STRUGGLING TO STAY AFLOAT
LIBBY Trickett wowed the nation with her swimming as a young Olympian, but when it came to her finances, she admits she was clueless.
Trickett, 36, who made her Olympic debut at the Athens Games aged 19, said she was “pissing” money away early in her career – until her financially minded partner pulled her up.
“I was spending too much money on material things that were fun and shiny and I wasn’t really thinking too much about what we were planning towards, whether that was buying a place together or putting it towards superannuation, that was just not front of mind for me,” she said.
Her husband Luke, who is the founder of investment fund manager Blue Stamp Company, “initially went along” with her carefree spending. But about two years into her swimming career, he gave her a wake-up call after she started falling behind on mobile phone bills.
“That was what prompted Luke to say we need to start managing our money better, and we have to actually start making a budget and not just pissing our money away,” she said.
Without a stable income and her husband pouring all of his money into his new business, they were forced to sell their home at auction in 2013. But the buyer backed out of the unconditional sale and the amount required to be paid allowed them to hold on to it.
They managed to make ends meet over the following six years, “grinding and hustling” in every way that they could. The couple, who have two children, are now in a more comfortable position.