Michael Littlewood, co-director, Retirement Policy and Research Centre
What does money mean to you?
Money is a means to an end. It's hard won, easily lost and requires careful nurturing. Human capital (qualifications, skills) is just as important as financial capital.
What did you learn about money from your parents?
My parents received their economic education in the 1930s Depression. My father's first job was a sole-charge teacher on the banks of the Wanganui River (Tawata). He was fired at the end of each term so that the Education Board didn't have to pay holiday pay. My mother had to resign as a teacher when she married - that was the rule. We were a one-income family so money was never plentiful. Getting a good education was the most important "money lesson" I learned. Most of everything else has flowed from that.
What was your first paid job?
My first paid job was as a lowly shop assistant in Tower's IGA grocery in Claudelands, Hamilton, at age 15. I don't remember my pay but I earned enough over the Christmas holidays to buy an expensive sports jacket. It cost me £13/6/8, the present equivalent of $570, according to the Reserve Bank's inflation calculator. Today's value says more about the falling real cost of clothing than about my tastes in 1960.
What is your biggest money mistake?
My biggest mistake was expecting to make money out of breeding racehorses. The tax breaks were wonderful at a time when the top personal tax rate was 66 per cent but the deductions were soon forgotten. It was a lesson in being attracted by tax rather than the business' fundamental economics, which were hopeless.
