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Hello and welcome to our final AJ Bell Money Matters podcast. 2025. I'm Laura and I'm joined of course and as ever by Danny. Hey Danny. Hi Laura. Hi everyone. Apologies. I'm seeing the back of 2025 off. With a cold again, just like you, huh? Like half the nation, I think. So we really apologise for our slightly nasal croaky voices, but it's adding an end of year spirit to the podcast, I think, considering most people seem to be Having a cold or something at the moment.

It does. We we can all, you know, feel the the cheery warm vibes as we leave 2025 behind and I for one will be delighted to see the back of 2025, but I'm really excited for 2026, not least. Because the first podcast episode back is our one hundredth episode.

Which I genuinely can't believe. I know. When I saw that in the in the schedule and it was flagged by someone, I was like, that cu Someone's counted wrong, but it turns out they haven't and I should have more faith in the team and it is actually our hundredth episode.

It's very exciting. It is exciting. And uh we've got something special planned for that, which we'll tell you a bit more about later on. But I'm also excited because it is nearly Christmas and since we're not doing a Christmas episode of the podcast. I thought it was just worth wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and and I thought I'd take the time to find out whether or not you're all sorted, have you got your shopping done? Did you do your Black Friday deals?

Do you think that there's a full list, everything's been purchased ahead of time? Or do you think I'm just willy nilly leaving it till Christmas Eve? What do we think is more my personality dye? Well, normally I would have said you would have had a spreadsheet, you'd have got everything written down, except this year maybe interrupted by the button.

No, I don't let such trivial things as the budget get in the way of my Christmas planning, don't you worry. Um yes, definitely made use of the Black Friday sales. I think I've now bought every present. Um, and then this weekend I thought, should I start rapping or is it too early? But I think probably it's not too early. But I'm so excited for Christmas this year. I think I was away last year for Christmas, which was obviously lovely. We all know I love a holiday.

but it means that I've got renewed enthusiasm for like a British My daughter is like the perfect age to be super into Father Christmas. I'm just so excited. I'm not I'm not normally the biggest Christmas fan, but this year it's Christmas on Steril. Well we've got a a different Christmas because um as you know my eldest is off at university and she comes back.

at the weekend. So we actually get to be excited that all four of us are gonna be together and it'll be a novelty to sit around the table and and chat and find out what people have been up to. So yeah, recalibrating Christian.

Oh, that's so lovely. I love this. Now, Danny, are you going to spend some of that quality family time over Christmas? Doing your tax return? Ha ha. No, I've done. I've done. And get this. This is exciting news. I'm doing a rebound. Oh, those are the best words you could hear at this time of year, right? Bonus money. Because not to bring us back to boring financial matters, but there is

A looming tax deadline that happens to fall at the end of near the end of year period and I'm always slightly blown away. So every year Marcy send out the stats on the number of people that have filed their tax return. Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, and even on Christmas Day. Now, no judgment for people, but you know. Can't imagine I love admin, I love a spreadsheet and I love finances, but you would not catch me doing my

Uh I would be a bit worried because um normally I've cracked open the fizz before I start, you know, on with the turkey. And can you imagine fizz and numbers? I'm not sure that that would prove to be yes.

Particularly three baits for everyone. Well, there we go, yeah. And we promised last episode that we had a gift for you. Uh it's not the kind that you wrap and put under the tree, but Abby Glue from accounting firm the Erenda Collective She shares some top tips on who needs to file a self-assessment tax return, all the important dates you need, when and how to choose an accountant to help you if you need.

And our one big thing this week kind of ties into this festive season where lots of people are inevitably spending more, whether that's on the Black Friday sales or on Christmas presents, and it's something I've loved finding. Mainly because I'm just really nosy and I like to get into how other people's financial lives are going, um, which is

I love the confession bit on the podcast the most. But money matters with the help of our friends at Opinium who have done some research on secret spending, Danny. So when people in relationships spend cash without telling their partner about Can you imagine something so scandalous? I I can and I've done it. I I when I saw the um the data that came out of

I was like, oh my goodness me. Um I I I feel like I need to unburden my soul. So we'll have the confession right at the beginning of the podcast because I've done it. Um my husband and I actually have a joint account for bills, but we keep two separate accounts. And that's kind of because

I don't want him to know how much I'm spending on getting my hair cut and coloured uh every few weeks. And he doesn't want me to know how much he's spending on books from the charity shop, which are currently in the boot of his car, I have to say. Um

I love that you're, you know, confessing this. And I think, you know, we looked into these figures and I'll dive into them in a second, but I think it's not necessarily a bad thing, this secret spending. We'll come to it. I think it depends, you know, what you're spending on and how much Fine, isn't it?

in any way, you're not alone. So over half of Brits in a relationship have spent cash in the past twelve months without telling their partner. Now on average, this surprised me. On average people are spending £2,158 a year without telling their partner, but men are Spending more money than women. So they're spending just over two and a half thousand pounds on average in comparison to just under one thousand eight hundred. Well that does probably equate to um one haircut every month, doesn't it?

