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I didn\u2019t have any wisdom around my finances and there was no order, I was in debt. It\u2019s not like I would go out and shopaholic, I just, like I said, I didn\u2019t have any wisdom. \u2014 <\/span>Chanel<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>

One year ago secondary school te reo teacher Chanel Ngaruhe\u200b made a resolution: She would become debt-free.<\/p>\n

And she did it in 12 months with the support of Christians Against Poverty, knocking $36,000\u200b of debt on the head.<\/p>\n

At a time of year that people routinely make resolutions to change their lives, what lessons can we learn from Ngaruhe\u2019s transformation?<\/p>\n

Ngaruhe didn\u2019t have the wealthiest of childhoods, and says she grew into an adult who lacked wisdom around money.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn’t have any wisdom around my finances and there was no order, I was in debt. It’s not like I would go out and shopaholic, I just\u2026 didn’t have any wisdom,\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n

In other aspects of her life Ngaruhe was a high-performer,\u00a0inspiring teenagers to connect with M\u0101ori culture<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Money coach Lynda Moore\u200b says this split of capability in some areas of life, and lack of capability around personal finances, is common.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat sounds like my typical client,\u201d says Moore, and those clients include successful professionals and businesspeople.<\/p>\n

People who lack skills, and confidence in a particular area of their lives, often neglect it, procrastinating on doing the things they may even know that should.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat makes it worse,\u201d Moore says.<\/p>\n

Moore praised Ngaruhe for being specific with her goal, because research into resolutions indicates specifying a goal precisely, lifts the resolver\u2019s chance of achieving it.<\/p>\n

\u201cResolutions. You set them by the first of January, but by the time you\u2019ve got to February, it’s gone out of the window. That\u2019s because it\u2019s a dream, not a goal,\u201d Moore says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis lady was really clear. In 12 months time I want to have repaid $30,000 of debt. That’s a goal,\u201d Moore says.<\/p>\n

Setting a specific goal enables detailed planning, Moore says.<\/p>\n

The second lesson Moore sees from Ngaruhe\u2019s success is to have support, or as she puts it, \u201can accountability buddy\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I say to clients, I have nagging rights,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

For someone on a journey, who may falter in their resolution, having support is very important.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to fall off the wagon. We are going to make mistakes. The car is going to break down. It\u2019s just part of life. Accept it as part of life,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

A Christians Against Poverty financial mentor provided Ngaruhe’s support, though she is also clear that she had support from God, too.<\/p>\n

Asking for support can be hard.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really hard to be vulnerable,\u201d says Ngaruhe. \u201cIt was hard to allow someone in, in that space, because for so long I had so much guilt, so much shame.\u201d<\/p>\n

When people ask Christians Against Poverty for help getting out of debt, it provides systems, teaching and support, helping people make budgets, and negotiating deals with lenders to reduce debt.<\/p>\n

People pursuing their goals alone can use technology to help them.<\/p>\n

David Boyle from Mint Asset Management, who used to be the head of investor education at Te Ara Ahunga Ora Retirement Commission, says planning, combined with automated systems, can be very powerful.<\/p>\n

\u201cInvest in time for you. This might mean working out how to get a deposit for your first home, reviewing investment goals with KiwiSaver, or how much income you need in retirement,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

If the goal is to increase your retirement savings, lifting the amount that is deducted from your pay to go into KiwiSaver only has to be done once, and the savings will start to mount up.<\/p>\n

Christians Against Poverty chief executive Sam Garaway says: \u201cWhen I think of New Year\u2019s resolutions and finances I usually try to set something achievable.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cThe saying \u2018look after the cents and the dollars will take care of themselves\u2019 is a good one to keep in mind. So many little things we do add up: a coffee here, buying lunch there.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing diligent and faithful with little things makes a big difference in the longer term: two coffees per week adds up to $520 a year or $32,000 across adulthood,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Moore would also have people think about the deeper purpose behind their resolution.<\/p>\n

The idea of being debt free may ultimately be about something far more important to a person, she says.<\/p>\n

Ngaruhe agrees. \u201cIf I was to picture it right now in my head I’ve got a picture of chains, just falling off, that’s what I can see, if that makes sense,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

She describes 2021 as her \u201cbutterfly\u201d year when she was able to reemerge transformed into the person she should be.<\/p>\n

And now, when her kids need something, she is able to buy it from cash.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re like, \u2018Oh, Mum, are we going to get that?\u2019 And I was like, \u2018Yeah, we can afford it.\u2019 And they’re like, \u2018Whoa\u2019,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

But, perhaps more importantly, she now feels she can give them what she did not have when she was young: A money role model.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis can be a generational thing. I want to teach my kids wisdom around money and spending. I don\u2019t want them to go through the same heartache that I did,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

And then, they can teach their children, she says.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I didn\u2019t have any wisdom around my finances and there was no order, I was in debt. It\u2019s not like I would go out and shopaholic, I just, like I said, I didn\u2019t have any wisdom. \u2014 Chanel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":75,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[116,146],"tags":[118,117],"class_list":["post-1","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance","category-stories-of-help","tag-debt-help","tag-financial-assistance","post_format-post-format-video"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n