Everyone has different feelings about money. Some people like to save, some people like to spend, and some simply enjoy earning as much of it as possible.
But what do you do when you meet someone and start sharing a life with them? How will that affect your approach to money? After all, it isn't just you that you need to think about any more. As one half of a partnership - regardless of whether you are married, in a civil partnership or just living together - you owe it to each other to be honest about your joint financial status.
A lot will depend on whether your separate attitudes towards cash are the same or not. If they are, then you will find that talking about money and what to do with it is quite easy. But many couples cite money as one of the main things they disagree about, so there is clearly a lot of work to be done in some relationships!
The best thing to do is to make sure that everything is kept out in the open. The worst thing you can do is to assume that your partner thinks the same way you do without finding out whether that is actually the case, which can lead to all kinds of problems.
One key area you should definitely discuss is bank accounts. It's important to recognise that there is no right or wrong answer here when you are deciding how to manage your finances. Some couples manage perfectly well keeping separate accounts, while others couldn't imagine not sharing one.
The key to making sure that money doesn't come between you is to be honest, open and willing to discuss everything that comes up. Money is so often seen as a battleground between couples, and it has certainly been the main ingredient in many a break up.
But it doesn't need to be that way. In the end, no one else is going to have exactly the same opinions about money as you do. That means that your partner will need to get to know your ways of dealing with it, just as you will get to know theirs. This can be a very enjoyable experience if you concentrate on the task at hand and work to find the best solution for you both.
Once you have discussed your needs and desires, you have some practical work to do. You may want to open a joint account or a vantage current account for example. Once you have taken care of the practical requirements, you can get on with forging ahead together and preparing for your future by discussing things as and when they come up.