?
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  Maybe I'm doing better than expected.
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  And it would just enable you to just have a more manageable January and not,
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  again, not being in a position where, you know, things are a little bit tighter and
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  we're having to now make those cuts.
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  Everyone can have a good time if you just, again, going back to point number two, be
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  realistic, set a budget, and just, you know,
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  try to keep a rein on exactly what is going on of your bank account.
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  Just give us a tip on how we should set a budget.
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  I mean, it's all very well saying, right, I've got X amount for the month of
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  December.
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  But I think you have to allocate the money to different areas of Christmas and New
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  Year
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  or whatever it is you're celebrating, don't you think?
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  And you have to sort of prioritize certain events and certain expenditure.
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  Yeah, so it's something I've discussed in the past.
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  You know, the most important thing is to put away the money that you need.
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  That is, you know, there's no question about, you know, you have to pay rent or
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  bond and electricity and everything else.
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  That is vital.
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  That is vital money that you need, maybe petrol and all of that.
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  And then understanding, okay, I've got X amount.
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  You know, this is what we can do.
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  And yeah, split it over.
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  In this case, it would be five weeks.
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  because I think most companies are paying their staff earlier in December.
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  So it's not now the usual four weeks.
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  It's now five weeks.
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  And again, keeping track on that.
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  I mean, also in my article, you know, I did go a little bit technical, you know,
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  talking about marginal propensity to consume, you know, which was an economic
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  theory by
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  John Keynes.
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  And long story short, it basically says that when people earn more, they tend to
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  spend more.
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  And that could be, you know, vitally important in December.
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  Again, going back to that 13th check,
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  you might have some people who now have a lot more money than they used to getting
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  on a monthly basis.
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  And from a psychological point of view, they tend to spend more because the
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  perception is that they have more.
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  So that's going again into very technical details to say don't get caught in that
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  trap.
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  Don't think just because you have more, you should be spending more.
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  Like you said, you know, the scrooge in me is to say it's all about making sure that,
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  you know,
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  you're just having a good time and that stress is, you know, hopefully next to
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  next to null, you know,
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  when 2026 comes around.
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  NPC may be a Keynesian theory, but on the other hand, it's to me, it's just simply
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  human nature.
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  It's what we are.
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  We're fragile creatures.
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  OK, the final point you make is save now, benefit later.
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  Put something in the back pocket, put something metaphorically under the
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  mattress.
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  if you would, so that when everyone else is struggling a bit, you can sail through
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  that January.
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  Yeah.
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  And again, it's each person is different.
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  And, you know, it's, you know, if you look at our society, yes, I'm fully aware, you
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  know,
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  there are a lot of people who are, let's say, in different financial positions.
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  And it's not about pointing out certain tips that let's say, apply to,
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  you know, person A, but maybe not person B, because they're in different, let's
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  say, income brackets.
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  I think everyone has the ability to manage their finances on their own.
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  Not to sound too direct, but, you know,
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  people should just take a bit of time to plan their finances better.
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  I mean, we're all planning our year-end functions and Christmas parties and New
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  Year's parties.
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  Take a bit of time and actually plan your finances.
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  I mean, that's really the...
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  in my honest opinion, the way that people should be doing that.
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  And, you know, to summarize, it's just going to take a lot of the stress and
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  headaches and all of that.
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  And we've all been there.
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  I think it's quite obvious.
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  But it's just going to make sure that, let's say, that transition into
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  January and eventually February is just going to be a lot smoother.
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  And also back to whatever you're celebrating at this time of year, it's not
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  all about money either.
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  You can be creative even if you don't have a fat pile of...
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  of cash sitting there to splurge on what would seem to be, anyway, a traditional
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  way of celebrating.
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  You can be creative with your holidays.
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  And it's about a lot more than money, I think, Max.
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  Yes, it's definitely a lot more about money, in my opinion.
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  It's about spending time with family, loved ones, friends, and all of that.
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  But the financial aspect has a tendency of creating a lot of issues, in my opinion.
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  It is a very, very large source of stress.
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  I think for most of us, let's not even lie.
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  And really, it's all good intentions with the comments.
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  It's nothing sinister or, you know, what's the word I'm looking for.
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  We're not trying to be, you know, making anyone feel guilty.
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  No, not cynical necessarily, but I'm not trying to make anyone feel guilty.
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  It's not a guilt trip.
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  It's just to say, here's a few tips.
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  Keep this in mind.
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  And at the end of the day, enjoy the festive season.
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  And yeah, let's see what happens.
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  Let's hope that we all do.
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  And Mags, thank you very much for that great advice.
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  I hope you have a good Christmas and New Year.
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  And thanks very much for your contributions throughout 2025.
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  That was Mags Haystack.
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  And that was It's My Money.
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  It's My Money was brought to you by Brenthurst Wealth, an award-winning
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  boutique wealth management company.