
Willis Queried RBNZ Rates, Meeting Frequency Before Orr Quit
New Zealand Minister of Finance Nicola Willis asked the central bank to explain why it planned to keep interest rates at a restrictive level in the week prior to the sudden resignation of Governor Adrian Orr, documents obtained under the Official Information Act show.
Willis also sought advice from the Treasury Department on the frequency of Monetary Policy Committee meetings, the documents show.
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44 minutes ago
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8 Passive Income Ideas That Are Actually Worth Pursuing
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Unlike growth stocks, which depend on the rise in the market, dividends can be rewarded even when the market is flat. Consider a dividend a noble family — a proven company that has increased every year. These stocks are ideal for those who want to earn a stable income without frequently rebalancing their portfolios. Tip: If you reinvest dividends through a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP), you can significantly increase long-term returns without adding cash. 2. Real estate rentals (managed or crowdfunded) Real estate ownership has long been trusted as a way to earn income as a side business, but managing property can be challenging. To maintain sustainability, consider one of two approaches: Hire a trusted property manager: Excellent managers respond to tenant problems, repairs and payments. Consider real estate crowdfunding: Platforms such as Fundrise and RealtyMogul let you invest in commercial and residential projects without owning actual property. Contribute funds and receive quarterly or monthly distributions. This asset class offers the added benefit of appreciation, along with the regular income, but it's essential to evaluate the risk profile and do proper due diligence before committing capital. 3. Writing a book or creating educational content If you have a deep knowledge of a particular topic, you can benefit over the years by making it a book, a guide or a course. The initial work, such as creating, writing, editing and filming outlines, is substantial, but once you get it out into the world, your income becomes passive. The author can obtain stamp duty for each sale, and the course creator often provides teaching materials on the platform for marketing and distribution. What is important is to provide something practical and unique to meet the needs of the real world. Evergreen content, or relevant topics over time, tends to bring stable income. Related: Anyone Can Start a Passive Income Side Hustle For Easy Money — But Only If You Know These 5 Essential Tips First. 4. License your work and intellectual property Whether music, photography, software or templates, licenses provide a way for creators to earn regular income without continuous production. If your work solves problems or meets demand, it can be sold many times, with little or no change. For example: Musicians who license songs for YouTube, commercials and podcasts Designers are offering templates and themes in marketplaces like Envato and Creative Market Developers create plugins and scripts that meet niche requirements This model is particularly effective for those with a back catalogue of unused or unprofitable works. If there is an appropriate license clause, you may allow a limited use to others while retaining ownership and obtaining compensation. 5. Creating a niche subscription newsletter By focusing on specific topics and community needs, email newsletters are a reliable source of income. Writers can attract loyal readers who are willing to pay for regular updates, such as industry insights, recommendations and expert comments. Platforms like Substack and Ghost allow creators to charge monthly fees and maintain full ownership of content. When archives are accumulated, new subscribers often pay for past editions, increasing long-term value without additional work. 6. Affiliate marketing through a website or niche blog Affiliate marketing is often misunderstood as passive from the beginning. In reality, it's after starting a website, creating useful content and gaining trust that it becomes passive income for the first time. Choose a specific topic that you can write about with authority or enthusiasm. Over time, organic traffic will increase, and product links embedded in the content will begin to convert. 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Equipment rental From camera equipment to power tools and storage spaces, many necessities can be rented locally or through online platforms. This method is particularly effective in areas with high demand and low inventory. The idea is simple, whether it is to exhibit on another rental platform of the same company or to provide it through its network. If you manage your goods properly and communicate clearly, you can earn a regular income in minimal time. The idea of earning money while doing little sounds ideal, but reality demands preparation, strategy and a good understanding of what you are going to do. The options above aren't shortcuts, but they are reliable for those willing to put in the necessary setup time.


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an hour ago
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Vogue
2 hours ago
- Vogue
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In my 20s, I believed that to hold power, you had to project 'gravitas.' Not just certainty, but a kind of impermeable seriousness. You didn't smile too much. You didn't laugh to put people at ease. You spoke as though everything you thought was self-evidently right, and you carried yourself like you were the only person who could save the room, the meeting, the country. The politicians I saw on TV projected that certainty with force—aggressive in debate, unflinching in tone, never showing doubt. In the professional world, the men and women who held power negotiated with the same posture of strategic dominance. I admired them, and in some ways wanted to be them. But I also felt like in becoming them, I would have to give up some essential part of myself: my openness, my reflex to make others comfortable, the little ways I softened sharp edges in conversation. And then there was Jacinda. A woman just a couple of years older than me, with indisputable power, standing at a press conference with a kind of presence I'd never seen. It was liberating to watch. It felt like permission. I'm not the only one who felt this way. In the years since, Ardern has become an icon for a particular kind of Millennial and Gen X woman—emotionally attuned, politically engaged, and skeptical of institutional performance. The women I know admire her for her compassion, her humor, her realness. 'She [showed] me that not only would motherhood not mean the end of your personal goals, but that showing up for your family at the same time as standing up for what's right is possible and important,' reflects Rhiannon, an operational strategist in her early 40s. 'She just seems like a genuinely good person,' says my friend Julia, who works in government. Ardern's decision to bring her baby to the UN General Assembly, and the visibility of her partner Clarke Gayford adjusting his schedule around hers, quietly challenged the idea that women—especially mothers—must shape their ambitions around someone else's.