Money with Alpha

Alpha Schulte

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Self-Improvement

Welcome to Money with Alpha, where I share simple tips for how to make, save and invest money, while also connecting your values with your lifestyle, so you can achieve the life you really want. You will also hear interviews from real people as they share the ups and downs of their money journey. After all, we are all on a journey and what better way to learn about money, then to hear what hasn't and has worked!

5d ago

Invest: Where Your Money Starts Giving You Choices (Thriving Money System, Part 5)

This is the final episode in the 5-part Thriving Money System series. After clarity, mindset, education and systems, Alpha gets to the part most people want to jump straight to: investing and building wealth. She explains why it sits last (and why skipping the first four steps is how people end up with investments that don't fit their life), what wealth actually is once you account for inflation, income and time, and why investing isn't a "pay off the house, and then, and then" sequence. It's an "and." Alpha also answers the question she gets asked more than any other: "But how do I actually invest?" She walks through micro-investing apps, online platforms and ETFs, how she physically places a trade and sets up auto-invest, and why the best time to start is usually now. She shares how she's been investing for her daughter since the day she got her birth certificate, and why having a team of professionals who actually talk to each other matters more than most people realise. What we cover: Why investing comes last in the Thriving Money System, and what goes wrong when it comes first What wealth really is: capital growth, income, or both (and why the answer changes as you age) The gold and property examples: why "it doubled in value" doesn't tell you the whole story Why your accountant, financial planner and lawyer each see one piece, and who's looking at the whole board How to physically buy shares or ETFs: micro-investing apps, online platforms, placing a trade, auto-invest Investing vs trading, and the "bright shiny object" trap Alpha admits she's fallen into Dollar cost averaging, and why "when should I start?" usually has the same answer How Alpha set up an investment bond for her daughter, pooled with family, and worked backwards from a goal Key takeaways: Investing only makes sense once you know what you want money for. Clarity first, then wealth. Wealth isn't just "the thing went up in value." Inflation, costs, time and income all change the real picture. It's not one or the other. Property, shares and super can all run in parallel depending on your situation. The mechanics are simpler than they look. Once it's set up, regular investing can run quietly in the background. Your professionals need to be playing on the same chessboard. If nobody's looking at the whole picture, gaps show up years later. Important note: This episode contains general information only and is not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Alpha mentions platforms and types of investments she personally uses as examples, not recommendations. Tax rules for property, capital gains and trusts changed in the 2026 Federal Budget, so speak to a licensed financial adviser, accountant or lawyer about your own situation before acting.
Sep 21

Systemise Your Way to Financial Calm

You've got clarity on the lifestyle you want. You're working on the mindset blocking you. You've picked up the pieces of financial education you actually need. Now what? This episode is about the part that turns all of that into something real: a system. Alpha breaks down what she means by "system" (structure, consistency, repeatability, flexibility, and automation) and why skipping this step is why so many money plans stall out. She walks through her own journey from a manual Excel spreadsheet to building Prosperess, and gives a full tour of what a working money system actually looks like day to day. In this episode: A recap of the Thriving Money System so far: Clarity, Mindset, Education, and now Systems Why "systemising" isn't about more bank accounts or more discipline, it's about structure The five things every good money system needs: structure, consistency, organisation, repeatability, and flexibility Why percentages work better than fixed numbers when your income isn't consistent Alpha's own money system, including the Money Pie framework, net worth tracking, and future projections The difference between a budgeting app and an actual financial system, and why that distinction matters Why a system still needs regular review, it's not a set-and-forget Key takeaway: You don't need more willpower to manage money well. You need a structure that does the remembering for you, and the discipline to check in on it. Mentioned in this episode: Prosperess (www.prosperess.net) Next week: Step 5, Invest, where Alpha talks growing wealth and runs through some real scenarios.
Sep 14

