Know Your Money with Bronwyn Waner and Craig Finch

Know Your Money

Welcome to Know your money, where we will explore our relationship with money and how the psychology of it impacts our financial decisions as everyone thinks about money differently. In our podcasts we will be presenting a variety of financial topics in an easy-to-understand way which, we hope, will assist you with managing your money.Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website www.growthfp.co.za

  1. 2D AGO

    173. Why Switching To Cash In A Crisis Often Costs You More

    Send us Fan Mail Markets shout; money grows quietly. We sat down with Tamryn, Head of Retail at Allan Gray, to unpack why investor behaviour often drifts with the news cycle and how to build a plan that outlasts the noise. Using platform data, we explore how starting point bias shapes equity exposure for years: investors who began during strong local markets still hold more equities than those who started after a weak stretch. Even when age and other factors are normalised, the human bias of focusing on what has just happened can continue to keep portfolios off plan.  Then we revisit March 2020. Some investors switched from balanced funds to cash as fear spiked, felt vindicated for a few weeks, and then watched the rebound sprint away before the world felt safe. Getting back in late turned a “defensive” move into the worst outcome versus staying invested. The takeaway is confronting but freeing: action often feels right, yet inaction can be the smarter move when your strategy is sound. You cannot time the turn, but you can own your process.    We also talk age and worldviews. Many younger South Africans have only known a weak rand, local equity underperformance, and steady low inflation, which can harden into belief. Older investors have seen cycles turn, high inflation cool, and markets recover after crises from Black Monday to pandemic panic. The constant through all of it is compounding. A long-run illustration shows how a small, persistent edge plus time dwarfs the index, turning steady decisions into extraordinary outcomes. Start where you are, automate contributions, resist switching, and let time work.    Great performers have coaches; investors should too. A skilled adviser keeps you anchored to goals, rebalances behaviour, and helps you stay in the game when headlines try to push you off court. If this conversation helped reframe your strategy, share it with a friend, subscribe for more grounded money talk, and leave a review telling us the habit that helps you stay the course. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    17 min

  2. APR 27

    172. Why Timing Fails And Diversification Wins

    Send us Fan Mail Markets roared when the headlines said retreat. We open the year by asking smarter questions than “what will 2026 do?” and dig into what last year’s outliers teach us about risk, patience, and building portfolios that don’t wobble every time the news does. With Tamryn Lamb from Allan Gray joining us in studio, we walk through why South African equities and bonds delivered standout returns, how currency moves amplified gains in dollars, and why gold topped leaderboards while Bitcoin slipped. The lesson isn’t to chase what just worked. It’s to separate noise from signal and design an approach that survives uncertainty.    We share our simple keep, save, grow framework to align money with time horizons so each “version of you” is protected and purposeful. Cash covers the near-term you. Diversified, goal-based portfolios serve the medium-term you. Growth assets power your future self decades out. That structure helps you ignore false urgency, rebalance with intent, and capture compounding even when sentiment turns negative. We also examine the outlook for South African assets: where precious metals drove index returns, how foreign buying supported bonds, and why moderating expectations while hunting for value in lagging areas makes sense after a strong run.    Globally, concentrated leadership is meeting reality. Extended US valuations, the rise of markets outside the US, and investor scrutiny of AI spending are nudging a shift from blanket bets to selective ownership. We talk through how to position without prediction—using diversification, valuation discipline, and rule-based reviews to counter bias. If you’re ready to embrace uncertainty, stay invested, and make better decisions across cycles, this conversation will give you practical guardrails and fresh context.    Enjoy the episode? Subscribe, share with a friend who’s sitting in cash, and leave a quick review to help more South African investors find the show. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    12 min

  3. APR 20

    171. Trust Is Built, Not Bought: The Allan Gray Way

    Send us Fan Mail What if the strongest investment edge isn’t a clever model, but a structure built to think in decades? We sit down with Tamryn Lamb, Head of Retail at Allan Gray, to unpack how a private, perpetual ownership model shapes behaviour, protects conviction through tough cycles, and keeps the focus squarely on client outcomes. From the origins of the firm’s valuation-led approach to the practical realities of running a platform that hosts multiple managers, we dig into the details that make investors more resilient and advisers more effective.    Tamryn traces the firm’s journey from its founding visionto pivotal stress tests like the late-90s tech boom, when avoiding fads meant underperformance and painful outflows before recovery. The difference, she explains, was not just philosophy but governance: an ownership structure and long-term orientation that is designed to absorb short-term pressure so investment and business teams can hold the line. We connect that lesson to today’s environment, where this organisational design empowers long-term decisions, improves service consistency, and avoids knee-jerk pivots that hurt clients.    We also explore the ultimate ownership structure of Allan Gray; namely the Allan and Gill Gray Foundation. This entity is the majority owner of the Allan Gray and Orbis asset management businesses, into perpetuity, directing the dividends it receives : to philanthropic purposes across the regions where it operates. It doesn’t soften commercial standards—performance, competition, and client service still drive the work—but it does expand the meaning of success. When clients prosper, communities benefit too. Along the way, we clarify a common misconception about the platform: it’s a single point of administration where clients can hold many managers’ funds, not just Allan Gray’s, giving advisers a simpler, more complete portfolio view.    Education runs through every theme here. Clear explanations, transparent reporting, and honest conversations reduce anxiety and build the trust needed to stay invested when markets are loud. That’s the quiet advantage: informed clients make calmer choices, and calmer choices let compounding do its job. If you care about governance, service, and the human side of investing, this conversation will sharpen how you evaluate managers and platforms alike.    Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review to help more listeners find the show.   Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    13 min

