Latest news with #consciously
Winnipeg Free Press
7 hours ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
How to get the best bang for your (extra) buck in a three-paycheque month
Some extra cash may be about to land in your bank account. But don't label that third paycheque a bonus, experts warn. 'What happens a lot of time is when we have this extra come in, we treat it as extra,' said Christine White, a certified financial planner with Money Coaches Canada. White said she typically sees two reactions from her clients: those who didn't realize an extra paycheque was coming, and those who get excited about it. Canadians who get paid biweekly receive 26 paycheques spread across 12 months, which means there are two months in the year when they will get three paycheques. This year, if your first paycheque was received on Friday, Jan. 3, the months of January and August will be your three-payday months. If your first paycheque was Jan. 10, you'll receive three paycheques in May and October. White suggests it's important to have a plan for the money before it hits your bank account. 'If we know we're going to have these two three-pay months and we have a plan for them, then we can decide consciously and with intention what we want to spend it on,' White said. For Sara McCullough, she says she generally ignores the two extra paycheques when building monthly budgets for her clients. 'I base their income and expenses on two paycheques a month,' said McCullough, a certified financial planner and founder of WD Development. Then, she looks into what could be done with the additional cash. In her opinion, it could go under one of four categories: catch-up, buffer for upcoming bills, breathing room and future you. The extra paycheque could be an opportunity for many Canadians to catch up on paying down credit card bills or a line of credit, she said. McCullough said it could also just serve as a buffer amount in the bank. 'This might not be total bonus money,' she said. 'There's a known expense coming up. 'Your best option in that case is to let it stay in your account,' McCullough added. If someone is already ahead on their catch-up and cash cushion needs, the extra money opens up room for getting ahead. 'The get-ahead breathing room is when you're not carrying high-interest debt, and your other months are functioning smoothly,' McCullough said. This could be a chance for people to build up their emergency fund, or replenish amounts set aside for house repairs, vacations or their next vehicle, for example. Then comes the 'future you' category, McCullough said. '(If) you don't see any big expense that you would need money for, then we can look at a TFSA or first home savings account contribution,' she said. White said this could also be an opportunity for Canadians hoping to build up savings for a down payment but stuck in the paycheque-to-paycheque cycle. She suggested putting that extra cash into savings twice a year automatically — helping build that nest egg. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. But it doesn't always have to be tied to financial goals and debt. 'We have a lot of competing demands for our money, or a lot of things we want to do at the same time,' White said. She often tells her clients to divide the extra paycheque across several goals — a third for debt, a third to have fun and a third for investing, for example. 'Then, you feel a little bit responsible, but also a little bit of joy from it,' White said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025.
Hamilton Spectator
7 hours ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
How to get the best bang for your (extra) buck in a three-paycheque month
Some extra cash may be about to land in your bank account. But don't label that third paycheque a bonus, experts warn. 'What happens a lot of time is when we have this extra come in, we treat it as extra,' said Christine White, a certified financial planner with Money Coaches Canada. White said she typically sees two reactions from her clients: those who didn't realize an extra paycheque was coming, and those who get excited about it. Canadians who get paid biweekly receive 26 paycheques spread across 12 months, which means there are two months in the year when they will get three paycheques. This year, if your first paycheque was received on Friday, Jan. 3, the months of January and August will be your three-payday months. If your first paycheque was Jan. 10, you'll receive three paycheques in May and October. White suggests it's important to have a plan for the money before it hits your bank account. 'If we know we're going to have these two three-pay months and we have a plan for them, then we can decide consciously and with intention what we want to spend it on,' White said. For Sara McCullough, she says she generally ignores the two extra paycheques when building monthly budgets for her clients. 'I base their income and expenses on two paycheques a month,' said McCullough, a certified financial planner and founder of WD Development. Then, she looks into what could be done with the additional cash. In her opinion, it could go under one of four categories: catch-up, buffer for upcoming bills, breathing room and future you. The extra paycheque could be an opportunity for many Canadians to catch up on paying down credit card bills or a line of credit, she said. McCullough said it could also just serve as a buffer amount in the bank. 'This might not be total bonus money,' she said. 'There's a known expense coming up. 'Your best option in that case is to let it stay in your account,' McCullough added. If someone is already ahead on their catch-up and cash cushion needs, the extra money opens up room for getting ahead. 'The get-ahead breathing room is when you're not carrying high-interest debt, and your other months are functioning smoothly,' McCullough said. This could be a chance for people to build up their emergency fund, or replenish amounts set aside for house repairs, vacations or their next vehicle, for example. Then comes the 'future you' category, McCullough said. '(If) you don't see any big expense that you would need money for, then we can look at a TFSA or first home savings account contribution,' she said. White said this could also be an opportunity for Canadians hoping to build up savings for a down payment but stuck in the paycheque-to-paycheque cycle. She suggested putting that extra cash into savings twice a year automatically — helping build that nest egg. But it doesn't always have to be tied to financial goals and debt. 'We have a lot of competing demands for our money, or a lot of things we want to do at the same time,' White said. She often tells her clients to divide the extra paycheque across several goals — a third for debt, a third to have fun and a third for investing, for example. 'Then, you feel a little bit responsible, but also a little bit of joy from it,' White said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025.
