Life Admin Life Hacks

052: An Hour of Power and the Monthly Momentum Meeting

 We chatted with parenting expert Michael Grose about how we can get our kids to contribute more, relieve the life admin burden and grow up to be efficient at their own life admin. Michael Grose, the founder of Parenting Ideas, is one of Australia’s leading parenting educators, informing and inspiring audiences in Australia and around the world for more than 20 years. Micheal is a former primary school teacher with 15 years of experience. He holds a Master of Educational Studies specialising in parenting education and is the father of three children He is a bestselling author of 12 books for parents including Spoonfed Generation, Thriving!, Anxious Kids and his latest re-release Why First Borns Rule the World and Later Borns Want to Change It. Michael has had parenting segments on The Project, The Today Show, Weekend Sunrise, ABC radio and more. He has contributed to Huff Post, Kidspot and Mamamia, and is a former columnist with both News Ltd and Fairfax newspapers. What we talk about Our recent survey of over 300 Australians revealed that parents do 33% more life admin than those without kids, and they are twice as likely to struggle for time. During the interview, we chat with Michael about: how parents often underestimate what their kids can do by up to three years that we should never regularly do for our kids what they are capable of doing for themselves that kids want more autonomy and independence that as family sizes have shrunk we know more about each of our children, and so we give them less space to become more independent being aware of developing independence and providing small opportunities for kids to feel and be useful starting where your kids are at and pushing them along over time developing a 'junior version of the game' (eg like Auskick for AFL) for life admin and housework and setting the standards based on their age and stage that we need to not rescue kids so they can learn from their experience accepting what kids do as a reasonable standard if they have tried their best that pocket money is a great way to increase autonomy and independence and you can start from age 5 deciding what your benchmark will be in your family for handing over responsibility for a task (eg when they make their own lunch) thinking about sharing the 'jobs and the joy' and wealth within your family using a roster to allocate chores to create the sense that the roster is creating the “ask” rather than the parents when kids start asking for more independence we can look at ways that we can make it happen by giving them the skills they need to do at least part of the task pets are great to teach kids what it is like to have someone else reliant on them thinking less about the amount of time that kids are spending on screens and more on what they are consuming and what the opportunity cost is (what else could they be doing) teenagers need parents who will challenge them that gender and birth order can create different expectations girls are often more organised at a younger age and boys may need more coaching, due to the way the brain develops differently between the genders firstborns tend to be more detail-orientated and introverted there are three aspects to consider when parenting - a child's genetics & temperament, birth order and the family frame that sets the landscape for everything else. Resources Parenting Ideas website Michael’s books Dr Kristy Goodwin - Michael Grose's collaborator and colleague Share Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook, Insta or Linked In pages to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions with us. 

