18,99 €
Mehr erfahren.
- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Ratgeber
- Sprache: Englisch
Secure your financial independence and security with small, simple, yet powerful action steps you can take starting today!
In the newly revised second edition to Clever Girl Finance, celebrated personal finance educator Bola Sokunbi delivers an update to the insightful and entertaining installment of her widely read handbook to personal finance for women everywhere. The author walks you through the basics of building a strong and prosperous financial future, showing you how to craft a resilient budget, improve your credit score, pay down debt, invest and build long term wealth.
With this book, you'll:
- Identify your personal money values, goals, and beliefs to help guide your actions.
- Explore mindset shifts and developing good financial habits including overcoming limiting beliefs about money and cultivating healthy financial habits.
- Learn strategies to effectively manage and eliminate debt, such as creating a debt repayment plan, negotiating lower interest rates, and prioritizing high-interest debt.
- Gain insights into different saving strategies, including emergency funds, retirement savings, and other long-term financial goals.
- Learn about different investment options, risk management, and how to start investing even with a small amount of money.
- And much more
Perfect for women looking for practical advice, actionable steps, and real-life examples they can apply to their own financial journey, Clever Girl Finance is an invaluable resource for anyone who wants to achieve financial independence and success!
Sie lesen das E-Book in den Legimi-Apps auf:
Seitenzahl: 419
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024
Ähnliche
Table of Contents
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
About the Author
Also by Bola Sokunbi
Acknowledgments
Welcome to the Expanded and Updated Edition of This Book!
You Are in the Right Place
How to Use This Book
Introduction
Notes
My StorynotesSet
Note
PART I: The Start
CHAPTER 1: Your Mindset
LET GO OF YOUR MONEY MISTAKES
BECOMING EMOTIONALLY BALANCED FOR A POSITIVE MONEY MINDSET
MEET DR. CHAVONNE PEROTTE
DREAM BIG: AFFIRM YOURSELF TO BEING WEALTHY
SHIFT YOUR CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE
MEET LATOYA SCOTT
Notes
CHAPTER 2: Get Organized
GET YOUR RECORDS IN ORDER
TRACK YOUR SPENDING
IDENTIFY YOUR BAD MONEY HABITS
MEET CHRISTINA MYCHAS
KNOW YOUR NET WORTH
MEET BRITTNEY SUTTLE
DEFINE YOUR VALUES
SET YOUR GOALS
MEET MOLLY STILLMAN
Note
PART II: The Plan
CHAPTER 3: Budgeting
BUDGETING 101: THE BASICS
SETTING UP YOUR BUDGET USING CATEGORIES
BUDGETING STYLES
DON’T IGNORE YOUR MONEY LEAKS
COMMON BUDGETING CHALLENGES AND HOW TO GET OUT OF YOUR OWN WAY
REWARDING YOURSELF
MEET ESTHER BANGURA
BUDGETING ON AN INCONSISTENT INCOME
BUDGETING ON A LOW INCOME
BUDGETING AS A COUPLE
THE SAVE YOURSELF FUND: YOUR EMERGENCY SAVINGS
SINKING FUNDS TO STAY ON TRACK
MY STORY: HOW I SAVED OVER $100,000 IN THREE YEARS
Note
CHAPTER 4: Debt and Loans
LET’S TALK ABOUT DEBT…BECAUSE IT SUCKS
PAYING OFF YOUR DEBT
STUDENT LOANS: FACTS AND BASICS
MEET MELISA BOUTIN
WHERE TO START WITH YOUR STUDENT LOANS
IDEAS TO PAY OFF YOUR DEBT FAST
MEET NASEEMA MCELROY
CASHBACK AND REWARDS CREDIT CARDS
MEET MONICA LOUIE
Notes
CHAPTER 5: Investing
INVESTING 101
MEET ADEOLA OMOLE
INVESTING FOR RETIREMENT
HOW TO START INVESTING
MEET MABEL NUNEZ
Notes
PART III: The Necessary
CHAPTER 6: Credit
CREDIT 101
CREDIT SCORES
BUSTING CREDIT MYTHS
COMPROMISED INFORMATION
MEET ROSEMARY A.B.
