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What do you hope to achieve via your platforms?

To reach as many women as possible and to help women become more confident in their decisions when it comes to money.

What are key financial lessons to enable financial freedom?

• Live within your means – spend less than you earn and invest the difference.

• Build your emergency fund – aim for at least 3-6 months of your monthly expenses.

• Avoid debt like the plague!

• Invest for your future.

What are key steps to ensure financial security?

*Practice consciousness when it comes to your finances – look at your wants versus needs.

*Be goal-orientated and ask yourself this question when it comes to big and small purchases: does this purchase move me closer to my financial goals or not?

*It is also important to not only save but invest your money, so it retains its purchasing power.

Considering the costs related to having children, what would you advise parents?

Planning is important from the onset. Start planning and saving as soon as possible. Kids are expensive but planning will help parents to not feel overwhelmed. Think about where you would like to send your kids to school and what financial decisions you have to take to make that a reality.

What are some of the biggest lessons you learned since becoming a mum?

Have an emergency fund! You have to stay prepared because as any mother will tell you, expenses always come up.

What do you feel helps a relationship when it comes to managing finances?

Honesty, transparency and having a shared vision and financial goals. Talking about money together and planning. Not burying your head in the sand even when things don’t go as planned.

How has your life changed since becoming a wife and mother?

Before having kids, we would on a whim go on a weekend away, but now we have to plan around our boys, work schedules and finances.

When is a good time to start teaching children financial responsibility?

From as early as possible, but it has to be age appropriate. Children are very observant and also learn by seeing how their parents interact with money. So, it’s important for parents to talk about money with them and to involve them in certain aspects of money management e.g. getting them a piggy bank and reinforcing with them that before they spend, they need to save. Giving kids tasks for which they could earn money.

It's also very important to teach kids patience and that they cannot always get everything whenever they want. As a parent you are allowed to say no! For example, my oldest son has asked for a Nintendo and we told him he will have to wait until his birthday to receive it. As a result, he is always coming up with ideas on how to earn extra money around the house so he can save up for his games!

How do you maintain balance?

For balance, I still try to make time for myself and do things that set my soul on fire. As cliché as this sounds the more I pour into myself and love myself, it becomes so much easier to pour into my family and friends. I go on solo retreat three times a year. I also love holidays, going to the gym and have a great support system in the form of having a helper, my sisters and parents.

What would you say is your greatest achievement thus far?

Being comfortable with who I am and showing up in the world more and more as my authentic self, knowing that I am enough. Knowing that I belong on a seat at the table, and I can take up space. I also take pride in the fact that I think I am brave, and I stretch myself even when I am afraid.

What has been your greatest challenge, and how did you overcome it?

Definitely being hard on myself. Whenever I don’t reach certain goals I always criticise myself but as I get older, I realise that life doesn’t always go the way we want and I am embracing that.

What are some of your future goals?

To grow my company Woman & Finance into a fully-fledged educational website where people can find multiple online courses on personal finance, eBooks, tools, calculators, 1-on-1 sessions, webinars and more. To evolve it into a business that doesn’t require me to be on social media as much. To be a part-time lecturer, write another personal finance book (maybe a few more!), buy a property on a quiet island, live in New York for a month and lastly, to take my parents, siblings and their families on a 2-week holiday somewhere stunning like Bali. They have always believed in me and I’d love to experience this with them.

What would surprise people about you?

That I am actually very adventurous, I like to try new things. I’ve been bungee jumping, ziplining and more, and am now planning on skydiving. 

Snapshot with Mapalo Makhu

A typical day in the Makhu household: get our oldest boy ready for school, make him lunch, drop-off at school, go to gym, meetings, work (filming content, writing an article, delivering a task for a client, doing a webinar), get big brother from school, finish up work, cooking, doing home learning, read a book to the boys, and put the boys to sleep (my husband and I share most of these tasks). And then, write down tasks that I need to complete the following day in terms of work.

Favourite family activity: Hiking, eating out

Favourite food: All seafood

Hobbies: reading, home décor, gardening

Favourite destination: Franshoek in SA, Koh Samui in Thailand

Super-power: Being able to adapt to change

Greatest part of being a mum: Getting to see my kids grow, just experiencing them has been my greatest blessing

Personal philosophy: I have many but here are a few: What you seek is seeking you. – Rumi

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. – Proverbs 29

In the end, I will say, I have lived my life and not merely accepted it. Embrace joy!

SHU-FLEECE SLEEPSUITS

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