  4. APR 13

    170. How Discovery Links Better Sleep To Lower Health Costs

    Send us Fan Mail Sleep is quietly rewriting our health stories—and our medical bills. We sat down with Discovery’s head of technical marketing to unpack a striking trend: members are sleeping less and sleeping worse, and the fallout shows up everywhere from diabetes risk to casualty visits to a hefty R230 million paid out for sleep disorders in 2024. That data doesn’t just inform policy—it’s shaping a practical, member-first way to turn better nights into real rewards. We explore how Discovery is weaving sleep into Personal Health Pathways, standing alongside exercise and healthcare actions as a core pillar of prevention. You’ll hear exactly how the new sleep score works and why it’s different: it blends your duration, quality, and regularity with clinical context to set targets that feel achievable and relevant. Whether you wear an Oura Ring or a Garmin, track with your Apple or Samsung watch, or simply log your night on your phone, the program meets you where you are. Activate sleep tracking with permission in the app, work toward a personalised weekly goal, and unlock rewards every Wednesday—without needing Vitality. What surprised us most is the power of regularity. A steady bedtime window stabilises circadian rhythms that touch everything from mood and focus to glucose control. When timing, depth, and total hours move in sync, accidents drop, decisions improve, and long-run risks ease. We connect the dots between small, repeatable habits and big health outcomes, showing how better sleep can lower claims and raise quality of life at the same time. If you’re curious about the science, the incentives, or simply how to start getting paid to protect your bedtime, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs better sleep, and leave a review telling us your next step—more hours, deeper rest, or a steadier lights-out time? Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    8 min

  5. APR 6

    169. Personal Health Pathways, Explained

    Send us Fan Mail What if your medical scheme could spot your risks early, guide your next best step, and reward you for taking it? We sit down with Aldu, an actuary from Discovery Health, to unpack Personal Health Pathways — a built‑in DHMS benefit designed to turn preventive care into simple weekly actions with real‑world rewards. No Vitality membership required, no extra cost to activate, just clear guidance via the Discovery Health app or WhatsApp and a smart way to turn healthy habits into Discovery Miles and a usable wallet for care. We break down the two action streams at the heart of the programme. On the exercise side, you get targets that match your current fitness, from steps to heart‑rate‑based sessions, plus a game board that pays out miles you can spend with Vitality partners. On the healthcare side, it starts with a fully funded wellness assessment to capture blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, BMI, and smoking status. From there, the app suggests practical next steps like a digital mental wellness assessment or nominating your primary care provider, so your care stays coordinated and nothing falls through the cracks. The conversation goes deep on money matters too. We explain the Personal Health Fund you build by completing actions, how claims are paid in a member‑friendly order, and why funds don’t roll over. You’ll also hear about a thoughtful boost: meet simple engagement criteria — activate Pathways, do your wellness check, enable sleep and exercise tracking — and you start the next year with R1,000 in your Personal Health Fund. It’s a timely kickstart when many of us book checkups in January. If you’ve wondered how data‑driven healthcare, preventive screenings, and behavioural rewards can work together, this is your field guide. Subscribe, share with someone who keeps postponing their checkup, and leave a review to tell us the first action you’re taking today. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    11 min

  6. MAR 30

    168. From REM To Rewards: The Science And Strategy Of Better Sleep

    Send us Fan Mail Sleep is not just another health tip; it’s the base that holds our diet, exercise, and mood together. We sit down with Vaughan, Discovery Vitality’s technical marketing lead to unpack why rest now sits at the heart of the programme, what the latest research reveals about global sleep debt, and how small changes in routine can lower real risks like diabetes, obesity, and depression. The conversation moves from science to practice, showing how duration, consistency, and quality work together—and what to do when life or shift work disrupts the ideal. We share a practical blueprint for better nights: set a one-hour bedtime window, time caffeine wisely, and carve out a two-hour buffer from screens. Then we make it measurable. Vitality’s personalised sleep score blends your age, gender, chronic conditions, and activity to create a fairer 0–100 rating, so two people with similar sleep patterns can still get guidance that fits their context. You’ll learn three easy ways to track: via Apple, Samsung, or Garmin watches; through phone-based estimation; or with the Oura Ring. Oura takes centre stage with best-in-class sleep tracking, readiness insights, a week-long battery, and a smooth path to get started in South Africa, including a home sizing kit. We explain funding options through Vitality goals or a straight discount, plus how consistent, high-quality sleep can now earn points—another route to that coveted diamond status. By the end, you’ll have a clear plan to improve sleep and a set of tools that turn rest into results. Enjoyed the conversation? Subscribe, share it with a friend who needs better sleep, and leave a review telling us the one habit you’ll change tonight. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    12 min

