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Not all saving is a the same. Here are some of the different types that it is good to do.

There are a lot of different types of saving. The aims and objectives of them all differ, as do the priority they should be given, but all are a good idea and important to financial well being.

Long Term

Saving for retirement is an obvious place to start. Reaching old age is something that most  aspire to, though an old age without adequate provision is not what anybody deserves after a life time of working.

One of the most important things about long term saving is that it is an investment. Risk and reward have to be carefully balanced to ensure a good return. It is almost always also a good idea not to have all your eggs in one basket – which is of course something that a well managed pension fund will take into consideration.

Rainy Day

Saving for a rainy day means preparing for the unexpected – which does kind of mean that you are expecting it. Leaving aside the logical contradictions, being prepared for various expensive eventualities is surely a good thing.

Lots of costly eventualities can crop up out of the blue. Cars dying, having children, this kind of stuff happens every day and could happen to you. Rainy day saving is like insurance, only with one very important difference: with insurance you pay to have somebody offer to lend you an umbrella, until it rains and they find some small print to get out with it. With savings you can buy your own umbrella without delay.

Differed Consumption

A shorter term type of saving is simply building up cash reserves to be spent at a later date, perhaps on luxuries rather than necessities. It is the sane alternative to buying yourself treats or holidays on credit and then taking years to pay it off with interest.

Having money put aside for holidays and luxuries means that you get to enjoy those things for less. You might not be able to get the things ‘right now’ but when you do it can be guilt free. It is also a good way to budget. Decide the set amount that you are happy to fritter away on entertainment and so on and have that go into a separate bank account each month. That way going easy one month can mean going wild the next and you know that you wont be getting into any trouble. You can even apply for a bank account online these days.

The thing with money is that you only get to spend it once. By saving rather than borrowing you don’t have to carry on paying. It won’t be easy, buy if you can find ways to break the habit of non-mortgage borrowing and replacing it with saving your future self will thank you.

It is sometimes easy to criticise health and safety rules. It has become a staple of certain sections of the media to highlight and mock instances when an absurd decision has been taken in the interests of health and safety.

Yes, daft decisions are sometimes made. There will always be occasions where an organisation can combine the unwieldiness of a complex structure with the questionable competence of its members to  arrive at an outcome that can seem surprising to an outsider. It is said that the IQ of a mob can be found by dividing the lowest IQ out of its participants by the number of participants – unfortunately that can often be the case with council committees too.

Imagine however a world without health and safety. It actually does not take a great leap of imagination, as we can simply look overseas to less fortunate parts of the world, and to our own past. In a world where employers are free to take no regard of the welfare of their employees, then that is exactly what happens. The toll on the workforce both in terms of accidents and in industrial diseases is terrible .

Many of the dafter decisions that are taken in the name of health and safety are done so  because the rules are being interpreted by people with insufficient training. Health and safety training is not just to inform workers how they can go about their jobs in a safer way, but also to help managers and those that have top make risk assessments do them in a rational, evidence based and proportionate way.

The Harbour is at the heart of what makes Sydney the place that it is. A visitor that did not head down to the waterside would be missing out (and would be rare indeed). There are plenty of shops and restaurants in the harbour area, but it is also great to take the opportunity to leave the land behind.

There are a large variety of cruises that are available to take from Sydney harbour. There really are ones to suit every taste and every budget. Ranging from five star champaign sipping elegance to a quick tootle round in an old fishing boat. The headlands and beaches around Sydney are absolutely beautiful, and taking the opportunity to see them from the vantage point of the sea is something that even the biggest landlubbers will thank themselves for doing.

Of course it is not just cruise boats that operate out of Sydney Harbour. This is pretty much one of the best spots to go fishing. Sitting by a rainy canalside in Britain is nothing like heading out into Sydney harbour on a bright cloudless day. Equipment rental is no problem, and you can find guides who will help out the novice. Be sure to find out about the fish that you are catching, ask for some tips to ensure that you get the best out of it when you are barbecuing it on the beach later!

The marine life in Sydney harbour is fascinating in its own right. Taking a SCUBA diving trip is an amazing chance to have a glimpse into this magical underwater realm. Diving is serious business however, so if you have never done it before you need to be aware that you will need to allow time to be trained using the equipment, as responsible diving instructors will not ‘throw you into the deep end’ without making sure that you will be safe.

Yacht racing is a popular sport in this part of the world. There are many races throughout the year and the harbour provides many excellent vantage points to watch. Just the views across the harbour to the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge and opera house are worth taking time to drink in.

Nobody understands seafood like the Australians. Sydney Harbour has a very high concentration of absolutely amazing restaurants. Prices are high as a rule, but with that comes very high standards. Don’t hesitate to ask for wine recommendations to go along with your meal – Australia has become one of the great wine producing nations and there will certainly be a bottle that will perfectly compliment what you eating.

One way to get to Sydney Harbour is by sea. If you don’t happen to have a yacht and six months free then flights to Sydney are among the standard options for flights to Australia.