051: Michael Grose on upskilling your kids to contribute

 Get up to speed with the good, bad and ugly state of Mia and Dinah's life admin. Since Mia and Dinah have been writing their Life Admin Life Hacks book they have optimised their life admin processes even further. In this episode they bring you up to speed on their life admin systems with a focus on the foundational tools: password manager, cloud storage and dedicated email, scheduling, lists and budgeting.  A password manager is an essential foundation for life admin. Dinah has continued to use Last Pass Families and Mia uses Keeper. They recommend: if you don’t have a password manager you should start a free trial if you need some help setting up your password manager you can watch YouTube videos to step you through the process.  installing a Chrome browser extension on your computer to make it much easier to access passwords on your PC or Mac and allow auto-filling of login details all important documents (eg copies of passports and Medicare Cards) are uploaded to your password manager, given its high security and encryption  setting up a legacy contact in your password manager so that if you become incapicated or die your passwords can be accessed to manage your digital estate.  The second foundational life admin tool is having cloud storage and a dedicated life admin email. Mia and Dinah both continue to use Google Drive. They recommend: a separate dedicated email for life admin to keep life admin in a separate, defined space and to more easily share the load with your partner or coparent if you have had a cloud storage setup for some time it might be time for a digital declutter to get rid of anything no longer required.  trying different mail apps on your phone to make it easier to save things into your cloud storage - Dinah uses the Gmail app to make it seamless to save files into her life admin Google Drive. Another foundational life admin element is a shared digital calendar and scheduling. Mia and Dinah both use Google Calendar but Dinah uses the Outlook app on her phone to make it easier to view her work and family calendar together. Mia loves lists! She uses: the iPhone Reminder app for her to-do lists  the iPhone Notes app for reference Llsts including her meal plan and shopping list to-do lists that are categorised by the duration of the task: “Ten Minute Time Killer” tasks and “Hour of Power” for more complex tasks Dinah also uses the Reminders app as she can easily share the lists with her husband and use Siri to easily add to the lists on the go. Budgeting is the final element of the life admin system and is essential given its links to comparison shopping for household bills. Mia uses the Money Brilliant app while Dinah uses defined bank accounts to help live within her targeted savings goals. There have been quite a number of changes to other areas of life since the various episodes were recorded. These include: Home loans - lowest interest rates since the 1970s  - make sure you compare the rate you’re paying against the average interest rate on Moneysmart.gov.au. If your rate looks high at a minimum, call your bank and ask whether they can offer you something more competitive.  If you want to invest more time and reap more savings then call a mortgage broker. Energy  - always on comparison services are now possible such as Energy Umpire. Most contracts no longer have exit fees and so shopping around each year is critical to get a good deal Internet - the NBN rollout is now complete and contracts have reduced in time to 6 months. There are 35 providers to choose from and you can probably get a better deal if you have been with your ISP for a while Mobile phones - this market has changed considerably with 5G now rolling out. It is now generally cheaper to shop around and buy a handset on sale, and then sign up with a SIM-only contract. If you are now working from home more, you may no longer need as much data so you might be able to downgrade to get a better deal. RESOURCES Last Pass - Dinah’s password manager Keeper - Mia’s password manager Episode 3 Managing passwords and form filling data Episode 44 - Planning your digital estate Episode 5 - Scheduling the Inevitable, the Inspirational and an Hour of Power Episode 4 - Mastering To Do Lists Episode 25 - Embracing Budgeting Money Brilliant App Money Smart - Home Loan average rate Energy Umpire SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook or Insta pages to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

050: State of the administration

 This episode will give you Mia and Dinah’s top hacks for fuelling the admin for your car maintenance and repair. The average two-car household in Australia spends around $17,000 or 13-14% of their income per year on car-related costs, so keeping on top of all your car admin not only saves you money but also gives you peace of mind that your car is in good repair. In this episode Mia and Dinah discuss:  Car registration (“rego”) Insurance Service and repairs. In recent years, all states of Australia have abolished car registration stickers and so it is important to ensure you have a good system to make sure you receive your registration payment reminder so you don’t inadvertently drive without. You can set up your preferred method of bill notification by logging into your state's vehicle registration organisation, such as Vicroads or Transport for NSW. When thinking about car insurance, Mia and Dinah discuss the things you need to consider: if you need comprehensive or third party insurance if you want to insure for agreed value or market value cover for personal property (eg child seats in the car) road assistance to be included how far you will drive as you may be able to get a cheaper premium if choice of repairer and provision of rental car is important to you who will be the primary driver - this does not need to be the owner increasing your excess can be a great way to reduce your premium paying annually in advance is another good way to reduce your premium. The comparison sites Mia and Dinah recommend to compare car insurers are Canstar, Choice and Finder. When getting your car serviced things to keep in mind are: you don’t need to go to the authorised dealer to get your car serviced - any qualified mechanic can service your car and fill out the log book as long as they're using quality parts it is important to do your regular service to keep your car in good working order and save $ in the long run even if you aren’t regularly using your car add a reminder to you to-do list for 6-8 weeks before the service is due to book your car in so you can get the day/time of your choice and have the best chance of securing a loan vehicle (if available)  capped price servicing often does not include critical service items and may not provide the best value. For regular car maintenance: check your car owners manual to see how often and what regular checks you should do on your car (eg checking oil, tyre pressure, tyre tread) establish a system of when you will check, consider pairing it with something else or adding it to a to-do list buy a tyre pressure gauge so you can check you pressure at home and it will be more accurate that the gauges available in petrol stations consider getting your tyres rotated and balanced every 5,000kms to lengthen their life. You can also consider if you need to own a car or have two cars in your household. Car share services like GoGet, Flexicar, Popcar and ride share services like Uber may provide a viable alternative for you. RESOURCES Get Reminded App - App to set reminders for when bills are due Choice Canstar Finder Stella - Car Insurer for Women SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook or Insta pages to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

