ME & MY MONEY: Gillian Mooney, Ashtanga Yoga Ireland

Are you a saver or a spender? I'm a total spender. I find it hard to resist living in the moment and spending freely. I worked in the Middle East for many years as a flight attendant and earned a tax-free salary. This taught me some sense of the value of saving. However, since then, I've been reinvesting my savings into my yoga studies. Hence, I've definitely been spending more than saving over the past few years.

Do you shop around? Not really. I tend to know what I like and I don't really shop around for better value. I'm a very fussy shopper so I don't have the interest or patience to shop around. I'll occasionally wait for an item in the sales, but otherwise I purchase on the spot.

What has been your most extravagant purchase and how much did it cost? The most extravagant purchase I ever made was when I was when I was working in the airlines. I was working as cabin crew and snuck away in Dubai duty free for a quick gander. Before I knew it, I had lost the run of myself and spent over €2,000 on a Gucci handbag. What purchase have you made that you consider the best value for money? I don't know if it could be considered as a purchase but my financial investment in my yoga studies has definitely been the best value for money in my life. I've made 12 trips to India to study with my teacher. This comes to a total of five solid years – the equivalent of the investment in a PhD in yoga!

How do you prefer to shop – online or local? I'm a child of the 1970s and missed that whole era of embracing online shopping. I always want to try on clothes before purchasing, so I never buy clothes online. I like to eat organic whole foods as much as possible and tend to shop in my local greengrocers. I also like to support small businesses and to connect personally with those I'm buying from.

Do you haggle over prices? The only time I haggle over prices is in the markets in India. I don't tend to haggle over prices at home here in Ireland, as it's mainly fixed prices. However, I find that you can easily get ripped off with tourist prices abroad so I've no problem to haggle when necessary. Has the recession changed your spending habits? I've probably been one of the lucky ones as more and more people are coming to yoga now. It seems people are simplifying their lives and living less materialistically. They seem to see the value in the investment of yoga to help them deal with stress and difficult times. Hence, I haven't experienced a negative side to the recession.

Do you invest in shares? I've never personally invested in shares. My heart goes out to all those people that worked so hard all their careers and lost so much in the recession.

Cash or card? I tend to use cash more than card. I once ran up a very large credit card bill and I've been terrified of incurring any debt ever since. I always carry cash for regular daily purchases.

What was the last thing you bought and was it good value for money? The last thing I bought was a new juicer. I researched the market and wanted to buy from an Irish supplier. It cost €195 (Green Valu juicer) and has proven to be great value for money so far. Have you ever successfully saved up for a relatively big purchase? Not really, although I always seem to be saving to go back to India to further my yoga studies.

Have you ever lost money? No, I've been very fortunate in that I've never really lost money. I see so many of my peers now living in negative equity. I've been very lucky, indeed.

Is money important to you? I tend to pride myself on not being materialistic, but I have to admit that money is important to me. However, I don't worry about it. I see money as an energy that flows. I work hard at trying to help others through yoga and trust that it will all flow accordingly.

How much money do you have on you now? I currently have €37 in my purse. I've just finished teaching my morning classes, and going for my daily pot of tea in Fallon & Bryne. I'll undoubtedly have it all spent by the end of the day.

ashtangayogaireland. ie. In conversation with Tony Clayton-Lea