Education is Step 3 of the Thriving Money System

This is part 3 of the Thriving Money System series. In part 1, Alpha covered Clarity. In part 2, it was Mindset, your beliefs, your stories, and the language you use around money. This week is pillar 3: Education. Alpha doesn't think financial literacy is the whole answer (if it was, none of us would still be figuring this out as adults). But it is one piece of the puzzle, and the terminology alone can be enough to make people switch off before they've even started. So, this episode is a crash course in the words and concepts that come up most often: compounding, good debt versus bad debt, investing versus trading, shares, dividends, franking credits, ETFs, and capital gains tax, plus where insurances and superannuation fit in. What we cover: Why financial education isn't a "learn it once" subject, and what changes at each life stage Compounding, and why it's the single most underrated concept in money (for both savings and debt) The real difference between good debt and bad debt Investing versus trading, and why "time in the market" beats "timing the market" Stocks, shares, and equities (and why they're not all the same thing) Dividends and franking credits, explained without the jargon ETFs: index funds versus thematic funds, and the trap of thinking you're diversified when you're not Capital gains tax, and the rule change coming into effect in Australia from 1 July 2027 Where personal insurances (life, TPD, trauma, income protection), household insurance, and superannuation fit into the bigger picture Key takeaways: Compounding works for you when you're saving and against you when you're in debt. Understanding it changes how you think about both. "Good debt" is debt used as leverage for something that grows in value or pays you an income. "Bad debt" is debt used to buy things that lose value, especially at high interest. Investing and trading are not the same thing, and most people are better served by buying, holding, and staying in the market rather than trying to time it. You don't need to understand everything at once. The information you need in your 20s is different from what you need in your 40s and 50s, and that's normal. Resources mentioned: Free money calculator (compounding calculator): moneymadesimple.com.au/money-calculator Free 20-minute discovery chat with Alpha: moneymadesimple.com.au/discovery-chat Prosperess: https://www.prosperess.net A note on this episode: This episode covers general concepts around investing, debt, and tax for education purposes only. It isn't personal financial advice. Rules mentioned (including capital gains tax) are specific to Australia and subject to change. Please speak with your accountant or a licensed financial adviser before making decisions based on anything in this episode.
Sep 7

Mindset: Step 2 of the Thriving Money System

This is part 2 of the 5-part Thriving Money System series. Last week was Clarity. This week, Alpha unpacks Mindset, and breaks it down into three working parts: Identity, Behaviour, and Experiences. Not as a buzzword, but as the actual mechanics of why you handle money the way you do. Alpha shares her own family money history, including a generational pattern of scarcity and displacement, a long-running debate with her father about whether identity is fixed or something you choose, and how she learned to "work around" rigid systems from her school years right through to renegotiating with her bank. She walks through the difference between problem-focused and solution-focused thinking, and why the language you use around money (like the shift from "we can't afford it" to "do I want to afford it") changes how money shows up in your life. This episode is about understanding where your money beliefs actually came from, so you can decide, on purpose, whether to keep them. What we cover: The three pieces of mindset: identity, behaviour, and experience, and how they feed each other Why "that's just who I am" is a belief, not a fact, and what changes when you treat it as a choice How to trace your money beliefs back through your family history (going back at least two generations) The difference between habits, thoughts, and language, and why the language shift is particularly powerful Problem-oriented versus solution-oriented thinking, with a real example from a recent experience with a bank How to stop carrying a bad experience into the next one, so it doesn't become a self-fulfilling pattern Why documenting your money story (pen and paper, family conversations) is the practical first step. Key takeaways: Mindset isn't fixed. Identity, behaviour, and experience are three things you can actually work with, not a personality trait you're stuck with. Your money beliefs came from somewhere, usually family, usually more than one generation back. Naming them is the first step to choosing whether to keep them. The words you use around money shape the decision. "Can't afford it" and "don't want to afford it" are not the same. Solution-focused thinking is a muscle. It gets stronger the more you practise turning "this always happens to me" into "what do I need to do next."
Aug 31

Clarity: Step 1 - Thriving Money System

This week Alpha kicks off a five-part series walking through the Thriving Money System, a framework to help people move from financial confusion to financial confidence. Each episode covers one pillar. This one is about the first and most important: Clarity. Alpha unpacks why so many capable, high-achieving women feel scattered and vague about money, and why you can't build a money system until you know what you're actually building it for. What we cover: Why clarity has to come before mindset, education or systems, not after The five pillars of the Thriving Money System: Clarity, Mindset, Education, Systems, Wealth The difference between knowing what you don't want and knowing what you do want Big-picture lifestyle clarity: where, why, how and when Why "fun" needs its own line item, and how easy it is to lose track of what actually lights you up Getting granular: the people, tasks and things worth spending money on Why money is the tool, not the goal Key takeaways: Clarity is not a one-off lightbulb moment. It builds slowly, and it's fine to start with what you don't want. Money decisions get easier once you know what you're actually working toward. Having your finances sorted gives you the flexibility to change your mind, even after a big decision, without it costing you everything. Fun is worth budgeting for. It's not indulgent, it's part of a well-run life. Write it down. If it stays in your head, it stays vague.
Aug 24