Scoop
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
On Why The Regulatory Standards Bill Is A Hot Mess
When the politician pushing a controversial piece of legislation starts accusing his critics of derangement syndrome as David Seymour has done this week then any chance of a rational debate on the Regulatory Standards Bill has gone When the politician pushing a controversial piece of legislation starts accusing his critics of 'derangement syndrome' – as David Seymour has done this week – then any chance of a rational debate on the Regulatory Standards Bill has gone out the window. Seymour's tantrum confirms the fears held by constitutional experts (and by many of the public) that Seymour is unfit to wield the powers conferred on him by this legislation. The Bill is a hot mess. That may be intentional. Is it a genuine power grab on behalf of corporates and foreign investors? Or is it a toothless rollcall of libertarian platitudes? Or is it something in between…say, a shot across the bow of the courts meant to chill their enthusiasm for upholding any environmental right or consumer protection that the business sector is known to oppose? For Seymour, reaching clarity on any of this may be irrelevant. After all, the politics of polarisation consciously generates fear and heat and anger; its what turns society into rival tribes, for the purposes of divide and rule. As with the Treaty Principles Bill, stirring up the liberal Establishment is one of the main goals of the exercise. In other words, it doesn't really matter if the Regulatory Standards Bill gets passed, for not. For ACT, it will have served its purpose if it merely becomes a media circus, in which Seymour gets to tread the parliamentary sawdust once more as the ringmaster, while the rest of the public cheers and jeers. That's how politics-as-performance works. It is never mainly meant to be a politics of substance. If it works out that way, that's only a bonus. Seeing red at red tape All along, Seymour's tendency to equate 'regulation' with ' red tape' has signalled the ideological bias behind his pet project. The Regulatory Standards Bill happens to be targeted at the body of environmental, consumer, workplace and Treaty-based regulations that have been developed since the 1970s to meet the needs of a modern, pluralistic society. No doubt, regulations are annoying and bothersome to the narcissists in our midst, but most of the time, those rules exist for a reason. They make society more liveable, for the majority of us. A social safety net is a hindrance only to the sort of people who never have to rely on it. Back to the Future Unfortunately, this means that the public has to explain patiently to the likes of Seymour, Federated Farmers and BusinessNZ that central government should respond (a)when extreme weather conditions driven by climate change wreak havoc on communities and households (b) when rivers and lakes get polluted for profit (c) when fishing stocks are driven to the brink of collapse (d) when our rate of workplace fatalities exceeds those in comparable countries (d) when predatory pricing is rife at banks and supermarkets and (e)when Māori health statistics continue to deteriorate… etc etc. You get the picture. Telling monolithic sectors of the economy that they have to act responsibly in the public good isn't socialism; its how a viable social democracy works. If anything we need more forms of co-ordinated action by central and local government to address the inequities in society. Instead, the coalition government seems to be intent on unloading the cost and responsibility onto individuals, households and communities. It seems to be intent on atomising society, not on bringing it together. Needless to say, this political philosophy – it relies a lot on stoking fear and greed, division and resentment – prepares us badly for the social and environmental challenges that New Zealand is facing over the next 25 years. In that respect, the Regulatory Standards Bill is a real throwback. It is as retro as the acid-wash jeans and shoulder pads fashionable during the mid 1980s high summer of neo-liberal thinking. And because the political worldview of Seymour (and his corporate sponsors) seem to be frozen in that primitive period of mid-1980s market economics, there's a historical dimension missing entirely from the draft Bill. Basically, there are no criteria for discerning' good' regulation from 'bad' regulation, beyond the whims and prejudices of the people chosen (by Seymour) to administer the legislation. What could possibly go wrong? While this may not be apparent to the ACT Party, regulation isn't just about red tape and bureaucracy getting in the way of the buccaneers of the boardroom. For the century preceding the 1980s, regulators working in tandem with government, business and (to a lesser extent, unions) created the rules that have governed market competition. Capitalism thrived under this regime. In a recent essay in Washington Monthly, Phillip Longman spelled out just how far into the engine room of the economy those regulations reached. The majority of the public were employed, housed and fed by these egalitarian rules, to an extent that free market economics has failed miserably to match. Here's Longman, listing some of those beneficial regulations: Which kind of