049: Maintaining your car

   This episode will give you Mia and Dinah’s top hacks for navigating Australia’s government payments and allowances. There are over 26 different payments and benefits available from Centrelink. Mia and Dinah talk about the 8 broad categories of payments available: families with children age pensions disability support carer support study-related support unemployment support crisis and special benefits concession cards and bonus payments. They discuss the best place to start to assess if you are available for any payments or  benefits is the Centrelink Payment and Service Finder. This service available on the Centrelink website allows you to enter your details and then suggests what payments you should investigate. It also suggests other supports such as help lines, community groups, advocacy networks and associations that may be relevant to your situation. In particular other services which you may be eligible which are relevant to life admin include: Financial counselling  Department of Human Services Financial Information Service Legal aid Microfinance small loans Mia and Dinah talk about some of the payments you may be eligible for including: Family Tax Benefit Part A and Part B - tax benefit for single parents or couples with children based on your income level and number of children Paid Parental Pay - pay to help parents spend time at home with a newborn or recently adopted child Child Care Subsidy - assists families with the cost of approved child care  Carer Payment - supplement paid to someone who provides daily care and attention at home to a person with a disability or medical condition  Austudy - payment for those 25+ returning to university to do a degree Jobseeker - financial help if you're between 22 and Age Pension age and looking for work  Mia and Dinah talk about some of their top hacks for navigation the system including: if you know your circumstances are going to change, plan ahead to assess what you need to do to be eligible for relevant payments or services if you need to call the Centrelink call centre don’t call on Monday - the best times are usually Wednesday and Thursday in the morning if you have a complicated situation do your research, collect all your documentation and then make an appointment to see a Centrelink representative keep all your records accessible in your life admin system to make ongoing management of the payment easier. RESOURCES Services Australia  - Guide to Government Payments Centrelink - Payment and Service Finder ATO - Government payments, pensions and allowances that must be declared on your tax return SHARE Please head to e Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook or Insta pages to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

048: Navigating government benefits

   This episode will give you Mia and Dinah’s top hacks for managing maintenance and repairs to your home. While completing home maintenance and repairs is not life admin, planning it, scheduling it, organising equipment and supplies and finding and engaging tradespeople are all squarely life admin tasks you have to do. Mia and Dinah start the ep by discussing how you can get motivated to tackle this. Strategies they discuss include: reframing home maintenance as a quest for beauty within the sanctuary of your home  to elevate it from the humdrum considering the costs you will save by attending to small maintenance items before they result in a need for major repairs improving household harmony by establishing a system so you can share responsibilities with your partner ensuring the safety of your home considering the environmental impact saving energy can have. Mia and Dinah discuss hacks for:  establishing seasonal reference lists for household and garden maintenance having a to-do list for minor repairs so you can batch them scheduling in your important recurring maintenance tasks establishing the minimal acceptable standard for tasks so you can minimise disagreements with your partner and more easily share the load making sure you understand what is included within your home insurance including possible access to home assist services considering subscribing to home assist services like RACV Home Assist to get easier access to tradespeople 24/7 learning how to do repairs and maintenance by using Youtube or doing a course  having a list of contacts for tradespeople and other outsourced suppliers so you can readily access an outsourced provider when needed. They also discuss the equipment you may need for home repairs and maintenance and that you don’t need to buy to save money and storage space. Other options include: borrowing from neighbours, friends and family community tool libraries peer to peer services like toolmates.com.au  renting from hardware stores. RESOURCES The Architecture of Happiness - Alain De Botton Fair Play - guidance on establishing a minimum acceptable standard Home Maintenance schedule example  Ep 4 - Mastering To-Do Lists Ep 022: Outsourcing personal and household tasks Tool Mates Note that the Open Shed tool sharing app mentioned in the episode is unforutnately no longer available. SHARE Please head to e Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook or Insta pages to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