Yeah, I think uh about that. And that's terrifying when you boil the numbers down like that and you realise how much money you're spending on getting your hair done. But uh on that subject, so it's a different number for men and women, but are there different things that they're also Spending money on like Yeah, uh that actually did come up, you know, kind of like beauty products and appointments.

featured on the women's top list where it didn't on men's. Clothes was the common denominator, so that was kind of the most popular secret spending outlet. So spending money on clothes and that could be people Buying clothes and you know, doing the old rip out the price tag and say, This old thing, I've had it for ages. Or it could be people saying, Oh, that t-shirt cost me a ten. So there's probably some different levels.

Spending, but yeah, clothes was a common top one across both men and women. Um, but for men, there were also things like cigarettes and alcohol, um, using the cash for gambling, which I think. Worrying, maybe. And then also sending gifts to family and friends without telling their partner. Um, on the side of women, as I mentioned, clothes were top, but then they were also more likely to spend on

Beauty products, including appointments, a bit like you, Danny. Uh and then gifting cash to their children or giving to friends and family. And then interestingly, in the top five for women was putting money in savings. Which I thought was interesting. Um but I think men are more likely to kind of conceal spending on short-term habits where m women are more likely to be hiding kind of financial gifts, all that money that's going into save.

It is interesting, and were there any other really interesting tip bits? Yeah, so there was a generational difference as well. So Gen Z are spending more in secret than older generations. So we found that eighteen to thirty four year olds spent the most secretly of any age group. So they had an average just over four thousand three hundred pounds spent in secret in Twelve months. That drops down to just under four hundred pounds spent in secret for those over the age.

fifty five. I think some of that's probably quite easily explained in that if you're in that younger age category and you're in a relationship, you're less likely to have kind of merged finances with your partner. So it might be that you're spending money without telling your partner how Different things cost, but you're not actively necessarily keeping it a secret if you give me you're not lying about it, but you just don't have that full financial.

Yeah. Whereas I think oftentimes when people are kind of older or they're retired, they're more likely to have these kind of merged files. Life. I think one of the other alarming things that came out of it is that some men and women are using this secret money to put money into crypto.

So we know that crypto has become this hugely popular thing, particularly among younger generations. We see a lot of people putting their money into it rather than kind of investing in the more conventional method. Um but it feels I don't know, there's something that makes me feel slightly uneasy about people secretly putting money into crypto, which we know is very high risk, and quite often people putting money into that aren't necessarily fully aware of how high risk it is.

how potentially dangerous it can be in terms of of losing their money.

Yeah, I get that. I mean, putting money secretly into things like crypto. it it does feel like a very difficult conversation if you were going to have it with your partner. And I also get the age thing as well, because I suppose when you've been with your partner a long time, um, they know you really well, so I I joke about the amount

I spent on my hair, but my husband is fully aware of that. He just likes to pretend that he is not aware of that and bring it up from time to time just to, you know, lord it over me. Um And I suppose y I mean you were saying it's not always a bad thing, right? No, exactly. I don't think it's you know, if you're spending money without telling your partner it's inherently or categorically a bad I think it depends on the context with this. So are you hiding spending?

hiding a gambling habit or hiding how much money you're gifting to family and friends from your partner and you're kind of actively hiding that and that could be problematic. Um or is it just you don't have that full merge finances and you don't have full transparency and you spent£150 on a pair of jeans and you just choose not to mention. I think there's some.

Some differences and some nuance into that. I also think it's like: is the secret spending indicating a bigger issue in your relationship? So is it because you don't feel like you can have that transparency and you don't have the ability to talk freely about your finances with your partner? Or is it just kind of that that day-to-day spending?

talking about it because we do know from our previous research that one of the big downfalls of why women can end up with less money in savings and investments and overall less wealth than men is because they're not having these open conversations. So whether that's who's gonna pay for what if you go off on maternity leave or um how your finances are gonna be split, who pays for what in day-to-day life and how much you have left at the end of the month.