Mental Load of Money

Mental load isn't just about the school forms, the appointments and the "what's for dinner" of it all. There's a financial version of it too, and lately it's been turned up. In this episode, Alpha talks openly about what the mental load of money actually looks like day to day, including the week she nearly missed her daughter's school Eisteddfod despite normally being pretty organised. She breaks down where that load comes from (decision fatigue, change fatigue, the gap between what you expect and what actually happens), and the three things that genuinely help lessen it: clarity, visibility and flexible systems. What we cover: Why mental load around money feels heavier right now, and the freeze response that kicks in when it all gets to be too much Why no organisation system is perfect, and why "what works for you" beats "what works for everyone else" Knowing your key numbers without needing a mammoth spreadsheet, in business and at home Real examples from Alpha's own life: negotiating insurance renewals, setting boundaries around treats and takeaway, budgeting for travel on the fly in Melbourne Decision fatigue and how narrowing down what you don't want can make it easier to choose what you do Change fatigue: payday super, gig economy changes, shifting property and super rules, and why it's adding to everyone's load right now The three things that actually reduce the mental load of money: clarity, visibility, and flexible structure A simple homeplay exercise to start lifting the load this week. Key takeaways: The mental load of money doesn't disappear. The goal isn't to eliminate it, it's to make it lighter and more manageable. You don't need a complex system. You need to know your handful of key numbers and track them consistently so you can see the trends. Decision fatigue eases when you get clear on what you don't want first. That alone narrows the field. Clarity, visibility and flexibility are the three levers that actually move the needle, not another app or another spreadsheet template. A note on this episode: This episode includes examples involving ETFs, property and superannuation. These are shared as personal reflections, not as financial advice. If you're weighing up a specific investment decision, that's a conversation worth having with a licensed financial planner. Resources mentioned: Prosperess: prosperess.net Money Made Simple: moneymadesimple.com.au
Aug 17

How Kids See Money

My daughter was 6 years old the first time she came on this podcast. This time, at 11, she asked to come back on. We sat down to talk about what she's actually absorbed about money over the years, just from being around it. It's a more personal episode than usual, and it turned into an honest look at how kids learn money habits long before anyone sits them down to teach it properly. Topics covered: What an 11 year old actually understands about money, in her own words Why spending is the easiest lesson kids pick up, and why earning, investing and giving take more deliberate conversation The real challenge of teaching kids about money when cash is disappearing from the places they spend it How we set her up with a locked-down debit card for a cashless excursion, and what we turned off (no cash out, no online purchases, no gambling) Bank and micro-investing options for kids, including Spriggy and child investing accounts The investment bond we set up for her at birth, and how we're starting to explain the trust structure behind it Why financial literacy still isn't taught properly in schools What she would tell other parents about talking to their kids about money Our family's annual Live Like Her Challenge, sleeping in the car for one night to support women and families facing homelessness, and why we've done it three years running Notable quotes: "It's the earning part, and then it's learning how to spend it wisely... and then it also becomes investing." "Money is definitely important to a big chunk of our lives, and we need to acknowledge that." "It's no wonder that by the time we actually get to adulthood, what we mainly know how to do is spend." Resources mentioned: Spriggy (kids' money app) Raiz (micro-investing ap) Live Like Her Challenge: donate by 3 September 2026: Live Like Her Challenge 2026 - Brisbane | Alpha & Anouk Schulte Money Made Simple: www.moneymadesimple.com.au
Aug 10

Key to Keeping More of the Money You Make

Making more money and keeping more money are not the same skill. In this episode, Alpha unpacks why so many capable, hardworking people hit an invisible ceiling, whether that's in salary, business revenue or savings, and why the answer usually isn't "work harder." It's building the capacity to actually hold what comes in. In this episode: The two-container analogy: why the size of the container you've built, not your effort, decides how much money (or time, or anything else) you end up holding How to tell whether you're operating from abundance or from a lack mindset, and why that shows up in the body before it shows up in your bank account Why some people sabotage their own income growth without realising it, because on some level more money doesn't feel safe The truth about women and investing: the caution that gets mistaken for fear is actually a strength Alpha's own experience receiving an inheritance after her father's passing, and why she deliberately slowed down before making any decisions with it Why money is energy that wants to move and grow, not just sit still, and how the Money Pie framework creates a simple system for that.

Welcome to Money with Alpha, where I share simple tips for how to make, save and invest money, while also connecting your values with your lifestyle, so you can achieve the life you really want. You will also hear interviews from real people as they share the ups and downs of their money journey. After all, we are all on a journey and what better way to learn about money, then to hear what hasn't and has worked!

Creator

Alpha Schulte
Years Active

2022 - 2026
Episodes

230
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© 2022
Show Website

Money with Alpha