This week’s guest for our Teach Kids Money Series is Pongee Barnes of Little Owners. Pongee began her career in real-estate while in college. She is an entrepreneur and has co-written a series along with her sons all about kid entrepreneurship as a way to each financial literacy and entrepreneurship,
This week’s guest post in our Teach Kids Money Series is from Tasha Danielle of Financial Garden. Tasha is a CPA based in Michigan. She founded Financial Garden to help spread financial literacy for all ages. In her book: Amina’s Bracelet: A Kidpreneur Story, both parents and kids can learn about entrepreneurship. Tasha stresses the importance of starting the money conversation early before someone else influences your kids.
This week for our Teach Kids Money Series, we have Maya Corbic, CPA, CA from Dinarii Financial Education Academy. Maya stresses the fact that financial literacy begins at home and that parents already have the basic knowledge to teach their kids the basics of money.
“Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.”
This post in our Teach Kids Money Series comes from Laurel of Mothers Teaching Money.
I see financial literacy as a collection of skills and mindsets which when learned and practiced often enough become habits. A child is not born financially literate, they are raised by us their parents, families, communities and schools. There are literally hundreds of teaching moments every day that are brand new but often confusing for children. The parent is already occupied with the ‘moment’ so it won’t take any extra time to turn it into a financial lesson
“Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time.”
With many households experiencing economic hardships, it’s more important now more than ever to have money conversations and teach kids the basics of financial literacy. Times are different and it’s very easy for kids to be influenced by social media and their peers without truly understanding the consequences of their actions. Kids who grow up without a proper financial foundation may grow into adults who fear money leading to inaction or bad decisions, furthering a cycle of bad money habits.
So what can we do?
The good news is that parents can start money lessons at home. To help you, we’ve rounded up some resources from financial educators who specialize in teaching parents AND kids all about money. There’s no shame or blame in financial education. If you are learning new money concepts along with your child, then let it be the case.
HOSPITALITY, n. The virtue which induces us to feed and lodge certain persons who are not in need of food and lodging.
This month’s financial book is a bit different than past books. The book is titled: Tales of Horror and Happiness in Hospitality by Dr. Kiona and Maria Gangat. You can find it on Amazon (linked) or check out her Instagram story highlights for more info.
This book covers two prevailing concepts that’s heavily discussed in the financial independence, retire early (FI/RE) community: house hacking and geoarbitrage so it fits in nicely here.
“Make a specific birthday wishes and write it down. You will be amazed about the power of pen and inner strength to accomplish the wishes.”
By the time I had finished my masters degree last year (2019), I had accumulated over $33,000 in debt just from student loans. After reviewing the payoff schedule, it estimated that I would pay off my debt by the time I was 43. That’s when I decided I hated that plan. Instead, here’s my plan to pay off by debt by the time I’m 30, which is 5 years away.
“A map tells you where you’ve been, where you are, and where you’re going — in a sense it’s three tenses in one.”
Today, I thought it might be interesting to share our money maps. Basically, this is a snapshot of how we handle our money and where it’s going. Money maps provide a quick visual into the flow of your money. For someone with many accounts, this can be a good way to track and ensure things are in the right place. Money maps can and should change over time. As your money goals change, your money map should change with you.
“Invest in the world that you want to live in.”
How can we invest and pursue financial independence with people, planet and profit in mind? It’s time we start investing in the world that we live in, but aligning our investments with our values. In this post, we provide options for alternative investments as well as some ways we can improve our current investment portfolio using various resources.
As part of our Socially Conscious FI Series, today we are exploring minority owned banks.
I read this phrase somewhere in my research: “organized money is power”.
We currently live in a money-based system and I honestly don’t foresee that changing in the near future. So it is up to us to shift and distribute money equally so that “power” can be distributed equitably across all communities.
It’s important to know that these kinds of banks exist especially as we challenge the status quo for a more equitable chance at wealth creation and growth for all.
Many Americans are beginning to receive their stimulus checks as part of The CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) Act to relieve some of the financial pressure brought on by the pandemic.
Depending on your income level and dependents, you may have already received the money from the US Treasury. People who filed a 2018 and 2019 tax return and had direct deposit information with the IRS will receive the check first with paper checks going out in May. If you are unsure if you will be getting a check or how much, use this handy calculator to find out. Scroll down to CARES Act Rebate Calculator or check the graph.
The money is being given with no strings attached.
Here are the many ways you can use this money wisely.
“The greatest superpower is the ability to change yourself.” - Naval Ravikant
With many people taking online classes or telecommuting to work, the world has made a major shift into the digital space. In this case, the typical physical interview may now not be the norm. There are many aspects of a virtual interview that are no different than a physical in-person interview, but there are also unprecedented things you may not be prepared for. Here are some tips on how to ace your virtual interview.