We know that lots of those conversations need to be had to have that true financial equality. I think if you're one of these secret spenders, like you, Danny, uh you can think about is this part of an issue where we're just not transparent about our finances now, about our future plans and my secret spending

harming our long term financial goals, which I definitely don't think it is with you, Danny. Um, or is it just I'm spending a little bit here and there and I don't feel the need to tell my partner exactly give a bit of money to my parents or whatever. So I think it's a good point to kind of question what are your motivations for not being fully transparent and and do Harmony. That is my motivation for not being fully transparent.

Sometimes what he doesn't need to know, he really doesn't need to know. That's how we keep the house running on track. And I I have to say another thing that does always create financial friction.

in my house and it did last year and the year before. Not so much this year, because as I say, woohoo, rebate. But if we've not set aside enough money to cover a tax bill, or if we've not considered Having to pay a tax bill on account, and suddenly you get to January, which is always a hard month, let's be honest. the money never stretches very far in January, then you know that can cause a great deal of

And some of you listening to this might be thinking, I don't have a clue what you're talking about. Payment on account, tax bills, um, but If you have got a tax bill coming your way, or maybe you're filing a self-assessment tax return for the first time, it really is worth it just to keep.

We touched on this in the last episode where Eleanor was talking about making money from vintage and her confession was all about her tax bill and becoming a limited company. So that's part of the reason that we thought we would get the lowdown on everything. about filling out your self assessment tax return from someone who does it many, many, many times a year for

So Abby Glue is from the accountancy firm Arenda Collective, but she and her team are more than just accountants. They're on a mission to make the complicated world of tax more. And to enable people to ask questions and actually understand the answers. So that's exactly a spirit. Ditch the tax jargon. And she's got a simple toolkit to help you figure out if you need to file a tax return and what you need to do about it.

Tax. It is something that, well, I would say all of us, but most of us have to pay. Um and it it often comes as an unpleasant shock. Um and I think If you work in a company and you're an employee, often you don't have to consider um self-assessment tax returns. But if you're self-employed or you get a bit of extra income, you do so.

We're gonna try and break down some of the jargon, the misconceptions, and give people a bit of a steer about this murky world that is tax. And I want to start with what I hope is an easy one. When is the next deadline for filling in a tax return? Yep. So the next deadline is for the twenty four, twenty five tax return and that is due by the thirty first of January twenty twenty six. So less than a couple of months away.

What I'm always struck by is HMRC putting out every Christmas the number of people who've been sat uh on their couch after eating the turkey who fill in their tax returns over Christmas. But I guess that that is the point that they've got a bit of time. Is it a lengthy job?

I think it massively depends on the complexity of your tax return. I think it can be a quicker job if you've not got that much to report or it's fairly simple. It can be longer if you've got more complex things to think about. I would always like we massively stress, do it as soon as you can. Give yourself plenty of time. So if there's anything you need to check, look into, etcetera, you've got the time to do it and you're not rushing.

And if it is complex, obviously um seek some advice from people like yourself. And I want to get into that a little bit more later on, but let's stick with dates at the moment.

Are there any other dates belong that thirty first of January that you just mentioned that people need to be aware of? Yeah, so thirty first of January is obviously the filing deadline. It's also a payment deadline. So if you've got tax due, you're gonna need to pay it by that point as well. Another one um yw'r PAYMENT ACCOUNT DEADLINE, yw'r 31 July 2026, yw'r 2nd PAYMENT ACCOUNT, yw'r 2nd PAYMENT ACCOUNT.

Yn ymwneud yw'r 5th o'october, mae'n dweud yw'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october ymwneud â'r 5th o'october

Um and people often sort of miss that deadline. It's quite a random one to remember. So definitely think about that. And I think one that's really poignant for this year is April 26th because if you are gonna be mandated under making tax digital for income tax.

Starting from April is when you are going to be in that first quarter for reporting periods. So if you've got self-employed income or rental income, you need to be aware of that date and start looking now as to what you need to do from that point.

Okay, a bit less easy now. Who needs to fill one in? Lots of different people for lots of different reasons. So some of the common ones um that people probably know more readily, like if you've got self employed income. if you have rental income. child benefit charged back, people that have foreign income, people that receive sort of tips or commissions that aren't taxed through their payroll.

