Money is about choices - to live our lives the way we want

Author and finance writer Julia Newbould is well-known throughout the Australian financial services industry. Now managing editor at Conexus Financial, most will recognise her as the former editor of Money magazine, Australia’s popular personal finance magazine, and for hosting its Friends with Money podcast. She’s also known for making strides for women and diversity in financial planning, having founded The Stella Network. But she’s probably best known for putting the joy in money.

Julia is a firm believer in the power of education and content to ‘make up for some of the initial inequalities’ and says both the industry and specialist media have a role.

“We had a lot of people seeking financial information during the pandemic, just worried about how they could save what they had, how they would manage if they lost work. It increased our readership, and I think it's stayed that way. People are a lot more engaged with their finances now.”

And the more information, the better, says Julia, who loves to see people talking about money - no matter how wild it gets.

“It’s good to have more information and have people talking about finance. We need to start bit by bit and take the embarrassment out. There’s a “She’s On The Money” Facebook group; it can get wild in there. People will discuss everything from rent to financial advice, and sometimes they’re right, something they aren’t. When I started 20 years ago, no one talked about what shares they were buying. Now it’s a regular discussion.”

Listen to episode two of the Upfront podcast to hear Julia talking about why the language of financial services needs to change and what the industry can do about it.