Notes
CHAPTER 7: Protecting Yourself
CREATING A BACKUP PLAN WITH THE RIGHT INSURANCE
RECESSION-PROOFING YOUR FINANCES
MEET ASHLEE SANG
Note
CHAPTER 8: Making More Money
NEGOTIATING TO WIN
MEET STEPH MAY
SIDE HUSTLES
MEET LUCILLE ROACHE
Note
CHAPTER 9: Your Self-Care
NUTURING YOUR SELF-CARE ALONGSIDE YOUR FINANCIAL WELLNESS…BECAUSE YES
CHAPTER 10: Key FinancialActions
STEPS TO KEEP YOUR FINANCIAL PLANS INTACT
IN CLOSING
Appendix
PERSONAL BUDGET SPREADSHEET EXCEL
STARTUP EXPENSES
SIDE HUSTLE BUDGET WORKSHEET
Index
End User License Agreement
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
About the Author
Also by Bola Sokunbi
Acknowledgments
Welcome to the Expanded and Updated Edition of This Book!
You Are in the Right Place
How to Use This Book
Introduction
My Story
Begin Reading
Appendix
Index
Advertisement
End User License Agreement
Pages
iii
iv
v
xi
xiii
xv
xvi
xvii
xviii
xix
xxi
xxiii
xxiv
xxv
xxvi
xxvii
xxviii
xxix
xxx
xxxi
xxxii
xxxiii
xxxiv
xxxv
xxxvi
xxxvii
xxxviii
xxxix
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
Clever Girl Finance
Expanded and UpdatedDitch Debt, Save Money, and Build Real Wealth
Bola Sokunbi
Copyright © 2025 by Bola Sokunbi. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.Published simultaneously in Canada.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 750-4470, or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permission.
Trademarks: Wiley and the Wiley logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Further, readers should be aware that websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. Neither the publisher nor authors shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages.
For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic formats. For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site at www.wiley.com.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is Available:
ISBN 9781394266944 (Paperback)ISBN 9781394266968 (ePub)ISBN 9781394266951 (ePDF)
Cover Design: WileyCover Image: Courtesy of Clever Girl Finance
This book is dedicated to the original clever girl, my incredible mother, Emily, and to all the clever girls who have chosen to take ownership of their financial futures and make their dreams come true.
About the Author
Bola Sokunbi is a Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFEI), investor, finance expert, speaker, podcaster, bestselling author, and the founder and CEO of Clever Girl Finance, one of the largest personal finance media/education platforms for women in the U.S.
She is the recipient of the 2021 Financial Education Instructor of the Year (FEIY) Award from the National Council of Financial Educators (NFEC). Clever Girl Finance has also earned the Distinguished Personal Finance Content (DPFC) designation from the National Financial Educators Council, having proven competency in providing financial education that aligns with industry best practices and research-based education principles.
Based on Bola’s experience saving over $100,000 in three and a half years after graduating from college and navigating through various financial mistakes and successes of her own in the years that followed, Bola started Clever Girl Finance in 2015 to provide women with the tools and resources she wished she had when she began her financial journey.
She lives with her husband and twins in New Jersey.
Also by Bola Sokunbi
My Wealth Plan: A Workbook by Clever Girl Finance
Learn How Investing Works, Grow Your Money
The Side Hustle Guide: Build a Successful Side Hustle and Increase Your Income
Choosing to Prosper: Triumphing Over Adversity, Breaking Out of Comfort Zones, Achieving Your Life and Money Dreams
Acknowledgments
This book would not be possible without the support and encouragement of some amazing people in my life.
To my parents, Tunji and Emily, for instilling the important money and life lessons that have helped me grow into the woman and mother I am today.
To my husband, Gbolabo, for being my number-one fan, motivator, and super-dad from the very beginning of the idea for Clever Girl Finance.
To my twins, Ore and Jola, my most precious gifts. I have grown so much being your mother, and I’m so proud of who you are each becoming. I am forever grateful for all the joy you bring to my life.
To all my incredible friends, family, and mentors, who have encouraged me through the ups and downs of growing Clever Girl Finance while balancing life at the same time – I am so grateful to have you in my life.
To my business advisors, Dan and Amy Stoller, Monique Nelson, Roshi Givechi, Jonathan Cornelissen, and Maureen Jules-Perez, for all your support and counsel, and for believing in me and my big vision.
To the entire Techstars family, for the incredible opportunity to join the ranks of Techstars companies and for providing me with the platform, resources, and mentorship to build a highly successful company.