047: Organising home maintenance and repairs

046: Reviewing your superannuation

 We interview Tracey Spicer, longtime broadcaster and recent NSW Premier's Woman of the Year, on how she and her partner organise and share their home life and careers. Tracey Spicer AM is a multiple Walkley Award-winning author, journalist and broadcaster who has anchored national programs and in 2018 was chosen as one of the Australian Financial Review’s 100 Women of Influence . In 2019 she was named the NSW Premier’s Woman of the Year, accepted the Sydney Peace Prize alongside Tarana Burke for the Me Too movement, and won the national award for Excellence in Women’s Leadership through Women & Leadership Australia. Her first book, The Good Girl Stripped Bare, became a bestseller within weeks of publication, while her TEDx Talk, The Lady Stripped Bare, has attracted more than six million views worldwide. What we talk about During the interview, we chat with Tracey about: organising holiday care for children how Tracey enlisted her seven-year-old daughter to help her with tax receipts enlisting the children to assist with life admin, cooking and other household chores how she is determined to teach non-traditional gender roles to her children  how her husband has taken control of house cleaning and comparison shopping in their household how habit, necessity and seeking advice has helped her take control of her taxes her approach to what she is happy to outsource the importance of having a conversation with your partner to reset expectations how her kids take responsibility for planning, shopping and cooking one meal each week investing the effort and time to upskill your children into contributing to your household life admin using a shared digital calendar to coordinate family logistics simplifying life to reduce the number of decisions she needs to make.  RESOURCES TEDx - The Lady Stripped Bare Tracey Spicer’s website SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

045: Tracey Spicer on upskilling your kids to contribute at home

 In this episode, we interview Anna Hacker, the host of the ‘What Happens When I Die?’ podcast, about digital estate planning.  Anna Hacker is the National Manager of Estate Planning in the Trustees Services arm of Australian Unity. She trained as a lawyer and is an accredited specialist in Wills & Estates.  She hosts the popular podcast “What Happens When I Die?” which explores the legal outcomes of dying. In each episode, Anna is joined by guests to discuss what happens to your kids, your superannuation, your stuff and even your body after you pass away What we talk about During the interview, we chat with Anna about: The complexities of your digital footprint including photos, access to banking, digital files in the cloud, email accounts, passwords, social media accounts The rules for different email providers on how to access email accounts after you have died Making sure you don’t put passwords in your will as it becomes a public document Ghosting - identity theft after you die Appointing a digital executor - to ensure they have the skills needed to deal with digital assets Preparing a Digital register to include with your statement of wishes, including the location of digital assets  and making sure it is kept updated Using a password manager to grant access to a loved one in case of death or incapacitation  Understanding the rules of the various social media platforms and setting up a legacy contact on Facebook Sorting out your files and photos and having a conversation/death talk about what is important and where they can be found Making sure you update your will when there are key life events or changes. RESOURCES Podcast: What happens when I die Setting up a Facebook Legacy Contact Episode 11: Drafting Wills and Powers of Attorney SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

044: Planning your digital estate

043: Carly Jacobs on productivity, habits and planning

 Dinah and Mia interview frequent flyer expert, Daniel Sciberras, from PointHacks.com on the best way to earn and redeem points for maximum value as well as credit card features that help build your balance fastest. During the interview we chat with Daniel about: choosing which frequent flyer programs to belong to based on your own travel patterns understanding the value of your points based on how you will redeem them the value of using reward points for routes where there is no competition the flexibility of reward flights booking particularly during these COVID times the value of frequent flyer points and how it varies  earning points through spending “on the ground” the best way to earn points through premium credit card bonus offers swapping credit cards every three to four months to make the most of offers available what is a good earn rate for a points-linked credit card earning Qantas points while you sleep what to say when you call your bank to try to get them to waive the annual card fee keeping track of your expiring points and the difference between “hard” and “soft” expiries using the Qantas and Velocity shopping sites for online shopping to boost your point balance and keep your accounts active hacks to buy points from alliance airlines the future of reward points programs his spreadsheet to keep track of all his reward points accounts, balances, and expiry dates. RESOURCES Point Hacks website Qantas Wellbeing App Qantas shopping Velocity E store Point Hacks Email Course SHARE Head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

