Welcome back to Pay Day, the new ABC column where we ask Australians the money questions we don’t like to talk about. We aim to demystify personal finance and normalise conversations about what we earn and how we save it — or spend it.

Tyler Mahoney calls herself a “professional gold digger” — but that doesn’t mean what you may think it means. The 29-year-old is a fourth-generation gold prospector, and also runs a gold dealership in the Western Australian outback city of Kalgoorlie. Her current start-up isn’t her first foray into bootstrapping; she started her first business when she was 19 and has learned plenty of lessons along the way.

For Pay Day, Tyler Mahoney talks about the lessons she has learned from starting her own businesses and why cash is still “king” in the outback.

How would you describe your financial situation right now?

I am extremely privileged that I live in an area with a very low cost of living and I run a company that can afford to pay me a good wage. I own a start-up with two employees plus me and we are completely bootstrapped so I do feel the pressure of managing cash flow!

How was money spoken about in your house growing up?

When I was young we grew up with not a lot of money so we definitely learnt the value of a dollar. We were always taught the difference between a want and a need and we were taught hard work. My parents sold everything and moved into the outback when I was 11 to be full-time prospectors. We lived in a caravan in the bush while we found a house and my parents prospected for gold.

My brother and I watched them work extremely hard to get in front in life — there is no sick leave or annual leave being a gold prospector. If they weren’t out hunting for gold there was no money coming in!

They took a huge risk but it was worth it; I think watching this made me comfortable taking financial risks. My parents are hard working middle-class people so I wasn’t taught a lot about investing outside of gold so I have worked hard to educate myself to make sure I am financially literate.

What did you spend your first pay cheque on?

I was paid in gold and I cashed it in for clothes from Supré I am pretty sure 😂

About how much of your income goes towards your rent or mortgage each week?

My partner and I split our mortgage 50/50. We are lucky to live in a small outback town where the house prices are very low, our house cost $180,000 and our mortgage is $600 each a month.

What has been your biggest financial disaster?

By 21 years old I had over $20,000 credit card debt! My boyfriend and I moved to Melbourne when I was 19 so I could start a jewellery business. Long story short I decided to use a company to build my website (before the days of good old Shopify), it was incredibly expensive and it got me in lot of credit card debt! It taught me a lot and I learnt the value of balancing outsourcing and the ability to do things yourself in the founding stage.

What’s your guilty splurge?

Definitely online shopping! There aren’t any clothes shops in the town I live in so online shopping is definitely a vice. I do save a lot of money because we don’t have Uber Eats, açai bowls or nice restaurants in Kambalda so that’s how I justify it 😂

Have you ever kept a secret about money?

No, I am lucky that we have always spoken about money in my life so it has never been taboo. When I was in $20,000 CC debt I would tell anyone that would listen because I was so confident in the business succeeding that it never stressed me out. Very delusional but whatever you have to do, I guess.

How much was the last loaf of bread you bought?

$2 Wonder White all the way!

Cash or card?

I am a gold dealer and prospector so cash is king. I pay all my prospectors in cash as well, prospectors living out in the bush don’t have online banking so they wouldn’t accept much else.

How many bank accounts do you have?

I have a joint bills and savings account with my partner, Jake; I have a business bills account; a payroll account; a tax/super account; my business savings is kept as gold nuggets and bullion; a personal spending, a personal savings and an investment account. It’s a lot, I know!

What are you saving for right now, and how are you doing it?

Everything I earn I put straight back into the company to ensure its growth. The more capital I spend every month buying gold, the more I can sell, which is how the company will continue to grow quickly.

What’s your biggest financial achievement?

Very proud that my company is on track to do $1.2 million in revenue this financial year. I started my first business at age 19, 10 years ago, so it’s been a really hard uphill journey to get here and still big goals to achieve but trying to celebrate these moments along the way.

If you could tell 18-year-old you one thing about money, what would it be?

Don’t ever give anyone the opportunity to be in a position of power over you with money. Educate yourself about money and investing, learn how to manage money, learn how to make money, don’t need a rich man be the rich man!

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