To the incredible Clever Girl Finance team, for your endless support and dedication to making this book and our platform overall a success.
To the amazing women whose stories and advice are featured throughout this book, thank you so much for being a part of this journey.
To my book publisher, Wiley, and my supporting book editors, thank you for the opportunity to get this book out into the world.
To the Clever Girl Finance Tribe and to everyone who has supported and shared my message and mission, I would not be here today without you. I appreciate you more than words can express. I am honored and humbled to be able to positively impact your financial journey.
Thank you so much for everything!
Bola
Welcome to the Expanded and Updated Edition of This Book!
Welcome to this expanded and updated edition of Clever Girl Finance: Ditch Debt, Save Money, and Build Real Wealth! Whether you are a new or returning reader, thank you so much for picking up a copy.
I can’t believe it’s been six years since I wrote the first edition of this book. When this book was first released in 2019, I couldn’t have imagined the tumultuous ride the world was about to take. From grappling with an unexpected global pandemic to navigating through widespread unrest and economic uncertainty, it’s been quite the journey for all of us.
In response to the pandemic, I made a decision that felt right to my core: all 30-plus personal finance courses on the Clever Girl Finance platform would be made permanently free. So many people were struggling to get back on their feet or stay afloat, and it was clear that financial resources were more crucial than ever. This move was my way of giving back to the community that had supported Clever Girl Finance’s growth and a way of providing support to women who needed these resources. It also allowed me to stay true to our mission at Clever Girl Finance – empowering women to achieve financial wellness. And with over 600,000 course enrollments and counting, it’s evident that it was the right call to make. It’s also a strong indicator that women want to thrive with money.
As we continue to pick up the pieces and adapt to ongoing life and global challenges, many are finding themselves reassessing their financial strategies in the wake of these turbulent times, so there’s no better time than right now to bring you an updated and expanded version of Clever Girl Finance: Ditch Debt, Save Money, and Build Real Wealth.
I wrote the first version of this book to showcase that being successful with money doesn’t have to be complicated or confusing and to empower women to achieve financial success so they can live life on their own terms. This updated and expanded edition remains true to that goal.
Throughout this book, you’ll find fresh insights tailored to today’s financial landscape and actionable tips that you can put into practice right away. While it’s never been easier to save and invest than it is in today’s world, it’s also never been easier to fall into the comparison trap, overspend, or accumulate more debt, thanks to the ever-tempting world of social media, one-click purchases, and mobile payment apps.
So whether you’re looking to fine-tune your financial mindset, master the art of budgeting, tackle your debt, dip your toes into investing, or explore side hustles to boost your income, I have updated and expanded this book to help you make the best financial decisions for yourself and create (or update) your financial game plan to adapt to today’s world.
Many of the women who read the first edition shared with me how much they loved being able to read about the experiences and success stories of other women they could relate to. And so based on their feedback, I’ve also added several brand-new stories from more amazing women who are crushing their life goals and financial goals. These stories will not only inspire you but also remind you that your financial dreams are well within reach, no matter where you are on your journey.
Now is the perfect time to take charge of your finances, and with the updated advice, tips, and real-life stories in this book, you’ve got a trusty guide to help you tackle whatever comes your way. Again, thank you so much for being here and for picking up a copy of this book.
Let’s get started and make your goals a reality!
You Are in the Right Place
So you’ve picked up this book because its cover and title have piqued your interest. Or perhaps someone recommended it to you.
Either way, you’re probably reading this because you could be doing better with your money and you want some inspiration (and education) to help you get to that place where you are truly happy about your financial picture now and into the future.
Ultimately, you want to be able to live your life on your own terms without having to worry about money all the time. You shouldn’t have to settle for things and situations you don’t want because you lack the finances and options to make changes.
Right?
Well, I’ve written this book for women just like you – women who are working hard to make a living. Regardless of what your income is currently or what your financial situation looks like, in this book I’ll show you, step by step, what you need to do to get to that happy place where you have peace of mind about your finances.
I’ll be challenging you to ditch the status quo of debt and living paycheck to paycheck, and I’ll be sharing a ton of inspiration to help you jumpstart your journey toward financial success.
In addition to learning what it takes to build real wealth, you’ll read several incredible stories from women just like you who have accomplished major feats by adjusting their mindsets, paying off debt, and saving money. They’ll show you that you too can be successful with your finances, as long as you are ready and willing to put the work in.
