Know Your Money with Bronwyn Waner and Craig Finch

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Freedom is not a luxury item you buy once you hit some magic number. For us, it is the ability to wake up and know you have choices, even when life does not go to plan. We dig into Chapter Seven, “Freedom”, from Morgan Housel’s The Psychology of Money and get honest about why so many people feel trapped despite earning well, and why others have time but not enough money to live with ease.

We talk about the real target: balancing time and money in a way that matches your lifestyle and values. That does not require billions of rands. It requires clarity on what “enough” looks like for you, steady saving, and a plan that can bring forward your options long before traditional retirement age. We also explore the hidden cost of being permanently busy, especially in demanding careers, and why chasing income without time can create problems that money cannot easily fix.

A big part of financial wellbeing is preparing for the “what ifs”. As financial planners, we do not only plan for the version of you who is working and earning today. We look at what happens if you get sick, cannot work, or need to protect your family. We link this to research on happiness that points to one powerful driver: a strong sense of control over your life. Like a farmer cannot control the weather but can prepare for drought or floods, you cannot control every curveball, but you can build resilience through smart protection, savings, and goals.

If you enjoy practical conversations about financial freedom, financial planning, and building real-life options, subscribe, share this episode with a friend, and leave us a review.

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What do you do when your investment goes down?

Do you panic, make changes and move your money somewhere that feels safer? Or do you trust the plan and stay the course?

In Episode 184 of Know Your Money, Bronwyn and Craig revisit one of their favourite books, The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel, and unpack the chapter “Tails, You Win.”

The idea is simple but powerful: you do not need every investment period, business decision or opportunity to be successful. The wins and losses are part of the same journey. What matters is being able to stay in the game long enough for the wins to make a meaningful difference.

Bronwyn and Craig discuss why investors often want to make changes when markets fall, even after enjoying strong returns in previous years. They compare three investors who approached difficult market periods differently and show how fear, hesitation and trying to predict the perfect time to invest can significantly affect long-term outcomes.

They also explore why every investment needs a clear purpose and timeline.

Money you may need soon should not be invested in the same way as money you are growing for the long term. When you understand what you are keeping, what you are saving and what you are growing, it becomes easier to ride the waves without reacting emotionally to every market movement.

This episode is a reminder that investing successfully is often less about doing something clever and more about continuing to do the right thing when everyone around you is panicking.

Sometimes the best action is patience.

And sometimes, when your long-term money is invested correctly, the best thing you can do is stop looking.

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He survives a horrific highway collision, climbs out from under a truck, and walks away with nothing but stitches and a scar. That’s where Justin’s story starts, and it’s why this conversation stays with you long after you stop listening.

We talk with Justin about the night drive from Johannesburg to Howick that turns catastrophic on the N3, and the heavy reality that another family is killed moments later. From there, the story shifts to the uncomfortable question many survivors carry: why didn’t it happen to me? Justin shares how that search for meaning eventually reshapes his career as a biokineticist, moving from chasing high-profile sport to working with people living with brain injuries, stroke, and spinal cord injury in a rehabilitation setting. It’s an honest look at purpose, dignity, and how quickly life can change.

Then we follow the thread into adaptive sport and community impact. Justin tells us about Gabriel, a young man in a wheelchair who demands a goal big enough to live for, and the handcycle challenges that follow. When batteries fail and plans fall apart, a simple tow rope, teamwork, and stubborn grit get people to the finish line. The full-circle moment comes with Wiseman’s 947 ride, where Gabriel tows him for 53km, turning inspiration into action and proving how goals can rebuild identity after trauma.

If you care about purpose-driven work, disability rehabilitation, resilience, and the real-life side of planning for the unexpected, you’ll get a lot from this one. Subscribe to Know Your Money, share this episode with someone who needs hope, and leave us a review with your biggest takeaway.

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A rollover on a misty road. Two fatalities. One survivor left with severe brain damage and the brutal reality of starting life again from scratch. We sit down with Justin to tell the story of Ari, a young man who has to relearn how to talk, eat, sit, and walk and why the money side of recovery can be the difference between “getting by” and getting the best possible care. 