Rydyn ni'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl Rydyn ni'n hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw hwnnw. ac rydych chi'n ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r ymwneud â'r amser.

Ask an accountant, speak to them because majority of accountants will offer a sort of free initial intro question like session. So if you're not sure, always ask because you don't want to be in a position where you should have filed and you haven't. What happens if you should have filed and you haven't? You get penalties and interest?

So definitely want to avoid it. It depends on the situation as to what those penalties are gonna be and how late you are and whether it was like an omission through small error or whether they deemed it to be, you know, you were specifically choosing not to declare taxes that you knew about. So I think, yeah, penalties and interest, so you want to avoid it wherever possible.

'Cause I suppose some people might think that they would get a nudge from HMRC saying, Hey, you need to submit a form, but that doesn't happen. No, not always. And sometimes you don't get that nudge until a couple of years after because they're pretty slow to sort of instigate and realise these things. So it's your responsibility. The burden is on you as the taxpayer to understand whether you need to pay taxes or not, which is tough because the the tax system is so complex and You know.

Rydyn ni'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n. And you already mentioned earlier the thirty first of January is also the date that you need to pay if you owe any tax. If you do owe tax, is it a simple process to pay? Do you get a nudge from HMRC saying yes, you need to pay this amount?

Yeah, it's a reasonably simple system to actually make the payment. You've got a couple of different options in terms of how you do it. So, you know, you can do it via your government gateway account, you can do it via bank transfer. If you're super prepared, you can set up things like a direct debit so it collects automatically.

Um do they nudge you? Yes, but I wouldn't rely on it. So um it depends on how you've opted for communication to come from them. Sometimes it will come via a letter. The letters are often quite delayed or they get lost. Um, if you've opted for communication via your government gateway, you sort of get a nudge in there. But I wouldn't rely on it. So I always recommend to people, you know, know the deadlines.

put a reminder in your diary two weeks ahead of that and make sure that you've got the payment ready to go so that you don't forget or you know if there's any complications with making the bank transfer or anything like that it's not being left to the last minute because you know if you're on the 31st of January something goes wrong with your bank and you can't pay it and then you're gonna start getting penalties or interests it's just not worth the stress.

I've heard lots of people talking about, hey, I've set aside money for my tax that I'm gonna owe, but sometimes they can get caught out. And you mentioned earlier about paying tax on account. What's that about? Yes, this catches so many people out. Payments on account are advanced payments for the following tax year's liability. So they're usually set of f at fifty percent per payment of the previous tax year's liability.

and um not more than eighty percent of it is being collected via the tax code or via your your payroll. So it's not relevant to everybody, but it's sort of relevant to those that are self employed, earning dividend income, rental income, etc. What I would say is people always sort of get really angry about paying in advance to HMRC and they always think, you know, I'm HMRC and making me pay tax with money that I haven't received.

You have actually received or earned the money by the point that you make that first payment on account. So if you think for The twenty five, twenty six tax year, which is the one that we're in now, the first payment on account that you make will be in January. And that's already ten months into that tax year. And the tax amount that you pay is fifty percent of last year's tax bill. So in theory, you've already had and earned that money.

The next payment that you make will be in July, and that's after the tax year. So you've definitely had or earned that money. So in theory, if you've started saving right from the start of Either having your business or earning this income that you need to pay tax on, you should have already saved that money. I think it catches people out because.

you know, people don't necessarily start saving straight away and therefore, you know, they think they're just saving for that amount that's due in January, not thinking about the payment on account for the following tax year. Rydyn ni'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd i'n mynd.

Very good advice. I promised that we would cover this off after we spoke to Eleanor on our last podcast. Side hustles. I know particularly with the cost of living crisis, lots of people have been making money from selling things like clothes on sites like Vintage. So do you have to pay tax on that? It depends, which is a really annoying answer. Um in most instances, if you are just selling your personal items and you're selling them at less than what you paid for them.

