{"id":541254,"date":"2026-04-20T15:42:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:42:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/541254\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T15:42:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:42:22","slug":"treat-yourself-because-you-work-hard-enough-for-your-money-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/541254\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Treat yourself because you work hard enough for your money\u2019 \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fiona Donnelly is vice-captain of Bohemians<\/a>, who compete in the League of Ireland Women\u2019s Premier Division. Donnelly is now in her fourth season with the Dublin club.<\/p>\n

Are you a saver or a spender? <\/p>\n

I consider myself a saver but if I see something I like or that catches my eye, I won\u2019t be afraid to treat myself. I think it\u2019s important to have a balance. Always put something away each month, but treat yourself because you work hard enough for your money.<\/p>\n

What was the first job you received money for and how much were you paid? <\/p>\n

Working in the local Centra<\/a> \u2013 \u20ac50-\u20ac100 for a few hours\u2019 work. It taught me a lot about showing up on time, responsibility and working with different people, which really shaped my work ethic today.<\/p>\n

Do you shop around for better value? <\/p>\n

I usually shop around, especially for bigger purchases. I\u2019ll compare prices, read reviews and consider durability before deciding.<\/p>\n

What has been your most extravagant purchase and how much did it cost?<\/p>\n

I recently purchased my first home. In today\u2019s world, houses don\u2019t come cheap. My boyfriend and I saved for it for the past six years and are very proud of ourselves to be able to do it.<\/p>\n

What purchase have you made that you consider the best value for money?<\/p>\n

I would have to go with my phone. This might seem like an obvious choice but I use it, like everyone else, pretty much every day. I use it for absolutely everything. It\u2019s something I would be lost without if I didn\u2019t have it.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0\u2018My handbag collection is my daughter\u2019s inheritance\u2019Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Is there anything you regret spending money on? <\/p>\n

Nothing big. I\u2019ve had a few small impulse purchases that I didn\u2019t really need and they taught me to slow down and think about value before buying.<\/p>\n

Do you haggle over prices?<\/p>\n

I\u2019m comfortable discussing price when it\u2019s appropriate. I focus on understanding value and making sure terms are fair, rather than haggling for the sake of it.<\/p>\n

Do you invest in shares and\/or cryptocurrency? <\/p>\n

No, I find there\u2019s too much to think about when it comes to investing. I\u2019d rather know exactly what I have.<\/p>\n

Do you have a retirement or pension plan? <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had a pension<\/a> set up ever since starting my job within the banking sector. I also pay extra into it each month. I think this is super important, as once you retire, it\u2019s essentially what you will spend. The more you put in, the more you will have for when that time comes around.<\/p>\n

What was the last thing you bought and was it good value for money? <\/p>\n

The last thing I bought was a big supplement order on Kinetica. These supplements will last the full season, so I would consider it good value for money.<\/p>\n

Have you ever successfully saved up for a relatively big purchase? <\/p>\n

As I said, I recently bought my first home, which I saved up for consistently over the last six years. We finally got there. Housing prices, as we all know, are at an all-time high \u2013 when are they not? \u2013 so it wasn\u2019t easy by any means.<\/p>\n

Have you ever lost money? <\/p>\n

Not that I can remember. I\u2019ve maybe spent a few bob on the Spin cash machine like a lot of other people, but I never got the call back.<\/p>\n

Are you a gambler and, if so, have you ever had a big win? <\/p>\n

No, I don\u2019t gamble. If I\u2019m honest, I wouldn\u2019t know how to even place a bet and I intend to keep it like that.<\/p>\n

What is your best habit when it comes to money? And your worst? <\/p>\n

The best habit is consistently saving a fixed amount of money each month and letting my savings build up. I think it\u2019s always good to have some savings for any unexpected needs. My worst habit would be spending money on a coffee every day. I know!<\/p>\n

How much money do you have on you now? <\/p>\n

I have a few coppers and a fiver note. I generally pay for everything with my phone.<\/p>\n

In conversation with Tony Clayton-Lea<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fiona Donnelly is vice-captain of Bohemians, who compete in the League of Ireland Women\u2019s Premier Division. Donnelly is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":541255,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[186636,84,12679,4176,17880,4174,4175,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-541254","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-bohemians","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-centra","11":"tag-finance","12":"tag-me-my-money","13":"tag-personal-finance","14":"tag-personalfinance","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom","17":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=541254"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/541254\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=541254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=541254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=541254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}