What makes this story hit hard is how practical it is. We talk about the cost of long-term rehabilitation, the value of having your financial life in order, and how good decisions made years earlier can fund better hospitals, consistent therapy, and even home care. If you have ever wondered what financial planning is really for, this is it: building options when your income, health, and independence are suddenly on the line. We also touch on the quieter pieces people avoid, like support networks, planning ahead, and why a bad attitude can become its own disability. 

Then the twist: they set a goal that sounds impossible, the New York Marathon. Training starts with a short driveway and ends with 42 kilometres of grit, including a breaking point on the Queensborough Bridge, a pizza stop, a wheelchair, and a stubborn decision not to quit. Along the way we pull out real takeaways on goal setting, resilience, and breaking overwhelming challenges into small “water points” you can actually reach. 

If the story moves you, subscribe, share it with someone who needs a push, and leave a review so more people can find Know Your Money.

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One minute you are training for the next big event, the next you cannot feel your legs. That is the reality behind neurological injury, and it is why we invited Justin into the studio. He is a biokineticist who works daily with people living with brain injuries, strokes, and spinal cord injuries, and he helps run the Trojans Neurological Trust (TNT), a South African charity focused on getting people proper rehab when medical aid is missing or runs out.

We talk through how TNT starts with a small commitment from a practice team and grows into something the public can see and feel at the 947 Cycle Challenge. Chariots, tandems, and the famous “TNT train” are not just a spectacle, they are a moving fundraiser that pays for therapy sessions and keeps hope alive. Justin shares why banter and normal conversation matter in rehab, how community changes outcomes, and why the phrase “the only disability in life is a bad attitude” can be both motivating and complicated.

Then we bring it back to money. We unpack why loss of income cover and the right protection planning can stop a medical crisis turning into a family financial disaster, and how guilt, stress, and conflict often follow when there is no safety net. If you want a grounded conversation about disability, mindset, and financial planning in South Africa, press play, then subscribe, share the episode, and leave a review so more people can find it.

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Money advice is everywhere, but the real question is why we still repeat the same money patterns even when we know what to do. We sit down with Natasha Leigh Bray, founder of HeartHealing™, to talk about the emotional root causes behind spending, earning, receiving and staying stuck, and why “money problems” are often just the symptom your life can’t ignore anymore. 

Bronwyn shares how HeartHealing™ changed the way she approaches financial planning, from a purely practical process to a more human one that includes psychology, self-worth and the wheel of life. We unpack her framework of seven relationships with money and why your behaviour around saving, keeping, growing or giving is rarely random. It often comes from a place in the heart that wants love, safety, belonging or control. 

Natasha brings a striking example from her work with entrepreneurs: a client who couldn’t make money in her business despite trying everything. The breakthrough had nothing to do with pricing or strategy and everything to do with grief, identity and loyalty to a father who struggled in business. Once that relationship healed, she could move forward without losing connection, and her next launch brought in $26,000. We also talk about how a lack of money can keep people in relationships or situations they’ve outgrown, and why financial empowerment starts with believing you are worthy of choice. 

If you want a healthier money mindset, better financial decisions and a more grounded relationship with earning and receiving, listen now. Subscribe, share with a friend who feels stuck, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

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Your bank balance can look like a numbers problem while the real driver sits deeper: the story you learned about yourself. We’re joined by Natasha Leigh Bray, the creator of heart healing, to talk about why so many people do “all the right things” and still feel stuck, unworthy, anxious, or unable to receive. Heart healing works in a deeply relaxed subconscious state, blending scientific, spiritual, and energetic techniques to create rapid transformation by getting to the root of what keeps repeating.

We unpack the five universal heart wounds Natasha sees most often: enoughness, love, worth, trust, and acceptance. These are not only linked to big, obvious trauma. They can start with subtle “little” experiences, like comparison, rejection, broken promises, or not feeling seen, and then get reinforced through adult relationships and workplace dynamics. We talk about how these wounds show up as real symptoms: holding back from promotions, undercharging, people pleasing, fear of abandonment, difficulty trusting yourself, and the urge to sabotage progress right when things improve.

