The problem is, at the moment I just don’t seem to give a damn about my Kiwisaver account. The fund is with a bank that is charging a regular fee, which I know is bad for my long term savings. The investment allocation is an asset type I chose a long time ago, and have never since reviewed, but I’m not in the least bit curious about what it’s invested in. There’s a bunch of money in another super account that I need to bring over from Australia, but I can never get around to it, and haven’t bothered even to calculate my potential savings from switching everything over.
The problem is that the money in my account is such a relatively paltry sum, compared to my other transactions, that I can’t seem to motivate myself to take the slightest interest in what I’m doing with it. But in the back of my mind I know that a part of my retirement, at least, will depend upon it. And I know that there are some backroom people who would like nothing more than to rob me of a comfortable retirement by passively sapping my savings.
The irony is that I write a blog that more often than not covers financial topics. Perhaps this new habit will ease the feeling of sheer hypocrisy I feel when I lecture other people about solar panels while meanwhile my retirement savings dwindle and get sapped by crafty bankers. I confess: I am a financial sinner!
My theory is, if I commit to making an AP into my Kiwisaver account, then hopefully I’ll start to care. Even a paltry sum such as $2 per week may make all the difference in my willingness to learn about the subject, because if I can see the money draining from my cash account each week, depriving me of my ill-gotten morning coffee, then presumably I can figure out that it’s important to manage it wisely and stop the banks from picking my pockets too much. Basically I’m paying myself to give a shit.
What’s more, I can over time adjust this paltry sum. This year may be $2 per week, next year may be $3, etc. In fact if I boost that amount by 50% per year then I’ll eventually get to the point where the sums of money are substantial, even overtaking the amounts I commit through my regular employment.
And that will keep me motivated and keep me interested. Theoretically. So there you go. The human heart is a dark forest when it comes to Kiwisaver. But I’m doing my best to mosey on through it.
