Everything Counts | Episode 40: Debt management for young professionals

Loading player...
Starting your first real job with a decent pay check should feel exciting but what if it mostly feels confusing, stressful and a little scary? If you’ve made money mistakes before, missed payments or taken on debt you didn’t fully understand, you’re not alone… and you’re not out of options.

In this episode of Everything Counts, Motheo Khoaripe sits down with Investec’s Keshnie July, Lending Product Owner and Lehlogonolo Ramushu, Credit Risk Consultant, to talk about how young professionals can recover from financial missteps and start building a stronger, more intentional money future.

The conversation tackles what it really takes to bounce back after defaulting, overextending yourself or ignoring those dreaded payment reminders. From understanding your credit report, to budgeting realistically, facing debt head on and asking for help when you need it, this episode breaks down the practical steps that make recovery possible.

The episode also touches on separating needs from wants, avoiding impulse-driven debt, navigating “easy credit” offers and making smarter decisions before taking on new financial commitments. As the discussion shifts toward building wealth, the experts share simple, realistic strategies for saving, creating an emergency fund, paying off debt faster and laying the groundwork for long-term financial security.

If you’re a young professional trying to reset your money mindset, get out of debt or turn your first proper salary into something meaningful, this episode will help you move from survival mode to stability and eventually, to growth.

00:00 Introduction
01:00 Debt management: How to bounce back from money mistakes
02:00 How to build better money habits
03:47 Biggest financial mistakes that young adults make
04:50 Affordability assessment: What young professionals should ask before taking on more debt
06:19 What do you do when you run into financial problems?
08:47 Recovering from debt
10:25 Strategies for building wealth in the long term
10:50 The importance of building an emergency fund
11:20 The importance of having savings
12:10 Practical steps for young professionals starting their wealth journey
15:05 Compare savings accounts with good interest rates
15:20 Conclusion
26 Jan English South Africa Business · Investing

Other recent episodes

Art in Focus series 2 | Ep 4: Art in nurturing identity and heritage

From stitched fabrics and beaded surfaces to gel capsules and monumental sculptures, this episode of Art in Focus explores how personal memory becomes cultural narrative. Mary Sibande, Sahlah Davids and Leila Abrahams join Tristanne Farrell to talk identity, heritage, healing and how artists transform lived experience into work that resonates…
11 Feb 31 min

Everything Counts | Episode 41: Global Shopping for South Africans

Earning, spending, investing and shopping overseas has never been easier, but it has never been more complex either. If your money is constantly moving between currencies, countries, and platforms, it can feel like you’re doing everything right on paper while still losing value through fees, exchange rates and timing. In…
9 Feb 20 min

Macro Monday Ep103: PMI numbers point to solid global growth this year

The world economy appears to be in good shape. Global composite purchasing managers index numbers are on the rise, with US manufacturing enjoying a significant uptick in January, and Germany’s factory orders have risen strongly too. All in all, says Chris Holdsworth, Chief Investment Strategist, Investec Wealth & Investment International,…
9 Feb 13 min

What next? | Changing minds, changing markets

In this episode of podcast series, What Next? Michael Liebreich and Rory Sutherland lift the lid on how to shift behaviour at scale to achieve the energy transition. Marc Khan and Lidnsey Hooper interview the pair on the sociopolitical backlash we have seen in some sectors with regard to climate…
2 Feb 45 min

Art in Focus Series 2 | Ep 3: Whose art is it anyway?

When ideas meet machines and many hands shape one work, where does creativity begin? In episode 3 of Art in Focus series 2, Investec’s Tristanne Farrell invites curator Antonia Strauss, artist Aaron Philander and gallerist Brett Bellairs to unpack how technology is transforming not just into how art is made…
4 Feb 34 min