“Mentors won’t make you rich. Doctors won’t make you healthy. Nutritionists won’t make you slim. Teachers won’t make you smart. Gurus won’t make you calm. Trainers won’t make you fit. Ultimately, you have to take responsibility. Save yourself.” - Naval Ravikant
With the help of one of our sisters, Elaine, who graduated from NJIT last year, we thought we would provide a few tips to help college students and more specifically, college seniors, weather the effects of Covid-19 in their future plans.
I was three years out of undergrad when the 2008 recession happened. I had just started a new job in New York City in a completely different industry when the mortgage crisis unraveled so a part of this are some lessons I learned during that time. The most important being to prepare and not let fear get in the way of action and to always think about your future self and future family.
As the effects of COVID-19 are being felt globally, many leaders have asked citizens to self-isolate and self-quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus even further. Self-quarantine can seem scary as it means being isolated from people and things that we love. Instead, let’s look into self-quarantine as an opportunity to catch-up on the things we’ve not had time to do due to personal, professional and familial obligations. I think the biggest opportunity here is the time you’ll have to review and manage your finances. Now is the time to act. If you have a bit of downtime, instead of fully engaging on Netflix marathons (which is fine in moderation), may I suggest taking a look at this list of items you can do to strengthen your finances for the days ahead.
“It turns out you can give your money to a project positively impacting the world with the goal of earning a financial return.
Can you grow your money while investing in positive change for people and the planet? I believe that we can and this book The Do Gooder’s Guide to Investing by Adrian Reif provides a roadmap on how we can do all that.
The word “investing” can sometimes get a bad rap because it’s associated with Wall Street, but it’s absolutely possible to invest in affordable housing, renewable energy and local communities and still grow your money. The Do-Gooder’s Guide to Investing provides a comprehensive list of these investing options. Even if you are not ready to invest yet in these organizations, I highly recommend reviewing and learning more about the organizations that Adrian lists as it will give you some hope about the future.
The best time to plant a tree was yesterday. The second best time is today.
The talking heads on TV are putting fear into our heads and hearts with the word “recession”. While I think we always have to be weary of the talking heads, it’s important that we start planning for an uncertain future and the best time to plan for an uncertain future is when the going is good. The thing with fear is that it paralyzes most of us from taking any action. Fear never goes away. We are wired to fear because it keeps us safe. While we sometimes think humans are complex creatures, our inner core and need is to ensure we survive from whatever could hurt us. The challenge is that wherever we turn, we are made to fear anything and everything because fear is used to sell us things. Instead of letting fear get to us, let’s put a plan in place that we know we can easily execute to get our finances in order before the slowdown happens for the sake of our future selves and our families.
A money journal can be a diary of sort that tracks your daily spending habits. It may be a list of expenses. It may be a list of money goals and your progress. It may be a list of debts. For many, a money journal can just be a ledger of money coming in and out. Instead of relying on an app, Excel or monthly statements from a bank or credit card, a money journal can be a record of accounts. A money journal can be started on any plain notebook. The most important thing with a money journal is to do it consistently. This is where you will learn to see patterns on spending or doing deeper, patterns on emotional spending. It’s imperative that you review your journal often and write down your thoughts and feelings about recent money moves. This will inform you of where you money mindset is at this point in time.
"I've never wanted to be a lady who lunches; I've always wanted to be a woman who works."
Financial independence is about living life on your own terms. Money is a tool, it’s neither good or bad. Sometimes though, money can make people feel trapped, especially if it’s money that is not your own. If you are up on your royal family news, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, aka Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, announced that they are “charting a new course” with how to find the balance of being part of the royal family while also leading separate, independent lives. This appeared to be an unprecedented move from “senior” royal family member, basically denouncing a part of their royal responsibilities. What struck me about their decision and goal was the additional phrase that they needed “to become financially independent.”
Put a value on what you do and do not let anyone to undervalue you."
The last book of the year in the Book of the Month Series is Suze Orman’s Women and Money: Be Strong, Be Smart, Be Secure. I’m a fan of Suze Orman. It was her book Young, Fabulous and Broke that actually started my FI journey many years before FI was even a term for the mainstream.
The first version of this book was published back in 2007. I remember reading it, but at that point in time, I was in a completely different mindset and I glossed over most of the topics. Fast forward to 2019 and I now see many of the topics having some relevance in my life.
This month’s book is The Dumb Things Smart People Do With Their Money by Jill Schlesinger. Each chapter of the book is a topic on the dumb things smart people do with their topic. I appreciate the book for the straightforward way the author described the Dumb Things. The topics are all worth reviewing and revisiting. It’s especially important if you are busy building wealth or hitting that FI number that there’s other things we all need to look at to protect our wealth and the security of our loved ones.
