Each week, BusinessDesk and the NZ Herald’s Cooking the Books podcast tackles a different money problem. Today, it’s how a teacher changed her finances to prioritise travel and spend time with family. Hosted by Frances Cook.


There are many different strategies to reach financial independence, some more extreme than others. 

If you have the freedom to travel, it can also mean the opportunity to take your financial strategies to the next level. 

That’s what today’s guest did. 

She combined seeking out the highest paid jobs in her field from around the world, with a very low cost of living, in order to hit a 90% savings rate. 

You read that right – she saved and invested 90% of the money she earned. 

That doesn’t mean it was all plain sailing though, because she had some money behaviours that nearly held her back from her dream early retirement. 

For the latest podcast, I talked to Amy Minkley.

For the interview, listen to the podcast here.