Um and it's not something that you're doing super regularly, it's just something you do occasionally. It's not gonna be taxable, it's not a trade, and you're not actually making money on it because you've sold it for less than you paid for it. So for the average person using vintage, selling a little bit of stuff on eBay, it's not going to be relevant. I think the point at which those sort of

Vintage stuff tips into being taxable is if you're doing it super regularly and the values are reasonably high. So you know, there's now legislation that r that requires companies like Vintage to report to HMRC if certain thresholds are crossed. So

that's designed to catch people out that, you know, aren't declaring those taxes that should be. But I would say for the majority of people, you don't need to worry about it. And I think this was a sort of big ymwneud â phobl sy'n cael ei wneud yn ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl. And for those who do turn it into a business like Eleanor

Is it worth setting up a limited company? Because as her confession said, um she felt that she hadn't done it soon enough and therefore she ended up paying more tax than perhaps she would have done otherwise. yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw yw So, you know, if you want that limited liability protection, you can't get that when you're self employed. if you want to be able to

get that sort of brand reputation that comes from having a limited company. Again, that's not something that's available to you from a self employed perspective. So I think each case has to be considered on its own merits. So I wouldn't give like a blanket

Yes, definitely set up a limited company or no, definitely don't. It really depends on your personal situation. I think it also depends on people's appetite for compliance and administration because Self employed, although it is becoming more burdensome in terms of admin, especially with making text digital coming in, is less Um complex taxing, excuse the pun, than running a limited company.

um, you know, there's a lot more requirements that you have to follow when you operate a limited company. And that isn't for everybody. And it really depends on the value of income you're getting as to whether that's going to be worth it. And I think this is even more poignant following the recent budget. You know, they've made changes to dividend tax. A couple of years ago they made changes to corporation tax and actually that

sort of margin of benefit of being limited versus self-employed has actually been corroded over time. So You know, tax isn't the only consideration for it. I would really just recommend everybody have a proper conversation with an accountant before making that decision.

I'm not just gonna excuse the pun, I'm gonna celebrate the pun because this is taxing. There will be a lot of people listening to this right now who maybe are feeling slightly sick, maybe overwhelmed because it is crazy complicated. Um if people do need to get help. Getting an accountant might seem like the obvious answer here, but sometimes finding the right one is hard. So so what can they do?

So anyone could literally set themselves up, call themselves an accountant. They might have absolutely no experience, no qualifications and you know, have never done a single tax return in their life and still have the right to call themselves an accountant. Um so it it is a bit of a minefield. What I would say is You want to be looking at the credibility of the accountant. So, you know, what qualifications and experience do they have?

Rydyn ni'n cael ei gweithio, ac mae'n cael ei gweithio, mae'n cael ei gweithio, mae'n cael ei gweithio, mae'n cael ei gweithio. you know there's ways that you can do that. So for example we're a chartered accountants firm and we're regulated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants. They have a register at which you can search

and see that we are regulated, for example. So I would say starting to look at what qualifications the accountants have and whether they are verifiable and whether they are suited to the sort of requirements of your business because you know, there's different qualifications, different levels and um, you know, Rydyn ni'n gweithio cymdeithasol, rydyn ni'n gweithio cymdeithasol. Rydyn ni'n gweithio cymdeithasol. Rydyn ni'n gweithio cymdeithasol, rydyn ni'n gweithio cymdeithasol.

I would also check out reviews. So, you know, look at their Google reviews, etc., see that they've got good reviews because that is obviously a really good indication of whether they're going to be a good firm to work with or not. ask friends and family for recommendations. You know, it's always nice to hear a personal recommendation of somebody that's had a good experience to know whether they're the right um business to support you. I think... Another thing is, you know

Speak to a few. If you aren't sure what you want and you've not done this before, you're not sure what the process is.

speak to a few different accountants so you could kind of get a feel for them as a person, them as a firm, what different services are available to you before you make a decision. Because sometimes it feels like a closed shop, doesn't it? Sometimes when you talk to an accountant you you don't understand, you don't feel comfortable, and you don't feel that you can ask the questions that you need.

And finding someone that's prepared to talk to you in the way that you're talking to us today, no jargon, straightforward, can be hard. Yeah, which is why I think it's really important to speak to a few different people. Think of it as like

going on a date with an accountant, you're seeing whether they're the right sort of vibe for you. And I think it's really, really important that you do have an accountant that you have that comfortable relationship with, that you feel like you can ask questions.

and that you're gonna get an answer that actually explains it in like simple terms, is easy to understand, it doesn't like gatekeep information. That's one of the things that we see Yn ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl sy'n ymwneud â phobl

you know, accountants don't necessarily share their knowledge. They will just say yes or no to something and not explain why. And I think it's really important as the business owner or as the taxpayer to actually understand why you're being advised something.