Wherever you are on your journey to building wealth, I am more than certain you can get to the stage you desire – and I’m going to show you how.
How to Use This Book
This book is your guide to financial success. I want you to gain the most benefit from it, so I’ve put together a few tips to help you along the way. While there are many ways to read this book and act on the information on these pages, here is what I recommend:
Plan to read it all the way through so you don’t miss any valuable information. You’ll get a good sense of the whole picture of improving your finances.
Pace yourself as you read it and take it one chapter at a time, doing the suggested action items as you go along. Highlight, take notes, and bookmark anything you want to revisit. Completing these action items as you go will allow you to start working on your finances right away and stay motivated to keep going.
Once you are done reading the book and completing the action items, come back and review your notes, action items, and bookmarks.
Keep this book as a reference to answer questions or get unstuck when needed.
If you’d like some extra guidance, you can leverage the worksheets and templates in the corresponding sections in the Clever Girl Finance workbook,
My Wealth Plan
, to work through your action items.
The goal is to get as much as you possibly can from this book to help you win big with your finances!
For additional resources, visit clevergirlfinance.com to check out our completely free personal finance courses and participate in our amazing community.
Introduction
You have what it takes.
#CLEVERGIRLSKNOW
I started Clever Girl Finance as a platform to empower women to take charge of their personal finances. I wanted to create a comfortable space for women to learn and have conversations about money without being judged, shamed, or pressed to show off. And most importantly, I wanted to provide a space that would allow us to be ourselves regardless of our backgrounds or our current financial or life situations. Today, Clever Girl Finance is one of the largest personal finance platforms for women in the U.S., and I’m so proud of how far we’ve come in achieving this goal of providing a space for women to learn and speak freely about money.
Creating a comfortable and nonjudgmental space has been of utmost priority to me because as women, in a world filled with standards and expectations, we keep so much bottled up. Sometimes being honest with ourselves and letting it all out is necessary.
We are more likely to talk about things like dating, relationships, sex, shopping, parenting, and reality TV than we are to talk about paying off debt, saving money, or investing – the latter of which is super-important to our long-term financial well-being and overall quality of life.
Why do we shy away from the money conversation so much? Well, as a woman I know how hard it can be to talk about money because:
We don’t want to feel judged or shamed by the money mistakes we’ve made.
We think other women are doing better with their money than we are because their lives look perfect in real life and on social media.
Money is not a topic that we really grew up talking about, and so having those money conversations is not exactly second nature.
We think talking about money is just way too personal.
These reasons plus several others are what get in the way of achieving our financial success.
Men, on the other hand, are the complete opposite. I mean, put five guys in a room and they’ll talk about everything from sports to business to beer to women to money and they won’t even give it a second thought. Why shouldn’t we, as women, be that comfortable about having those same conversations about money? We are just as smart, we are just as successful, and we most certainly work just as darn hard for our dollars.
As the Clever Girl Finance Tribe has grown, I’ve received a lot of flak about how good money management, saving, investing, and building wealth is not just a “woman’s thing.” But in all honesty, I’m really not fazed by that criticism. I do believe it needs to be a “woman’s thing.”
Yes, building wealth applies to everyone – there’s no dispute there – but I’m tired of our specific needs being ignored by the finance industry. I’m even more tired of seeing financial products and services designed by men from the male-dominated finance industry coated in pink and automatically termed “for women” because, well, that’s not how it works for us.
I mean, I love pink, but it takes more than a pink coating for money topics to be relatable to us as women and for our financial needs to be met. And in so many instances, the products and services that exist today just don’t cut it – especially in regard to the unique factors that affect us as women when it comes to our finances.
Those one-size-fits-all groupings that come with set standards? We don’t quite fit into them – sorry.
Given all the unique (and sometimes negative) factors affecting us as women when it comes to our success with money, we need to make money “our thing” and deal with it “our way” in order for us to be able to build wealth. And more importantly, we need to be able to live life on our terms.
But what factors am I talking about?
Well, for one thing, we are earning more money on average than we have ever earned before. Many of us are heads of our households or, if we are in relationships, many of us earn significantly more than our partners or spouses.
However, despite us earning more than ever before, we are paid significantly less for doing the same work as our male counterparts in nearly every single occupation and industry and we continue to face an uphill battle when it comes to equal pay. On average, women earn about 18% less than men.1 If we break it down by demographics, the numbers are even worse: Black women earn 36% less2 and Hispanic women earn almost 48% less.3 These numbers have not shifted much at all in the six years since I wrote the first edition of this book.
