Biography

I was born in bayside Williamstown, a town in the State of Victoria in Australia where my family had lived since my great-grandparents emigrated there during the gold rush in 1852. My father was a fitter & turner with the railways and my mother a fastidious housewife.

After completing my formal education, I joined the Royal Australian Air Force where I learned a lot about life; some good, but a lot not so good. Before discharge I returned to my education and did economics and business studies. After discharge from the service I worked as a Private Inquiry Agent & Commercial Sub-agent before beginning a long career in the world of finance and investment.

After becoming a Financial Planner in the early 1980's, I involved myself in radio talk-back programs on one of the principal National radio networks. This gave me the opportunity to speak to people from all socio-economic classes and give them advice on how to improve their lot. Another great way to learn. I am currently employed as a Financial Planning consultant.

My other job is a part-time Web site designer, although that is more for friends and businesses with whom I am associated than anything else. I have designed and set-up, or had some input into a number of Web sites.

My other hobbies include cycling, photography, genealogy (family history) and camping, although time constraints have kept me from the latter in recent years. My idea of camping is to go into remote, outback areas, hours from civilisation, shops, crowds and telephones. It's during such times that I really relax and get back to nature.

I enjoy good food & wine, and the company of a few good, long term friends. Real good friends are hard to find, don't you agree? I also have three great kids, five grandsons and two grand-daughters. That's my eldest grandson, Mitchell in the photo below.

Among my dislikes are lazy or arrogant people, social climbers and those who are down-right dishonest.

Why 'The Aussie Wizard'? Well, a client of mine, an expatriate American, once introduced me to a friend of his saying "I'd like you to meet the Aussie wizard who helped me with my investments!" It sort of stuck.