When life gets full and busy, it’s hard to remember why we do what we do, and it’s easy to become unhealthily disconnected from who and what we value. As Dr Susan David often says, finding your "why" can be as simple as reconnecting with your values and reframing your everyday activities in relation to those values.

There are times in the year when we see and engage with more people than usual - through end-of-year functions, annual celebrations, birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, funerals and the like. It can be wonderful - but it can also be stressful. We are quickly reminded that these old friends, colleagues and distant family from far-off shores have opinions that challenge our own, and they’re all too willing to offer unsolicited advice.

Did you know that listening to classical music has been proven to lower blood pressure, make us more emotionally available, help us sleep better and relieve anxiety? Ironically, our emotions around money can achieve the exact opposite! Firstly, if money brings up a lot of emotions for you, you’re not alone. Financial expert Ramit Sethi (on a blog for The Harvard Business Review) reminds his readers that our relationship with money is just as personal and valuable as any other relationship. 

Religion, politics and money are all connected - and probably always have been! This is because they’re all currency for influence, power and status. These three topics can become highly volatile when we're in social settings as they’re super subjective. The markets, politics and religion all give us a sense of belonging, purpose and stories to share. Since they offer so much meaning, we’ll likely talk about them at any chance.

If you're not familiar, the Enneagram is a personality typing tool that focuses on why we do what we do. It is a model of nine interconnected personality types - from the Ancient Greek word “ennea” for nine. A quick Google search will tell you what you need to know and guide you to free tests if you’d like to dig a little deeper.

Holidays should be a time of restoration and relaxation. But for savvy investors, who are seldom able to switch off or turn down the volume on their analytical brain activity, it can be a time of stress and panic. Whether you’re entering your annual time of leave or it’s a sneaky mid-year break, if you’re understandably nervous about your financial plan, fear not.