On top of that, we are living longer than men by an average of 5–10 years, which means we actually need more money for our financial well-being in retirement than men will. But stats show that, despite living longer, women have only 70% of the income that men have during retirement4 as a result of the gender wage gap and, in turn, the subsequent investment gap; and so, because we don’t earn as much, the women who do invest can’t invest as much.5
And I haven’t even gotten into the emotional side of things. As women, we tend to be more emotional beings – at least more so than men. That makes us big givers – not only are we more likely to give to charity and buy more extravagant gifts, but we’re less likely to fight for a promotion or ask for more in a salary negotiation.
But wait a minute, what about things like retail therapy? More women than men admit to shopping to make themselves feel better – and many admit to doing it because they want to make others feel happy. However, despite what might be perpetuated in the media and in popular marketing, just because we enjoy retail therapy doesn’t mean the stereotype that all women are frivolous and excessive spenders is true. In fact, according to a researched article by the New York Times, frivolous or excessive spending has nothing to do with gender6 and the Consumer Expenditure Surveys from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics prove it.7
Keep in mind that when we do spend, women are typically paying more for the same exact products and services, from insurance to dry cleaning, clothing and feminine care purchases to major expenses like insurance. And while many states have banned this gender-based price discrimination, also known as the “pink tax,” it continues to exist.8
I could go on and on with these factors, stating studies and statistics, but let’s not get carried away. It’s not a bad thing to be emotional, giving, or happy to spend. In fact, women are generally good with money. Like, really good with money. With the right tools, knowledge, and support, we are incredible savers and investors. The responses to our recurring Clever Girl Finance Women and Money Survey support the fact that women understand the importance of building wealth and are interested in investing, with 68% of respondents saying they actively invest for the future.9 We also take more calculated risks and are more patient when it comes to reaping returns. Being emotionally aware isn’t our downfall – it’s our secret weapon.
The majority of us want to learn more about or do better with managing our money. We want to do better with saving and investing – so what is holding us back from our financial success?
More than likely, ourselves: our self-doubt, discomfort, fear, lack of knowledge, lack of support – the list goes on. But here’s a secret:
If you really want to build wealth, regardless of whatever factors are at play, you totally can.
Yes, girl, you.
Regardless of where you are with your finances right now and despite all the factors I just listed, you can be debt free with solid savings and investments and live a fabulous life of your choosing while you’re at it.
My goal with this book is to help you take charge of your finances, ditch debt, save money, and build real wealth so you can be in control of the life you really want to live. You can shop when you want to, feel free to buy gifts you want to give, and show all the people who think you can’t succeed that you can. It might seem out of reach right at this moment, but you have what it takes to get there. You just took a major step by picking up this book.
Now that you’re here, I’m going to teach you exactly how to improve your relationship with money, create a plan to pay off your debt, and save some serious money so you can start living your life on your own terms.
I will, however, be honest and tell you right from the start that I have no get-rich-quick schemes or magic tricks to share with you. In fact, becoming financially stable is certainly not going to be easy. But I can tell you, firsthand, that I’ve done it. And if I can, so can you. You are more than capable of getting your finances to a happy place.
Notes
1
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/03/01/gender-pay-gap-facts/
2
https://www.cbcfinc.org/blog/closing-the-gap-reflecting-on-black-womens-equal-pay-day-and-the-path-forward/
3
https://nwlc.org/resource/equal-pay-for-latinas
4
https://www.aauw.org/issues/equity/retirement/
5
https://www.femaleinvest.com/magazine/gender-investing-gap
6
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/04/us/myth-frivolous-female-spender.html
7
https://www.bls.gov/cex/tables.htm
8
https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/taxes/articles/the-pink-tax-costs-women-thousands-of-dollars-over-their-lifetimes
9
https://www.clevergirlfinance.com/women-and-money/
My Story
The best way to predict the future is to create the one you want.
#CLEVERGIRLSKNOW
So what led me to this place of empowering women to achieve their own financial success? Well, let me take you way back. Growing up, I was the last of four children and the only girl. My father was the breadwinner, and my mother stayed at home.
