Ready...Set...Money

Maybe you’re tired of your labour being exploited for someone else’s profit, or how toxic your workplace is, or being evaluated for the quantity of time you spend in the office instead of the quality of the work you do.

If you’re thinking of starting what the kids these days call a side hustle, or what people at my advanced stage of life call “a business”, this episode is for you.

Nobody wants to talk about life and disability insurance, at least, not with the people who sell it hard, and man - I get it. But if you depend on your ability to work to pay the bills, or if other people depend on you for their food and shelter, you should at least think about it.

If you’re in a position to put money away for the future, knowing the basics of Tax Free Savings Accounts and Registered Retirement Savings Plan can help you decide what kind of account makes the most sense…for you, specifically.

If you’re even a little bit interested in money, you’re going to encounter RRSPs. They’re everywhere, especially during RRSP season, that 60 days at the beginning of the year when everyone, including your uncle, is trying to get you to contribute.

RRSPs aren’t a bad thing. They’re not a good thing. They’re a tool that might be useful to you, and the more you know, the more useful they can be.

Old Age Security is the closest thing to a universal basic income we have in Canada, and more than 95% of seniors get it. For more than a third of Canadians, it’s a major piece of their income pie.

Knowing how it works, even if you aren’t old enough to get it, is going to be relevant to you someday, I can almost guarantee it.

The Canada Pension Plan, or CPP, has been around for sixty years, but most of us don’t think much about it except when we notice it on our paycheques, or have to pay it all at once on our self-employed earnings come tax time.

For lots of people, CPP is a major piece of their income pie when they stop working. It might be for you too. It’s also a payment you have to make with every paycheque, or - if you’re self-employed - in addition to your income tax at the end of the year. Isn’t it important to know where your money is going and when you can expect it back?

Today’s episode is about the basics of income tax, and there’s a lot to know (plus, it’s so much fun…for a certain value of fun). It’s worth the whole nine minutes though, because familiarity decreases anxiety, less anxiety means more ability to think clearly, and thinking clearly means better decision making and more power over your own life.

Today’s episode is a long one, because your employee benefits (if you have them) are important to Present You and to Future You, and it takes time to understand what they are and how they work. And, fair warning: this episode has homework.

If you’re one of those few, those happy few with a defined benefit pension plan, let’s talk about the four most important questions you might want to know the answers to: when you’ll get it, how much you’ll get, whether it’s going to increase with the cost of living, and what happens if you leave your job before you retire. Find out where to get all this information (and who to talk to if you can’t) in today’s episode.

The evidence is in: when disaster hits, your first responders are probably not going to be actual first responders. They’re going to be your neighbours. Investing in your community is more than just an insurance policy against dealing with a bad situation on your own, though: it’s also a great way to build a better world, one block at a time.