banks could operate here and how much interest could they charge, or pay? What rates could railroads or airlines set for transporting various types of cargo or passengers over different distances? How much profit could investors in electric utilities or telecommunication companies make, and what customers were they required to serve, and at what prices? Point being, these rules were the product of a collaborative process, not the result of a deliberately divisive one. It was a process that did not toss the lessons of the past onto a regulatory bonfire: Working with industry, federal lawmakers and regulators hashed out rules that determined who could enter and exit different key sectors, what terms of service they could impose and with whom they could merge. During America's century-long rise as a capitalist superpower, such market rules fit together to form an increasingly sophisticated and pervasive system. That system has been called 'regulated competition.' Sure, there was some regulatory capture, on occasions. But at the time, there was a shared understanding that if left unregulated, market forces will naturally converge into a few dominant players, who will then prey on their captive customers. That's what we're seeing now with our banks, supermarkets and electricity companies, and what we saw with our telcos in the recent past. It may sound like a paradox, but 'free' markets have to be constantly regulated in order to remain free. No doubt, this is a fallible process. Arguably, Big Tech today needs to be regulated for anti-trust purposes in the same way as the US oil magnates, railway barons and meat packing companies were in the past. Unfortunately it is these kind of 'sophisticated and pervasive' systems of regulation that Seymour and his boardroom friends are demonising (and wish to tear down) for their short term political and economic gain. The folly of doing so has already been demonstrated in post-Thatcher Britain, where devastated communities are now turning to Nigel Farage for their salvation. Likewise in the US, the millions of victims of de-regulated market forces have turned to Donald Trump. In New Zealand the same quackery – remove the chains of regulation and set our entrepreneurial spirit free! – is being preached to us by David Seymour. We need to oppose it, tooth and nail. Footnote: In the light of the coalition government's attitude to the coercive contracts now common within the gig economy – sign away your employment rights or you won't get the job – it is interesting to read this paragraph written by the US Supreme Court judges 114 years ago, as they ordered the breaking up of the oil empire of America's first billionaire, John D Rockefeller, into over 30 smaller companies. In England and in the US before 1911, the Supreme Court said: … Public policy has been to prohibit, or treat as illegal, contracts, or acts entered into with intent to wrong the public and which unreasonably restrict competitive conditions, limit the right of individuals, restrain the free flow of commerce, or bring about public evils such as the enhancement of prices. Sheesh. If only New Zealand would prohibit (or treat as illegal) coercive contracts that limit the rights of individuals, wrong the public, restrict competition and foster public evils such as price fixing by supermarkets and electricity companies. Unfortunately, the simple-minded worldview being promoted by the Regulatory Standards Bill will make such public evils more likely, not less so. The Dark Star of Inflation There isn't an obvious link between central banking and the Grateful Dead. Yet two years ago, US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell publicly confessed to the House Financial Services Committee that he has been a Grateful Dead fan for the past 50 years. To the vast irritation of Donald Trump, Powell is refusing to cut US interest rates until he sees what the inflationary impact of Trump's tariffs will be. Because of the uncertain inflation outlook, Australia's central bank also refused this week to cut interest rates. Yesterday, the RBNZ did the same. It kept the rate at 3.25% despite pleas by economists and by pundits that our economy is languishing in a really, really weak condition. Unemployment is at very high levels, employment is falling and people with little or no job security are feeling naturally reluctant to spend what money they have. Perversely though…more people being thrown out of work, wage growth being suppressed and more households being daunted by high prices at the checkout all tend to be welcomed by the RBNZ. Why? Because they provide a brake on inflation. Given such brutal realities, its no wonder people have always flocked to the serenity of Dead concerts. Down the years though, the band's fan base have not simply been comprised of travellers on the psychedelic astral plane. The tireless tapers of Dead concerts, and the compulsive setlist compilers include a lot of workaholic Type A personalities as well. Here are the members of the RBNZ monetary policy committee that sets interest rates. No offence, but it isn't easy to spot the likely Grateful Dead fan (or fans) among them. Here's the Dead's signature track. By the time it ends, it will feel as if the policy committee's next meeting – and a further 25 point rate cut – is almost due.