042: Optimising your frequent flyer points

   In this episode, we interview psychologist and host of the Potential Psychology podcast, Ellen Jackson. About Ellen Jackson Ellen Jackson is a psychologist, host of the Potential Psychology Podcast, internationally published writer, speaker, coach and consultant to organisations Australia-wide. Ellen has a personal passion for self-care and individual wellbeing to beat stress and help you to live your best life. Her work includes one-on-one coaching, and everything she teaches is supported by scientific research so we know it works. Ellen's 6 Word Purpose Statement is: Help others live, learn and flourish. What we talk about During the interview, we chat with Ellen about: how the arrival of children intensifies the life admin load managing your mindset to let go of control and allow others to contribute and solve problems letting go of unnecessary standards or preferences when sharing the load training your children to be grown-ups how feeling calm and having peace of mind is important to her the big five personality traits and the impact this has on how you might approach life admin how being aware of your personality traits can help you understand how best to approach life admin playing to your strengths  understanding that your standards and rules are usually self-imposed and you can let them go valuing your time to help make decisions around outsourcing motivation and how rewards and punishment don’t work in the long run (for our kids or for ourselves) the three key elements to motivation (autonomy, relatedness, competence) RESOURCES Potential Psychology Podcast Potential Psychology Episode  - Why Everything You Know About Motivation Is Wron‪g‬ Potential.com.au SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions. 

041: Ellen Jackson on how mindset and personality impact your life admin

In this episode we interview productivity and innovation expert,  Dr Amantha Imber, about how she manages her life admin. She gives us her top hacks on scheduling, to-do lists  and outsourcing This episode is the first in a series of interviews where we will be interviewing others to see how they tackle their life admin. About Dr Amantha Imber Dr Amantha Imber is an organisational psychologist and founder of behavioural science consultancy Inventium. where she helps companies such as Google, Apple, Disney, LEGO, Atlassian, Commonwealth Bank and many others innovate more successfully and reinvent the way they approach their work.   In 2019, Amantha was named as one of the Australian Financial Review’s 100 Women of Influence. Amantha is also the host of the number one ranking business podcast How I Work, and new podcast How To Date  where she interviews some of the world’s leading innovators about their habits, rituals and strategies for structuring their day.   Amantha’s thoughts have appeared in Harvard Business Review, Forbes, Entrepreneur and Fast Company and she is the author of two best-selling books: “The Creativity Formula” and “The Innovation Formula”.    What we talk about   During the interview we chat with Amantha about: how she plans her time to reflect her values outsourcing cutting her weekly vegetables using Airtasker so she can spend her time doing things that are more fulfilling the importance of planning her social life to make sure she is getting the nourishing time that close friends provide using time boxing (scheduling) for exercise and any other priority things important in her life how she delegates things to others who are better qualified for areas such as financial matters her love of to-do lists and how she uses Siri and Apple Reminders how to get more out of your software by taking the time to earning shortcuts and other features teaching her daughter how to batch prepare her own school snacks how she will teach her daughter the importance of using her time to live her life in line with what is important to her how she enjoys online shopping from independent grocers outsourcing tasks she doesn’t enjoy like cleaning.                                                                                                                       RESOURCES Airtasker How I Work Podcast Online grocery shopping in Melbourne - Your Grocer Episode 22 - Outsourcing personal and household tasks How to Date - Podcast   SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions.