She got married really young, at just 19, and soon started a family. I was born in Vienna, the gorgeous capital city of Austria, where my family relocated due to a life-changing job opportunity my father got after working for several years as a college professor and then as a civil servant in Nigeria.
As a result of my family’s relocation and my father’s better pay, we got to go to good schools, my parents had nice cars, we lived in a nice house, and our family was taken care of. I wouldn’t describe my family as rich, but my father was able to afford many of the nicer things for us. His biggest priority was to give his children the best education possible.
As time went by, my mother began to notice certain things about herself and within her community of friends. For instance, she realized she didn’t have much insight into our family finances because my father managed all the money. The same applied to her friends – they didn’t know much about the details of their family finances, either.
My mother didn’t quite like the fact that she had to ask my father for money to do everything. It wasn’t that my father didn’t give her the money; rather, it was that he made all the major financial decisions. She wanted to be able to make her own contributions toward our household and put money aside for herself.
Since she only had a high school diploma when she got married, my mother decided to go to college and get a degree, so she could eventually get a job that allowed her to make a significant contribution to our family’s finances. As the years went by, she went on to get an undergraduate degree, a master’s degree, and several professional certifications, which set the stage for her to take control of her earning potential and her financial future.
Over this same period, while my mother was setting the stage for her own financial security, she observed the financial problems her friends were having. The friends whose marriages ended in divorce wound up with no financial support. I watched my mother console many friends who were trying to figure out exactly how to start over with little or no money. Similar things would happen if one of their husbands passed away. They had no clue as to what assets existed or where any of the money was. In some cases, their husband’s family would come in and take over, ousting them from the situation, again with zero financial support.
Thankfully, my parents stayed married (and celebrated their fiftieth anniversary not long ago). But with these experiences, my mother had made up her mind that she never wanted to be in any of those situations. So she became the hustle queen.
After my father’s job tenure was over, my family relocated back to Nigeria and my mother, who had now completed her college education, began to get her hustle on. She worked as an investment banker, owned a hair salon, set up a typing school (anyone remember the typewriter?), was the principal of a girls’ school, had a Coca-Cola franchise, considered starting a bakery, and ventured into so many other small businesses over the subsequent years that I can’t even remember them all. Her main goal was financial peace of mind – and she was serious about it. While all this was going on, my father was spending the money he was earning paying for my older brothers’ high school and college educations at the best schools he could afford.
Then something unexpected changed our financial stability. Just before I graduated high school and started thinking about which colleges I would apply to in the United States, my father was forced to retire 15 years earlier than he’d planned. Since he’d spent so much of his income on my brothers’ education, he hadn’t put much away for his own retirement. Thankfully, we would still be okay financially – my father was entitled to a pension and had a few assets and investments to keep the family afloat. However, our lifestyle would have to be downgraded in a major way.
This meant moving from our nice house to a tiny apartment. It meant that instead of multiple cars we would have just one car. And most devastating of all for me, it meant I would not be going to college abroad like I had dreamed.
Economic instability in Nigeria at the time meant there was no telling when I’d graduate if I went to college there. This is where my mother, the hustle queen, stepped in and changed my perspective about money forever.
She decided that I would be able to go to college abroad and that she would be paying for it with her own money that she had worked hard for and saved up all those years at the expense of delaying her retirement. She paid for all four years of my international college tuition, while continuing to work throughout, and gave me the opportunity to go to college in Austria (where I started), England, and then the United States (where I graduated).
The agreement I had with her was that my grades were not to be compromised – in other words, I dared not mess up – and I would get a job and apply for scholarships where possible. I was also reminded that this was an opportunity and a privilege, not a right – something I never forgot! This gift from my mother is one I am forever grateful for and will never take for granted.
I was able to get a partial scholarship for a year while in college in Austria, which helped ease the tuition costs my mother had to pay during that time. And I graduated college with flying colors – I made my mother proud!
I acknowledge that I am extremely lucky to have a parent pay for my college education, and I know many of you reading this are tackling student loan debt – a serious topic that I cover in detail in this book with the help of a student loan expert, who, by the way, also shares her incredible money story.
The privilege I was afforded, however, is not the point of this story. Seeing my mother make this sacrifice for me changed my life. It laid a foundation for me to become financially successful, independent of anyone else. Her actions helped me realize that having my own money would open the doors for me to be able to make my own decisions and live my life on my own terms.