As financial planners, we’re obsessed with practical steps, but we also see the human behind the spreadsheet. That’s why this conversation matters for money mindset, financial planning, and long-term behaviour change. Natasha shares why healing the relationship behind a wound can shift identity, making it easier to receive money and love without pushing either away. If you’ve ever felt like you can have success or connection but not both, this will challenge that belief.

Subscribe, share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more South Africans can find the show and start building a healthier relationship with money and themselves.

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A big money moment can be the start of freedom or the start of a slow slide back to square one. We sit with the central idea from Morgan Housel’s The Psychology of Money: getting wealthy and staying wealthy are two different skills, and most people only practise the first one. A business sale, an inheritance, a market win, or a lucky property deal can create a windfall fast, but without a plan it is easy to pour everything into the next venture and wake up years later with nothing to show for it. 

We talk through the “many versions of you” that financial planning needs to protect: the you that earns, the you that retires, the you that may get sick, and the you that faces unexpected curveballs. That’s why we keep coming back to simple wealth management basics like locking away a portion for long-term compounding (think retirement annuity or a disciplined investment strategy), keeping an emergency buffer, and making sure your future self isn’t forced to carry today’s risks. 

Our practical framework is the five ways of spending: giving, spending, keeping, saving, and growing. It helps you enjoy life now while still building resilience, funding future opportunities, and protecting what matters. We also share Warren Buffett-style principles for staying wealthy: be careful with debt, don’t panic-sell during recessions, protect your reputation, don’t get stuck on one trend, and avoid relying on other people’s money. 

If you found this useful, subscribe, share it with a friend who just had a windfall, and leave a review so more people can learn how to build wealth and keep it.

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Compounding can feel like a finance buzzword, but it’s actually a simple idea that can reshape your whole money life: your growth starts earning growth. We sit down and unpack the “confounding and compounding” lesson from Morgan Housel’s The Psychology of Money, using plain language and real numbers that make the concept click. If you’ve ever wondered why your investments look slow at first, or why everyone keeps saying “start early”, this conversation is for you. 

We talk about the snowball effect of compound interest and why time is the factor most people underestimate. Warren Buffett comes up as the perfect case study: yes, he’s skilled, but his real advantage is how long he has stayed invested. That leads to a practical takeaway for long-term investing in South Africa: spend time in the market, don’t get shaken out by headlines, and focus on building a system you can stick to through market ups and downs. 

Then we get specific. We compare saving R100 a month “under the mattress” versus investing it with long-term market growth, and the gap is staggering. We also explain why escalating your monthly contribution each year matters, how inflation quietly erodes cash, and how fees can reduce your compounding over decades. Finally, we land on the habit that makes all of it easier: set a debit order, automate the escalation, and stop checking quarterly returns like they’re a scoreboard. 

If you found this helpful, subscribe, share the episode with a friend who keeps putting off investing, and leave a review so more people can learn how compounding really works.

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One of the most dangerous money problems is also the most normal: hitting a goal and immediately needing a bigger one. That “never enough” feeling can look like ambition on the outside, but inside it often brings anxiety, comparison, and decisions you would not normally make. We sit down and unpack Chapter 3 of The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel, using real stories to show how success without contentment can spiral. 
 
We talk about Bernie Madoff as an extreme example of what happens when more is never more, and how the chase can skew your morals and cloud your judgement. From there we shift into a simple but life-changing idea for personal finance and financial planning: define your enough. We explore why goals like becoming a millionaire or building investment wealth are not wrong, but they become hollow if you cannot explain what the money is meant to do for your life. 
 
We also bring in a deeper layer: the enoughness wound. Many of us carry an old belief that we are not good enough or do not have enough, and it can drive overwork, overspending, lifestyle inflation, and constant goalpost-shifting. We share how tools like the Wheel of Life and our Wheel of Wealth help you build a balanced plan across retirement, savings, family time, health, and purpose, so you can “have it all” over time, not all at once. If this resonates, subscribe, share the episode, and leave a review, then tell us: what does “enough” mean to you?

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