Living in the country, we spend half our lives in the car (the other half is spent waiting for kids to finish sport). So lately I’ve developed a new trick to keep my road rage at bay: I fire up ChatGPT and run ‘car trip trivia’ with the family. It kills time, stops them fighting (for a few minutes), and sometimes even teaches them something useful.
Anyway, here’s your turn. Grab a coffee, sharpen your brain, and take on this Barefoot Money Quiz. Let’s see if you’re smarter than a bored nine-year-old stuck in the back seat.
1. Which of these decisions has been shown to have the biggest long-term financial impact?
a) Choosing the right career.
b) Marrying the right person.
c) Picking the top-performing super fund each year.
2. You’re 25 with $30,000 in super and earn $70,000 a year. Your industry fund charges 1.5% in fees, but you switch to an index fund charging just 0.25%. By retirement, how much extra money could you end up with (assuming 7% returns)?
a) About $130,000 extra.
b) About $480,000 extra.
c) About $620,000 extra.
3. You meant to pay your credit card bill on time, but life got in the way (a.k.a. you forgot). You were three weeks late, but you’ve caught up now. Will this impact your credit report?
a) No, late payments aren’t recorded on your credit report unless they’re over 30 days late.
b) Yes, because being more than 14 days late means it’s added to your credit history.
c) It might, but only if you were reported as ‘in arrears’ by your bank.
4. You have no debt except your mortgage, and your Mojo is full. Your Fire Extinguisher bucket should go towards:
a) Paying down your mortgage.
b) Increasing your Blow Bucket.
c) Funding a Smile Bucket purchase.
5. When official statistics report that “house prices have doubled over the last 20 years”, do these figures account for the money homeowners spent on renovations and improvements?
a) Yes – they include all renovation and improvement costs.
b) No – they only consider the sale prices, ignoring any renovation expenses.
c) Sometimes – it depends on the type of renovation and the reporting body.
The crazy thing is the average Australian fails this test — how do you measure up?
Answers below (no peeking!)
Tread Your Own Path!
P.S Here’s the answers: 1b, 2c, 3b, 4a, 5b