So, you know, you wanna be able to have open, honest conversations with people and you need to feel comfortable to do that. I think it's something that's super prevalent for women as well. Like we have so many clients that yn ymwneud â'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r pethau'r

questions that are easy are great because it's easy for me to answer. Like I like silly questions. They're really easy to answer. So I think, you know Doing a bit of shopping around, finding somebody that actually suits you and your personality and the way that you like to work because you know different firms do things in different ways and uh there'll be something that will suit you, you just might not find it on that first chat.

Abby, it's been an absolute delight talking to you. If we'd gone on a speed date, that would be it. Now we'd be off into the sunset. Thank you so much for your time. My pleasure.

Some really useful tips in there and I love the idea of speed dating sessions so you can pick your perfect accountant. I feel like actually that should apply for every adulting thing you have to do in life. If you need to sell your house and you need to find an estate agent.

Line them all up and give'em two minutes to give their pitch to you. I think it should go for all of them, but of course, Danny, I want to know, did she have She did, and it was really interesting because it is a confession that we have heard many times before from women who work in finance. And before I let you go, this is your time to share your financial

I think I have many financial confessions. I would say there's probably the sort of misconception that accountants or people that work in finance have it all figured out and have always had it figured out. sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n sy'n. Um I, for the first three years of having my business, didn't contribute to a pension, despite advising all of my clients to do the same.

Um, you know, when I was was younger, despite earning like a reasonable salary, I still used to spend on credit cards and not have a good like money budget. And I think it wasn't until I really engaged in the process and thought, actually

you know, what are my long term goals here? What am I spending my money on? What do I want my retirement to look like? That I actually made those changes. And I kick myself every day for not having done it sooner because when I look at You know, if I'd have started investing at eighteen, what I would have now, I think God, that was

a terrible decision, but you can't change what's happened. You can only change what you do now. So I would say, you know, even if you are in a position where you think, actually My finances are out of control. I've not been saving for tax. I've got some debt. Like don't bury your head in the sand. Start where you are now and just make sort of incremental micro improvements and

In the long term, you will get to where you want to be if you're willing to, you know, start where you are and invest some time and energy into it. I love that. Start where you are. Abby, thank you so much. My pleasure. It's a bit of pleasure. I feel like I've said this so many times before, but it's about doctors being terrible patients is the old adage.

That thing of like you deal with things day to day and you know all the things you should do, but you just never get around to sorting it out for yourself at home. And I kind of get it, like if you spend all day doing something, the last thing you want to do with your spare time. Very same thing again. It's understandable, I think. It is understandable and you're right. Um, not only has it been a confession that we've heard many times, but we've we've also um explained that.

We ourselves are guilty of doing just that. And sometimes it is just a matter of time, but also it's a matter sometimes of just the realisation that Hang on a second, I'm talking to people about their financial lives, how to make their lives better and you know, get themselves set for the future, but actually I haven't done it for myself, and it is now time to take that small first step. A hundred.

That is everything that we have for this episode. And as we said, this is our final pod of 2025. The next pod will be the first of 2026 and that big 100. Yes, and we thought it would be interesting to go back to some of our previous podcast guests and ask them to send us a voice note telling us how their financial lives have changed since they appeared on the pod last. So do listen.

that. If you haven't already subscribed to the pod, make sure that you do that so you don't miss an episode and Why not give your female friends and family a brilliant gift this Christmas and introduce them to the AJ Bell Money Matters campaign, point them to the website, um AJBL moneymatters dot co dot uk we've got loads of articles and podcasts to help them to step into twenty twenty six in fine financial

Which is what we will also be discussing early next year. How to start simple money habits and key. So unlike many New Year's resolutions that don't last past the first week in January, we'll be talking about how you can actually stick to some good money happens. But until then, do keep an eye on our social media, all the usual places, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. We are at

AJ Bell Money Matters. And if you haven't already, you can treat yourself by signing up to our newsletter via the website so that you don't miss a thing. Thanks very much for listening. Before you go, please remember this podcast is for educational purposes. And the views expressed don't necessarily reflect those of AJ Bell. The podcast isn't telling you if a certain investment is suitable or not.

Don't forget that the value of investments can change and you can lose money as well as make it. It's also important to remember that how you're taxed will depend on your individual circumstances and rules can change. The way an investment is how it behaves in the future. If you want help, go see a qualified financial advisor.