I saw that having money would give me options, and I would never find myself stuck in an unfavorable position (like my mother’s friends were) if I planned carefully. She gave me valuable lessons that I can now pass on to my own children. However, it has taken a lot of trial and error to get me to this point where I can tell you my story.
Despite the great money lessons I learned from my mother, I still managed to make a few of my own money mistakes when I left home for college. Because I’d never really been thrown out in the world on my own to make any serious money decisions, I had a lot to learn.
Upon arrival in the United States for my final year of college, I had no clue about credit cards. They weren’t something my parents used (at the time, credit cards were not a thing in Nigeria), nor had they ever been presented to me as a college student in Austria. However, at my very first college job fair in the United States, I couldn’t ignore the credit card table – I mean, they were giving out free T-shirts! I happily applied for my first credit card despite my mother’s warnings and without fully understanding what I was getting into. I quickly maxed out that credit card and ended up paying a ridiculous rate of 24.99% on my $2,000 balance, which took me forever to pay back with a part-time campus job earning $8 an hour and working around 15 hours a week. The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act) has since been put in place to protect minors and students from these types of solicitations.1
While my line of credit on that card was not large, upon realization of how much interest I would be paying, combined with the fact that I only earned around $120 a week and still needed to buy groceries and pay for my personal needs, I had many sleepless nights! It felt like I owed a million dollars and would never be able to pay it off.
And let’s not even talk about my very ridiculous and very expensive designer handbag collection I began to acquire a few years after graduating from college when I started earning my first real salary. Not only was it very expensive, but I hardly ever actually used the handbags! I held on to them for years before eventually selling them off.
I’ve also had to work through my own personal money roadblocks I’ve carried with me from childhood. If you’re struggling financially, you probably read all about my childhood above and thought I was incredibly fortunate. And I was. But one drawback of the way I was raised is that I had a lot given to me that I didn’t have to work for. As a young adult, I felt entitled to those same things, but I didn’t understand what the true cost of that entitlement would be.
I didn’t know how to spend smartly or how to use credit to my advantage. I made mistake after mistake and had to learn how to manage money on my own. However, despite those mistakes, I never lost my focus on building long-term wealth.
For example, I was able to save over $100,000 in a little over three years right after I graduated from college. This was a huge deal because I made nothing close to six figures, and I never imagined I would be able to save that much. (I’ll share more later on about exactly how I did this.)
I learned about investing in the stock market and in real estate, two topics I initially thought I would never understand. Now I’m focused on building generational wealth for my children. And you can get there, too!
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve also gotten wiser. The decisions I make about money are more thoughtful. I like nice things, but not at the expense of my future or my children’s future; these are nonnegotiable for me. I’ve also started to see some of the same things that were happening with my mother’s friends repeat themselves with women around me.
The biggest recurring theme I see when it comes to women and money is that we are not getting as involved as we should when it comes to our financial well-being.
And I get it. Money can be intimidating, overly complicated, stressful, and sometimes a huge chore – but it doesn’t have to be. I’ll show you how to make it easy. I went from having a fortunate childhood to being an indebted student and now, finally, to a financially secure mom and entrepreneur. On my personal journey, I’ve learned so much about paying off debt, saving money, and planning for my financial future. And in this book, I’m sharing with you what I’ve learned. But that’s just my story.
In this book, you’ll get to read the stories of other women, all of whom come from very different backgrounds yet have one thing in common – regardless of their backgrounds and their history with money, they have all achieved financial success.
Your experience with money and your financial role models growing up may differ from mine. Maybe you grew up with more privilege than I did. Maybe your family has always struggled. Either way, your story, both the positives and negatives of it, tie into your current relationship with money today. In order to get to the point where you are in a happy space with your finances, you need to take a look back at your financial history and address your money roadblocks head on.
So, what’s your story? Let me ask you a few questions to get those thoughts rolling in your mind:
How did your parents deal with their money?
Did they openly discuss money matters or financial challenges?
What were the positives or negatives about money in your life when you were growing up?
What’s the strongest money memory or emotional experience tied to money you have from growing up that’s stuck with you to this day?
How do you think it affects the way you deal with money today?
Did your parents instill any specific financial rules or values?
What about money makes you anxious or stressed?
What are the key money roadblocks you face?
Understanding your story will help you see where you struggle and what causes your anxiety and worry about money. You want to make sure that as you start working on your plan with this book to get on the path to building real wealth, you address any roadblocks from your history with money, so you can get comfortable about where you are headed with your finances.
