Her Money Matters

In this episode of the Her Money Matters podcast, Naomi and Helene unpack why so many women avoid money, what’s really going on underneath that avoidance, and why it has nothing to do with intelligence or being “bad with numbers.” More often than not, it’s about feeling like it is a discipline or something you 'should' do, and that very often there are so many other things happening in your life that you just don't have the emotional bandwidth to deal with it.

We explore the psychology behind money avoidance, the relationship dynamics that can reinforce it, and the subtle ways it erodes confidence over time. We talk openly about fear of getting it wrong, outsourcing financial decisions to a partner, over-researching instead of deciding, and the emotional cost of staying disengaged.

What money avoidance actually looks like in everyday life

Why avoiding money is rarely about ability or knowledge

The psychology underneath money avoidance and emotional safety

Why these patterns show up more often in women

The three most common money avoidance patterns we see

What genuinely builds confidence with money

We finish with our Loving Kick Up the Bum, with practical tips to help you take just one small step.  Confidence doesn’t come from knowing everything, it comes getting your hands dirty one little bit at a time.

In this episode of the Her Money Matters podcast, Naomi and Helene introduce the Love Your Super series — designed to help you  think about super based on your life story, and to try and imagine that your super fund is your best friend that follows your through life.

In this theme, we explore the anthem of You're My Best Friend by Queen as our Pop Culture Reference, we really focus on your life timeline and that super has travelled with you through different jobs, employers, and stages.  We also cover why learning to love your super helps you make sense of market ups and downs, including 2025’s super fund returns.

Naomi breaks down actual calendar-year performance, explaining how balanced super funds are designed to perform across market cycles, and why one negative year doesn’t mean something has gone wrong but it is a reason to check in with your fund. Helene then leads a conversation on the psychology of trust and money, and how feeling safe and connected leads to better financial decisions.

To support practical action and to provide a simple tool to help uncover what’s really driving your money behaviours, Helene introduces the De Martini Benefits and Drawbacks exercise which you can find here: 

We provide a risk profile tool to help you determine how much of your super fund you should have in growth assets versus defensive assets which you can find here:

 In this episode we cover:

Helping you to connect to your super fund and see it as a reflection of your life

The actual 2025 super fund returns for Australian shares and Balanced funds

The Top 5 performing balanced super funds in 2025

The top 5 performing balanced super funds over the past 10 years

Check in on your super like you would a trusted friend. Open your super app, review your 2025 performance, and get familiar as this will be one of the best things you can do to help the Future You. If you need help reading your statement, head back to Episode 21 or reach out to either Naomi or Helene if you need more help.

High school education costs — what families really pay under the public system, Catholic schools, and independent schools, and why high school is often where education becomes a meaningful cashflow decision.

University costs and HECS-HELP — how much a typical degree costs, how the HECS system works, and the long-term impact of paying upfront versus carrying education debt.

Helping the next generation — the role parents and grandparents often play in funding education, and how options like education bonds can provide a structured and intentional way to support future learning.

This episode is Part Two of our two-part goal-setting series for 2026, and it’s all about what happens after the inspiration fades. Last week, we talked about why goals matter, the psychology behind them, and how to get clear on what you want through things like vision boards and manifestation. This week, we move into the real work, which is how to stay on track.

Joined by my partner in crime, Helene Psarakis, we unpack the systems, structures and behaviours that actually help goals survive real life. We talk about why motivation isn’t enough, how habits and small steps create momentum, and why accountability can dramatically improve follow-through.

We also dive into the importance of recording and tracking your goals, the role automation can play in reducing friction, and how to set yourself up for consistency rather than perfection. Along the way, we bust the 21-day habit myth, share the research that really matters, and give you practical ways to put all of this into action.

And yes — we bring in a little pop culture fun with I’m So Excited by the Pointer Sisters, because that feeling of excitement doesn’t come from thinking about goals. It comes from knowing you’ve started.

Why staying on track is harder than setting goals

The psychology behind habits, small steps and consistency

How recording and tracking goals increases follow-through

Why accountability buddies work — and how to use them properly

The truth about habit formation and the 21-day myth

How automation removes friction and supports progress

Practical ways to keep goals alive throughout the year

If you set goals for 2026 and want to actually achieve them, this episode will help you put the right structures in place — without pressure, guilt or unrealistic expectations.

Welcome to the first episode of 2026.

Every January, we dust off the same New Year’s resolution playbook. Do better. Be more disciplined. Finally get your money sorted. And every year, most of those resolutions quietly disappear by the end of January, leaving a familiar mix of frustration and self blame behind.

In this episode, I talk about why that happens, and why it has very little to do with motivation or willpower. Resolutions are usually disconnected from real life, especially for women in their forties, fifties and sixties who are juggling work, family, money, ageing parents and everything else that comes with this stage of life.

We dig into why money resolutions feel particularly heavy, how deeply held beliefs and identity shape behaviour far more than good intentions, and why chasing outcomes without changing how you see yourself rarely leads to lasting change.

From there, the conversation shifts to a different approach.

I break down the science behind manifestation in a practical, no nonsense way, focusing on what actually works. We talk about focus, visualisation and emotion, why clarity matters, and how tools like vision boards and designing your ideal day can help turn intention into action when they are grounded in reality.

This episode is about starting 2026 without the pressure to fix yourself. It is about designing your days with intention, building momentum in a way that feels sustainable, and creating a year that supports the life you actually want to live.

Here is the link to The Wheel Of Life