  7. MAR 23

    167. How Vitality 2026 Expands Access, Adds Sleep Rewards, And Boosts Fitness Points

    Send us Fan Mail What if your weekly routine could fund your favourite devices and turn better sleep into real-world rewards? We sat down with Vaughan to unpack Vitality’s 2026 refresh and how it changes the game for anyone chasing health, status, and sustainable habits. The conversation zeroes in on three pillars: easier access to activities and devices, sleep as a foundational behaviour, and smarter ways to stack points without adding complexity. We start with access. Demand for yoga and Pilates has surged, so Vitality added around 50 more studios and enabled class bookings at Virgin Active through the platform. Check-ins are seamless: book a class, scan a QR code, and collect 100 points. That simplicity nudges consistency and opens doors to a variety of workouts, from boxing and HIIT to mindful movement. On the device side, Garmin joins Apple in the fully funded model, letting you meet weekly goals to cover the cost over time or opt for up to 25% upfront discount. Footwear discounts at Sportsmans and Totalsports remain a practical boost for runners, walkers, and even golfers. Then we place sleep where it belongs: at the base of health. Vitality Sleep Rewards sets a weekly sleep goal built from nightly scores, with Discovery Miles or instant treats like coffee when you hit the mark. There’s no penalty if you miss, only missed upside, which keeps motivation clean. To power accurate insights, Vitality partners exclusively with Oura. Members can fully fund an Oura ring through consistent sleep goals or take a 25% upfront discount, turning recovery into a measurable, rewarding habit. Points get a thoughtful upgrade too. You can earn up to 500 points per month for quality sleep. Cardio fitness steps out as its own category, allowing 10,000 cardio fitness points plus 25,000 from fitness events, lifting the total available fitness points to 35,000. It’s a design that rewards both daily effort and long-term aerobic capacity, while aligning with how behaviours reinforce each other: train well, sleep better, eat smarter, repeat. Ready to turn your routine into rewards? Follow the show, share it with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a quick review so others can find us and level up their health. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    11 min

  8. MAR 16

    166. From Gym Discounts To Real Health: How Discovery Vitality Actually Works

    Send us Fan Mail Think Vitality is just cheaper gym and flights? We sat down with Vaughan from Discovery Vitality’s technical team to pull back the curtain on how the programme really works—and how you can turn health data into everyday rewards that actually move the needle. We start with the foundation: know your health. An annual health check and the Vitality Age assessment give you a clear baseline for blood pressure, BMI, glucose, and cholesterol. From there, the programme shifts from vague goals to concrete actions, rewarding behaviour that supports better outcomes. A key update many people miss: higher healthy food savings at Woolworths and Checkers are unlocked by completing those assessments, not by chasing status. That means real money back on groceries when you commit to the basics. We also dig into practical setup and strategy. Inside the Discovery app, you can confirm your rewards, check what’s linked, and choose a primary in-store partner and a primary online partner to maximise 25% back across both shopping channels. Prefer Woolies in-store and Checkers Sixty60 online? Structure it that way and keep more in your pocket. Beyond carts and tills, we explore the full fitness ecosystem: traditional gyms, heart rate-based workouts, Team Vitality events, the Fitness Network, and even the surge in padel. Sleep now stands alongside nutrition and movement as a formal pillar, recognising how recovery drives performance, weight control, and long-term health. For those chasing points with purpose, the heart rate workout tiers are still active, and the Vitality Points Guide remains your go-to for thresholds and caps. Our takeaway is simple and powerful: measure what matters, then make the next good choice easier with rewards that show up today while you build a healthier future. If you’re ready to turn Vitality into a clear plan—more savings, less guesswork, better habits—this conversation gives you the map. Enjoyed the episode? Subscribe, share it with a friend who needs a health nudge, and leave a review so we can keep bringing you practical money-and-health insights. Support the show Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website  www.growthfp.co.za

    12 min
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About

Welcome to Know your money, where we will explore our relationship with money and how the psychology of it impacts our financial decisions as everyone thinks about money differently. In our podcasts we will be presenting a variety of financial topics in an easy-to-understand way which, we hope, will assist you with managing your money.Please subscribe to our podcast or have a look at our website www.growthfp.co.za

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