How many steps did you do in 2016? I did 8,170,127 – fitness tracking works!

I hate the idea of sounding like an advert, but wearing a fitness tracker has made a substantial change to my lifestyle. In Feb 2015 Mrs MSE gave me a Fitbit (though I’m sure the same’s true of all brands), and for someone like me, who’s a bit obsessive, it’s a very powerful motivating factor. I’m now averaging...

An important warning to every employee in the UK

This is a warning for every worker in the UK. Have you turned down a pay rise without realising it? Millions have done or risk doing just that. It happens when your employer ‘auto-enrols’ you into a pension scheme but you decide to opt out – in most cases a huge mistake.

Would you take £500 now or £1,000 in a year? And what that says about you

If I offered you £500 today or a guaranteed no-risk £1,000 in a year’s time, what would you take? Think about it for a second, as your answer shines a light on your financial psychology. I’m sorry to say this isn’t a real offer, but a simple poser I posted as a Twitter poll a little while ago...

What Brexit means for your finances in 2017

In June 2016, the day after the European Union referendum vote, I wrote an instant first impressions news analysis guide on what Brexit is likely to mean for your finances. Now for the start of 2017, I’m braving revisiting that guide – in the form of this blog, to see how well it stacks up and what...