Ronel Talks Money: Tracey Lange
Introduction:
Tracey Lange managed to monetise her hobby and turned it into a full-time career. She started out as a news reader on a community radio station. During the past decade Tracey Lange became a well-known brand on TV and radio. She is hosting Bravo! one of the biggest and most popular shows on kykNet (channel 144 DSTV). On weekdays you can also listen to Tracey hosting the Mid-mornings show on Kfm 94.5. Tracey knows how to thrive despite not earning a fixed salary.
Let’s meet:
Name and surname:
Tracey Lange
Profession / title / business:
TV and radio presenter and producer
How would you describe yourself?
Bold, bubbly and to many an extrovert, but in essence I’m an introvert with a great ability to connect with people.
Tell us about your career?
I’m a radio and TV presenter, on commercial radio for the last 13 years and on TV for 10 years. I host and produce Tussen Ons on kykNet&kie (channel 145), I also host BRAVO! on kykNet (channel 144) and Mid-mornings on Kfm 94.5, Monday – Friday.
What do you consider your proudest achievements / highlights?
I’ve interviewed many greats like Idris Elba, Josh Groban, Evita Bezuidenhout, Koos Bekker, Tracy Going and many, many more! I thoroughly enjoyed hosting Dancing with the Stars SA on Mnet in 2018 and MC’ing a concert for 29,000 youth in 2008 for the New Apostolic Church at Newlands.
What was your biggest failure or lowest point in your career?
I can’t say that there have been any lows or failures, but there definitely are moments that I would comfortably not repeat!
How did you get back up after failure?
I’ve always done more than one thing at a time, so that means there was never time to fist lie down and consider and overthink, the other job was still waiting to be done. I think that was my saving grace.
As a freelancer I don’t always have a fixed salary, but I prefer to live as if I have a fixed salary. I will always save 10 – 20% of my ‘fixed’ salary and then anything extra that comes in, I save that too.
Let’s talk money:
How would you describe your money mind-set?
Very prepared and very aware of what comes in and what goes out.
What was your biggest discovery about money?
That you can use it to make more money.
What is your view about the importance of budgeting and do you have a budget?
I have a budget and have had for years! I enjoy knowing what I do with the money that comes in and how I invest it.
How do you save money?
As a freelancer I don’t always have a fixed salary, but I prefer to live as if I have a fixed salary. I will always save 10 – 20% of my ‘fixed’ salary and then anything extra that comes in, I save that too.
What is your favourite investment type / -s?
I invest in small companies alongside my fiance and I also dabble in property.
What is your view about having an emergency fund?
This is vitally important and a non-negotiable. It scares me endlessly when I speak to these great ‘feminists’ and when I ask them about having emergency funds, they give me a blank stare or no answer. You can’t talk the talk, but not have the actual necessities in place. I will be responsible for myself.
Are you financially well organised – have all your policies in place, have a life file and a signed will etc.?
Yes I have all these things in place, my Mom has always been very clued up on finances and made sure that we were too. I had my first will when I got my first car!
What tips do you have with regards to retirement planning?
Start as young as you possibly can and then do even more than that. It doesn’t hurt to put away and forget about the money that you have put away. If you can’t do that, my mom said years ago: if you put away R100 per month from the day you turn 18, you’ll have R1 million by the time you hit 60. Yes, it might not be a lot, but it’ll be a lot more than nothing or even the government pensions.
Knowing what you know today, what would you have done differently when it comes to money decisions / management?
I would’ve played around a tad more with investments when I was younger, I can still, but I have to be more careful. I also would’ve gotten into the property market sooner, even a very small place in not the greatest area. It would still have been an investment.
What is your advice to other people with regards to money management and building a better financial future for themselves and their families?
Be diligent and mindful and start teaching your kids from a young age the value of money, not things. Not to chase money, but to understand that it is valuable and that there’s a way to get it to work for you. Teach your kids that things you learnt when you only started working with regards to money, they don’t teach these things at school.
Be diligent and mindful and start teaching your kids from a young age the value of money, not things. Not to chase money, but to understand that it is valuable and that there’s a way to get it to work for you.
Let’s talk living on a non-fixed salary, monetising your hobbies and dress-up on a budget
Tracey you are a well-known TV and radio personality. That always seems glamorous and an attractive career option to many people. What are the pros and cons of a career in this industry from a financial perspective?
That there’s never any guarantee and no one realises how many things you have to make happen and how much more you have to save for the months when the work is much less. When it’s good, it’s really good and that’s when you must put away even more.
People who want to create additional income or start a business can consider to monetise their hobbies. You have done this successfully; what tips can you give us?
Not to start by expecting your hobby/passion to pay your bills. When I started in this industry, I started working for free on weekends, while doing my fulltime job in the week, that’s how determined I was. You can’t just give up your fulltime job to put that kind of pressure on your passion. Stick it out for a while. I stuck it out for almost 3 years, before I fully immersed myself in this career of a freelancer.
You are in the public eye most of the time and you obviously need to look and dress well all the time. This can cost a fortune though. What advice can you give to people who want to look and dress well without having to spend a fortune?
That you need to stop looking at labels and start looking at what looks good and not which shop it comes from.
Considering that you have a strong voice in public and you have access to platforms to easily spread your message. If you have to give a message to the people of South Africa regarding what can be done to fight poverty and create more jobs, what would your message be?
That it starts from a young age and we need to support the organisations that aid teens in starting their own small businesses in schools, because they are the ones who will create more opportunities, but WE need to help those NGO’s and NPO’s either with money or with our skills.
To connect with Tracey Lange
Website: www.traceylange.co.za
Facebook: Facebook.com/TraceyLangeCT
Instagram: @traceylange
LinkedIn: Tracey Lange
Thank You