Take Action
Take some time to write down your responses to the questions I’ve asked about your history as it relates to money, and your current financial attitudes and behaviors. Be as detailed and honest as possible in your answers.
Read over your answers and reflect on your thoughts and feelings about what you’ve written.
Once you’ve done a thorough reflection, write down one to three key actions you can take to overcome your roadblocks and assign time frames over the next few days and months to take action.
Note
1
https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/statutes/credit-card-accountability-responsibility-disclosure-act-2009-credit-card-act
PART IThe Start
Clever girls know …It starts with you and where you are right now.
#CLEVERGIRLSKNOW
Your What and Your Why
Decide that you can and then you will.
#CLEVERGIRLSKNOW
Have you ever tried to lose a few pounds? You probably decided on a workout plan and started out on a high note, only to find yourself, a few days or weeks later, indulging in a fully loaded carb and sugar party. And those workouts – well, they became fewer and farther between, maybe even nonexistent. Sound familiar?
I’m sure we’ve all been there at one time or the other – at least I have. Go on, it’s okay to admit it.
I’ve been the girl who’s said, “I’m going to lose 10 pounds no matter what!” I got the gym membership, signed up for the classes … I even went out and got my retail therapy on by getting brand-new super-cute neon-colored workout gear. I was totally convinced that the mere (blinding) sight of the neon in my closet would be the motivator I needed to get me to the gym every day.
Yeah, right.
When it really came down to it and the euphoria from buying that hot neon mess (which I’d never be caught dead wearing at the gym) wore off, I was back to my carb and sugar party, singing, “Woe is me, I’m just not meant to fit into those size 27 jeans.”
The real problem? I just wasn’t ready. I didn’t want it bad enough.
Losing weight is not always easy. It takes a certain level of determination, working out (ugh), eating healthy, and a strong resolve to keep going, even on the suckiest of days when a tub of ice cream is the only thing that can make you feel better.
However, when you do stick to your plan and see the numbers on the scale going down, you’re fitting into jeans that you could barely zip up a couple months ago, and people are complimenting you about how fabulous you look, you feel great! You realize that putting in all that effort was worth it, and you are happier for it.
Well, when it comes to your finances and building wealth, things work in a similar way.
Just like with getting in shape, getting your finances in order does not happen overnight (if it did, we’d all be rich by morning!) and it’s certainly not always fun. Sometimes it can be downright annoying, frustrating, and stressful – but getting things in order is 100% worth it. What’s more, it’s very possible for you to do. The thing is, you first have to decide that you are ready. You have to want to get to a better place with your money badly enough.
So where do you begin?
You begin with the thoughts you think and the decisions you make around what you want to accomplish. In this case, it’s wanting to get to a place where you achieve financial success and have peace of mind about your finances. Yes, as you work on building wealth it’s super-important to focus on having a plan for emergencies, learning to budget, paying off debt, setting savings goals, and investing – but before you start making those plans, it’s important to have the right mindset and focus in place.
In other words, first and foremost, you have to decide that you can.
That debt you have that seems so incredibly large – you can pay it off.
Those savings goals that seem so out of reach – you can reach and even surpass them.
Once you’ve decided that you can, the next step is to get clear on your why.
If you aren’t quite sure, your why is essentially the driving force that keeps you going, especially when life starts life-ing and everything in you wants to quit. It provides you with a sense of direction and is tied to your purpose, which in turn ties into you living a fulfilled life. It can also help you overcome your fears and doubts because you’ll be reminded of your purpose, which is bigger than any fear or doubt you might have.
Finding your why is about being honest with yourself and getting clear on what truly makes you happy and the deeper motivation that causes you to want certain things in your life. It should be the reason for the goals you choose to pursue.
Keep in mind that you can have multiple whys. You can even have a why associated with different aspects of your life, like your family and relationships, your career, your health and wellness, your personal growth, and, of course, your finances.
For example, when it comes to the goals you have that are tied to your family and relationships, your why might be to create beautiful and long-lasting memories, spend quality time together, and cultivate deeper connections and emotional intimacy.
Your why in your career might be to make a positive impact through the work that you do, find fulfilment through work, and be a strong leader in your field who inspires others.
For your health and wellness, your why might be to improve your mental and emotional well-being, improve your physical fitness, and reduce stress and overwhelm in your life.
