Today's episode is on 3 things to consider before you start investing.

1. Outline your expenses and break them up into monthly amounts. 

2. Save enough money to cover up to 6 months worth of expenses (an emergency fund). 

3. Create a money buffer - do not spend the money you earned yesterday, instead use the money you earned 3/4 months ago to cover your expenses today.

For podcast notes check out walimahara.com, if you have any questions reach out to me on Instagram @wali_mahara

Self-awareness is a key component of growth as it empowers us to make the necessary changes for growth. It is always a good idea to be realistic about what you know and what you do not know. And if these knowledge gaps are preventing you from achieving your goals, wisdom requires us to actively find ways to overcome this hurdle by learning more. There are various ways you can learn, i.e. from your own personal experience or by looking at the experience of others. One way of learning about the experience of others is by reading books.

Follow me on instagram @wali_mahara

This bonus episode is a spontaneous conversation with one of my best friends Merveille. The time was after midnight and the date was Valentine’s Day, we were having a conversation on the topic of "The One." We are talking about whether the one exits and what the one would look like? ... Feel to reach out on Instagram on @wali_mahara

In this episode we talk about the traits to look for in a good friendship. These are in no particular order and are by no means an extensive list (there is so much you can add). 

1. You have similar core values. Your core values are fundamental to what makes you, you as a person. This often determine your choices and lifestyle. 2. Look for people who are not entitled. Friendship is supposed to be mutually beneficial. None of the parties in this friendship are a charity or a non-profit. 3.Look for people who celebrate your wins. When you win, they are honestly happy for you and they also want to see you win. 4. They are there for you when you need them the most. 5. They push you to become better and challenge your views so that you can grow as a person. Said differently, the more you spend time with them, the more you achieve your goals and become better. 5. Look for people who do not victimise, control, or want      to censor you. A healthy friendship is a platform where you do not feel insecure but become more self-confident. 6. Look for people who will not go out of their way to offend you, they are not aggressive, violent, or narcissistic. 7. They do not negatively affect your relationship with God, your family, partners, and other friends as well - obviously within reason. 8. You are not embarrassed by them and you know exactly why you are friends with them. You see the value that this person has in your life and you see your life becoming better as a result of this friendship.

Why is it that once a woman reaches a certain age, almost "everyone" feels that it is their duty to ensure that she meets the perfect man, settles down and becomes married? This episode is dedicated to all the people that have wanted to hook me up with their cousins, their brothers, strangers, their friends, brothers friends or even a random guy they met on the train... If you have any ideas for future episodes, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram @wali_mahara

This episode is a combination of clips from the "9 AM Club", a Saturday morning devotion and bible study catch-up. Our discussion was based on the book of Daniel where we focused on Promoted from a biblical perspective. As always, if you have any questions feel free to reach out to me on Instagram: @wali_mahara

In this episode I talk about the trade off between planning for the future and the risk that the future might not come. The conclusion is that, we should aim to be in a perfect balance where we live for today whilst also planning for tomorrow (almost like an insurance mechanism). If you have any questions please feel free to send me a message on Instagram @wali_mahara

This episode is a a basic introduction to the stock market, the agenda is as follows: 1. What the stock market is, 2. What the stock is, 4. How stocks are categorised and 5. UK platforms you can use for investing/ trading (full disclosure, I use Trading 212 and Vanguard). Note: that I am not a certified financial advisor, PLEASE DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

If you have any questions please feel free to send me a message on Instagram @wali_mahara

Trading 212 referral link to get a free stock worth up to ‎£⁠100!

www.trading212.com/invite/HEpt5xDy

I would highly recommend these videos, if you are looking to take a deeper dive into the topics discussed here:

https://youtu.be/fb1WlR0DOPc

https://youtu.be/bJHr6_skXWc

Top Instagram pages for finance: @finimize; @millennialmoneyuk; @morningbrew

In this episode I discuss how you can set goals for the year 2021 and beyond. This way of goal setting or planning based on a December 2020 Episode from the Radical Personal Finance Podcast with Joshua Sheats. The key takeaway from the podcast is that your dreams should be as big and as wild as you would like them. From there, pretend you have already achieved your dreams and then work backwards specifying the exact steps you took and how you reached your targets.