Scary Conversations

Over the last few weeks, I've been having more and more conversations with my friends about money. When I talk about writing this book and the money I've kept from going out the door, they all look at me entirely different. They look at me as though I have some kind of secret knowledge that they don't have access too.

I used to look at people who had their financial act together in a very similar way. The more people give me that look of panic when I discuss personal finance, even in vague terms, the more worried I get about my friends and family.. and the community in general. EVERYONE is talking about the economy, but in all of those conversations, I have not yet talked to one person in my daily life that says "yep, I have all my finances handled and I'm prepared."

The desk staff that my doctor's office have asked me to bring in my book when it's finished, they'd be interested in buying it. I was chatting with the ER nurse that cared for YL12 on Wednesday about the economy and finance and my book, and gave her my blog address right before she gave me YL12's discharge papers.

I'm walking a very narrow line right now, in regards to my own personal belief system. I believe that I can make a difference in the lives of people around me. I believe that I have gathered, with the help of my blogger friends here, and the library, and the news articles, and personal experiences, fabulous information to share with many people. But on the other side of that line is my worry that I'm just jumping on the bandwagon to be just another opportunist, looking to make a fast buck from the panic around me.

I know there is nothing wrong with earning a living from doing a service for people. In fact, that's pretty much the ONLY way to make a living. Even as I write this, I remember all of the major points from Nice Girls Don't Get Rich by Lois Frankel, Ph.D. and her basic point is that women think that Doing Good... and doing WELL are mutually exclusive. I'm trying to break that mindset. It's hard... but dangit... I'm going to provide something that most of the people I know desperately NEED... and I'm not going to feel guilty for earning a living providing that service.

Mostly...

My Project

I've decided to get off the fence and go with my passion. I love helping people improve their household finances. Over the last several years, I've read a million and one finance articles. I started reading Yahoo! Finance, then MSN Money, MSNBC Business, CNN Money, and a ton of books. I've taken online accounting courses through a local university, and even pondered going back to school to get my degree in Finance.

From the point of reading that first Yahoo! Finance article, I became obsessed with getting our family's finances on the right track and maximizing our spending. Mostly, I focused on retirement research. After I opened my 401k with my employer and maxed out my contribution, I breathed a sigh of relief and went on about my business. My projections show that with a standard rate of return, if I work until I'm 65, we'll have enough in the retirement account to live on $120,000 a year for the rest of our lives and still leave money for the kids.

I realize that retirement is far more complicated than that, but knowing that I have at least a loose plan, I felt free to make changes in other areas of our lives. I created a budget for our family in excel. It's a complicated spreadsheet and covers lots of variables for 5 years. It also has a section that tracks debt reduction, and feeds right into the rest of the calculations. This spreadsheet has been shared with quite a few friends and relatives over the last year and it's been wildly successful!

I've tweaked and adjusted and learned more and implemented tips and tricks from other bloggers and sources until I have our finances rolling like a well oiled machine. And everything I need to manage our household finances on a monthly basis is contained in one 3 ring binder. Not too long ago, Wes was watching me process the weekly grocery list and manage our household finance tasks and had an epiphany.

I think everyone is aware that the economy is going down the tubes. For most of the people in our lives, this means radical changes in their household finances... but they don't know where to start. I'm going to help give people that start.

My new career path is Household Finance Coaching. I'm writing a book to go along with the organizational binder. I already have the binder in Beta form. I'm working with several test households to get real numbers in line. I'm building a new website, and am going to give this a whirl. I really am looking forward to making a difference.

:) And when the book is finished, I'm going to give away a free copy here.

Nice Girls Don't Get Rich - A Review

During my time in the mountains this weekend, I decided to make some quality reading time. I picked up Nice Girls Don't Get Rich, by Lois Frankel, at the library last week and took it along with me. I don't generally review finance books because, to be honest, I have read very few that I could make it all the way through. Most of them bore me to tears before I can get to the "meat and potatoes" of the book.

I was pleasantly surprised with Nice Girls Don't Get Rich. Dr. Frankel held my attention for the entire 9 chapters of her book. The chapters are very concisely written with plain, clear language that anyone can understand.

I found myself nodding along at the mistakes I've made and making mental notes of the ones I haven't made yet (but was planning to). The book's focus is on the many ways that women are programmed, and often program themselves, to fail financially.

I am guilty of doing many of the things that women to do sabotage themselves. I feel guilty saying no to requests for loans, gifts, and solicitations. I have "left money on the table" during negotiations for fear of being seen as greedy. I have undervalued myself time and again. This book was a real eye opener, and I plan to continue to educate myself on this topic. Who knows, maybe I'll increase my self-worth along with my net-worth.

In short, this was a great read. Not every part will apply to any one person, but enough of the book applies to all women that I don't think you can go wrong with spending a few hours on this book.

Getting Started

I've written blogs in the past, but never targeted ones. This one is devoted to our family's trip on the road less traveled.

I met my husband almost 4 years ago. We'd both been divorced, him twice, me once. I had three daughters that lived with me. He had two daughters that lived with their mother, and one son that lived with his mother. So, we've got 6 children ... in 4 cities ... in 2 states. Their ages range from 10 to 18 and grades from 4th to Freshman in college.

I work a full time job. With the most recent round of layoffs, my husband Wes (not his real name) and I decided to start our own consulting firm. He has an incredible business concept with lots of interest so far. He's even gotten the ball rolling on, not one but, TWO contracts in the last two weeks. This is astronomical for a startup business that only opened its proverbial doors two three weeks ago.

However, when I married Wes, he and I both had baggage from our "past lives". He also brought with him $70,000ish in tax debt, to toss in with my student loan from college and my car payment.

This blog will be my way of keeping track, and sharing with you, the progress we make toward financial independence, the growth we achieve as a family, and as a business.

Feel free to keep me company
Momma