040: Dr Amantha Imber on aligning your values and time

This episode will give you the tops hacks to make your next move as harmonious as possible Moving house is on the list of life change events that stress people out. This year, due to covid-19 more of you may be moving or thinking about moving due to a change in income or for a tree/sea change as remote working becomes a more viable option for many.   Mia and Dinah talk about the four key phases of moving house: Planning (many weeks before) Preparing (few weeks before) Moving (the week of moving) Settling in.   The key to a successful move is all about checklists and systematically working through them.   The key considerations in the planning phase are: selecting a date (consider mid-week which is cheaper and can be much easier if your children are in childcare or school) considering the opportunity to declutter before you move selecting a mover including any specialist movers for things like a piano organising the utility, internet and phone connection and disconnection contacting your insurance providers to ensure you are covered preparing for mail redirection - don’t forget things like subscriptions, car registration, pet registration, electoral role  start making sure you try and use up as much food as possible before the move backing up your computer. applying for a parking permit organising a cleaner sourcing boxes (try local facebook groups or consider renting boxes) and a tape dispenser   Some hacks in the preparing/packing phase are: take some photos of your home as a memento packing by room at the destination while your clothes are still hanging in the closet, put them inside a rubbish bag to make unpacking simpler. in lieu of bubble wrap, protect your dishes and fragile items with clothing and linens as you disassemble furniture, keep all screws and hardware in a plastic bag - label the bag and tape it to the furniture itself, or designate a separate box with hardware for all your furniture. take a picture of the back of your TV and other electronic devices - that way, you know exactly which wires go where when you're setting up in the new place! let the kids pack a few of their own moving boxes pack an “essentials box” or boxes which contains things you will need for the first day/night (including a knife to open boxes, essential crockery, linen, phone charger, clothing and toiletries for the next day, cleaning products, tools, tv remotes etc) ensure you keep track of valuable items and important papers.   On moving day: meditate - go with the flow, be kind - it can be easy to get impatient and frazzled ensure you have cleaning supplies to hand (particularly a dustpan and brush) put labels on rooms at the destination so movers/friends know where to put boxes focus on setting up the beds first and bedrooms for children consider getting takeaway for the first night consider having someone else look after your pets or even put your dog in a kennel for one night so the place is more orderly when they arrive.   When moving day is over it’s time to settle in: pay it forward with boxes and wrap - post it on a neighbourhood Facebook page look at your new council’s website new residents’ checklist finalise any changes of address  unpack everything in the first few weeks otherwise will languish for years make it home - get the pictures up on walls (consider outsourcing this).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 RESOURCES   Episode 4 Mastering To Do Lists Moving House Checklist Hiring Boxes Muval - Platform that connects you with removal companies My Connect - Utility connection service Episode 13 - Choosing a broadband plan Episode 14 - Selecting energy plans   SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions.

039: Moving house

 This episode will talk you through the practical life admin issues you will need to address if you embark on the path of separating from your partner There have been media reports that the divorce rate is expected to spike due to COVID-19. Search engine data for divorce usually increases after Christmas and New Year, but Google has revealed that people are already considering their choices, which is unsurprising given the stresses of homeschooling, lockdown, job loss and income loss. They talk about seeing a lawyer to seek initial advice (ideally prior to separation). If you are looking for a lawyer: many lawyers experienced in family law will give you an initial free or reduced-rate consultation ask for recommendations from friends who have gone through the same situation  check to see if you are eligible for Legal Aid contact your state law society or law institute. They talk about making the most of a meeting with lawyers including preparing information ahead of time such as: the history of your relationship a list of your assets - including rough values and details of any debts  preparing some written questions including an estimate of costs at each stage. You might want to consider taking a friend with you to the meeting to take notes. Mia talks about the steps she went through to prepare for her separation including: ensuring all family admin systems were streamlined and shared including to-do lists, checklists and references lists, shared calendar, cloud storage with important documents scanned, password manager with access to bank and provider accounts, paperless billing and direct debits for as much as possible establishing her separate financial arrangements including securing employment and applying for her own credit card ensuring the house was organised, decluttered, and in good repair  establishing a support network and scheduling appointments including tapping into her employer’s Employee Assistance Program compiling a checklist of things she would need to furnish a new home research on co-parenting arrangements establishing a budget and then researching and securing a rental property to move into. They also talk about some of the organisations you may need to contact when you separate including: Services Australia - to identify payments you may be eligible for or need to make Medicare Superannuation Banks Employer including emergency contact information Wills and Powers of Attorney. They also briefly discuss the two formal options for parenting arrangements: Parenting Order (an order, filed in court)  Parenting Plan (an agreement, not filed in court) . RESOURCES Book: Conscious Uncoupling: 5 Steps to Living Happily Even After, Katherine Woodward Thomas Relationships Australia - Separation or divorce advice sheets Relationships Australia Parenting Plan booklet Services Australia - Information about payments and services for separated parents providing financial support to children Womens Legal Service Victoria MensLine Australia Legal Aid New Home checklist CustodyXchange website    SHARE Please head to the Life Admin Life Hacks Facebook page to connect with listeners and share your thoughts, questions or suggestions.    

038: Separating from your partner

Tools, techniques and tips to tackle your life admin with efficiency. Dinah Rowe-Roberts and Mia Northrop introduce ways to save you time and money, create peace of mind and restore harmony in your household.

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Life Admin Life Hacks

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