Hindustan Times
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Hint, hint: How to soft-launch bae, the right way
Millennials were just getting used to the term Situationship. Now they must contend with another Gen Z idea: The Soft Launch. No, it's not related to gently sending up rockets (though with Shubhanshu Shukla on board the ISS, the timing does feel right). The term refers to the act of slowly, consciously, drip-feeding information about your new relationship on your socials, without giving away the story immediately. Zendaya and Tom Holland hinted at their relationship by commenting on each other's stories. (SHUTTERSTOCK) The term dates back to the Dark Ages, aka 2020. It first showed up in a since-deleted tweet by actor Rachel Sennott, who'd spotted the trend. The term borrows from tech companies, which release new devices and software – bugs and all – to a small audience before a formal roll-out. Done right, it's a subtle, confident, clear indicator that there's someone in your life. Executed poorly, it's a pile of mystery limbs, confusing captions and zero context. Here's how to do it right. Tease your new relationship with just the shadow of your partner, or their shoes. (SHUTTERSTOCK) Ease into it. Humans are in their oversharing era. So why go full PDA on a milestone that you're still figuring out too? If you've been single for a while, a soft launch also allows you time to adjust to your own change of status. Besides, half the fun is in drawing out the drama. Announce the presence, not the person: If you two have vacationed together, have them pop up only as a shadow in your posts (You'll have to stage these. They'd better be on board with the crazy). Or get you and your SO in front of a mirror; you facing it, them with their back to it. Then, hold hands and take a selfie of your reflections. It shows all of you, but not all of them, keeping the mystery intact. If even one of you is the cheesy type (we're not judging) have their face obscured by a bunch of flowers. Big petals, people. Big petals! Take tips. Zendaya and Tom Holland didn't post directly about each other for ages, but their comments and appearances in each other's stories started during the Spider-Man: Homecoming press tour in 2017. Tom tagged Zendaya in photos she wasn't even in. Smart fans picked up on the connection months before the paparazzi produced proof. Content creator (@NitibhaKaul) is currently on a vacation with someone. His face is hidden not just on her feed, but on his own too. Who is this guy? Nicely done, Nitibha! Skip the clichés. Soft launches are subtle and sweet. Crucially, they're authentic to the new relationship. Being formulaic will give it away faster than you want. So, avoid heart bombing (suddenly liking and commenting on each other's posts). Go easy on posting random body parts – a hand here, a jawline there – this isn't an autopsy! And don't post romantic quotes with no context: Soulmates Always Find Each Other? Eww! No one wants to read between those lines. When you're ready, make the reveal clear. Post a picture and tag them. Give people the deets. (SHUTTERSTOCK) Keep them real. Once your audience is aware a certain someone exists in the background, let their personality show. Start posting about things they like that didn't make it to your feed before. Suddenly you're watching Korean body horror, posting Coldplay lyrics when your last caption was all Olivia Rodrigo. Your mutuals will soon start connecting the dots. The final move. When you're ready, make the reveal clear. Post a picture with their face, tag them, use a caption that confirms what many may have already suspected. Don't be smug about it; everyone knew what you were up to all along, Sherlock. Expect an aftermath. There will be questions. There will be surprise. Not everyone was clued to every hint you'd been dropping. For the most part, strangers on the internet want to know how long it's been going on and hoe serious it is. You don't owe the world a press release, but maybe a How We Met post might help. Just remember that your relationship, even if it fizzled out before the reveal, is your business. Avoid over-curating and over-explaining. If it feels like you're trying too hard, step back. From HT Brunch, July 05, 2025 Follow us on
Irish Independent
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Kerry's gay married couples relive day Ireland said ‘Yes' in new exhibition
The exhibition is by Rena Blake from north Kerry – a photographer and woman who was actively involved in the Yes Equality Campaign in 2015. Rena and her wife, Lisa Fingleton, were the first gay couple to get married in Kerry when Ireland became the first country in the world to vote for gay marriage. This timely and evocative exhibition is described as a 'celebration of a milestone' featuring ten new portraits of LGBTQI+ couples from Kerry who have gotten married in the last ten years. The exhibition includes film, artworks and archival footage from that memorable and historic time. 'My partner and I were very active in the campaign and we made a film about the whole process at the time called The Day We Counted. Now, ten years on, I want to mark this important occasion in LGBTQI+ history by showcasing a new body of work called 'The Rings of Kerry',' said Rena. Rena explained how all her life she has 'consciously and sub-consciously' drifted in and out of many different communities. As a young adult, she emigrated to New York and joined the Irish Bronx community. 'When I later came out, I became active in the ILGO, (Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization) and ran a lesbian café in Brooklyn. When I returned to Ireland I was involved with LINC (Lesbians in Cork) and managed Loafers gay bar for a few years in Cork,' Rena said. 'I have always played an active part in whichever community I find myself. Maybe I'm just the community spirited type. This mind-set has probably inspired this project. I wanted to document a community that is very dear to my heart and show the referendum has impacted on their lives, particularly here in Kerry,' she added. As of 2025, marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in only 37 countries. According to Amnesty, there are 64 countries around the world which still have laws that criminalize homosexuality. This means Ireland plays an important role in sending light and hope around the world. 'The Rings of Kerry: All we need is Love!' exhibition will launch at 6pm on June 13 and runs until June 30. It is supported by Siamsa Tire and through the Creative Work Bursary 2025 from Kerry Council Arts Office.
