How to Spend your $900 – think about your future needs first
Thousands of Australians are just receiving or are about to receive a pretty handsome cheque from the Federal Government as part of the economic stimulous package. The question then is ‘what do I spend this on?’ Below I offer a futurist’s view on where certain generational types might consider spending the bonus.
As a Strategic Futurist I am asked to help individuals and organisations of all shapes and sizes consider emerging issues and potential implications as a result of those issues. Below is a ‘generational’ take that might assist you when thinking about your future and how to spend the funds wisely:
Boomers – okay let’s say you’re about to be in receipt of a full $900 – where do you use the cash? Well if I was a Boomer, I’d be looking at two areas in particular – training, and training. First, consider a book-keeping course – it’s a great skill with plenty of ongoing demand, and second then about doing a Cert IV in Training and Assessment – that workplace experience and teaching qualification could be in great demand. Alternatively, think about buying yourself a good bicycle with all the riding accessories you need – helmet, lights etc. You might find you’ll need to stop driving or have more time to spend with the grand kids
For Gen Xers (the ‘forgotten’ generation) – the Cert IV in Training and Assessment is a must do, slightly after paying off Credit Card Debt. If you’re okay in those two areas then I’d certainly think about getting a yearly gym membership – just make sure you pay all in one hit so you don’t get locked into contracts with horrendous and punitive ‘get-out’ clauses. The training qualification will be useful in later years as the upturn kicks in because there will be plenty of people needing to be re-trained in a hurry. The gym because if you find yourself temporarily on the scrap heap, your health can go down hill fast. Committing to staying healthy means your state of mind is sharper, you’ll look better and you just never know who you might meet there. For many, it’ll be a chance to make up for one too many good lunches and long working hours that rarely included sufficient exercise
Gen Y – ah yes, the first shock to the system for many in this bracket. Consider buying camping equipment and an outdoor stove because you might just find that you’ll need somewhere to live once the rental and free accommodation dries up. Also a good bicycle because if your friends lose their job (or you do) running a car will be expensive – same goes for a reliance on parents to drive you around – such an asset may no longer be available and the ol’peddley will turn out to be more than a useful option
There you have it – enjoy the cash, spend wisely
Who’s Been Sleeping In My House? is a new Australian series presented by archaeologist Adam Ford that looks at the stories behind some of our old homes. Adam is the man behind the recent ‘Ned Kelly’ dig among other great archaeology finds here in Australia and the UK. As a futurist I’m always interested in…
Read More >The Association of Professional Futures is holding its first Virtual Gathering, following the sun from Europe, across North America and finishing in the Australia pacific zone. It kicks off tomorrow and links to the program and registration (it’s only $45 for guests for a program featuring some of the worlds most prominent futurists) You…
Read More >I join Vicki Kerrigan on ABC Darwin radio where we continue our discussion about the future of sex. We consider three main areas in this session – smart phone applications; remote relationships and the combination of haptics and holographics as one the emerging means by which we’ll maintain physical contact. You can download the…
Read More >In this chat with Vicki Kerrigan on radio ABC Darwin we discuss the future of sex. This is the first of potentially three conversations where we look at the increasing reach of technology way beyond current online match making sites, the social pressures driving the use of technology as well as the use of technology…
Read More >There’s been a bit of discussion in recent months about a softening housing market around Australia but I wonder how much of it is more indicative of unrealistic expectations on behalf of sellers? In futures work we think in terms of Assumptions and Expectations and aim to test our understanding and so I offer this…
Read More >Unfortunately it looks like my main email address has been hijacked and has been used to send out a series of spam emails. I’d like to apologise to anyone who has received some junk email purporting to come from ‘desiredfutures’ with a series of html links asking you to go and have a look. You…
Read More >Given the amount of plastic swimming in our oceans and rivers and the volume littering our land, the NT Government is aiming to introduce compulsory returns legislation on soft-drink bottles (as happens in South Australia), something that has apparently raised the ire of bottler, Coca Cola. Although they’ve recently backed away from their initial statement…
Read More >Deciphering the hype from reality with regard to drug use can be a challenge for most of us. Professor David Nutt in the UK has given me permission to post a link to the paper he has co-authored with Ruth Weissenborn that looks at the reality of a comparison of harm caused by two common…
Read More >Vicki Kerrigan and I finished off our discussion about the Future of Clothing on ABC Darwin yesterday. We discussed invisibility style cloaks, singlets that monitor your heart rate and stress levels, runners that capture electricity to power your wearable electronics and a few philosophical questions regarding our ability to deal with stress. The file…
Read More >I’ll be talking with Vicki Kerrigan again this afternoon, this time discussing robotics as in-home carers. I’m due on at about 4.45pm Darwin time which is around 5.15pm on the eastern seaboard. You can listen to the audio stream via the link below http://www.abc.net.au/darwin/programs/webcam_radio.htm?ref=listenlive If all things go well, I’ll record the session and…
Read More >