A lot of times we’re doing so many things right in our personal finances, but we’re still not seeing the progress we want. We’ve taken the time to set up a weekly or monthly budget (we may even be using a great budgeting spreadsheet). Everything runs smoothly for a little while, until a larger irregular expense comes up.
I’ve found that sinking funds are an easy and straightforward solution to getting rid of the ups and downs and money stress that come with these types of expenses.
There are expenses in life we can’t plan for and that’s why we have a rainy-day fund. But there are also many expenses that we can plan for and just don’t. The holidays are a perfect example. They come around every year and yet almost half of us get stressed out about money around the holidays. We don’t set up or stick with a holiday budget.
We spend more than we plan or expect. Cash ends up feeling tight, we have to pull money from savings, or we put the extra expenses on a credit card that we have to deal with later. It takes away from this joyful time and ends up causing us a lot of stress.
A coach is someone who helps us create goals, overcome setbacks, and break through the barriers holding us back from those goals. They hold us accountable and are our biggest cheerleaders. Every time I’ve hired a coach for a specific goal, I immediately feel excited and more confident that I will actually achieve the goals I set out to accomplish.
A good financial coach is no different. A financial coach should help us get clear on what’s important to us, set goals that are aligned with our values, and then help us get there. They ask good questions. They create a judgment-free zone. They help us keep going when we fail or make mistakes.
Over and over again in the United States, the Black community has been stripped of wealth through policies, scandals, and even massacres. This has created and perpetuated a racial wealth gap. It will take 228 years for Black families to amass as much wealth as white families if current policies stay in place.
One of the institutions that have played a major role in the racial wealth gap and the United States’ racist past is banks. Due to racial discrimination, the Black community hasn’t had access to banking products and services at all or in the same way that white folx have.
Right now, there’s a lot of moving going on. Some are moving in with family in order to save on rent, some living in expensive cities with indefinite WFH plans are moving to cheaper locations, and others are pushing up their plans to move to the suburbs in order to have more space.
Regardless of why you’re moving, it’s never easy to move - and it’s expensive. Most of us don’t actually plan for the cost of moving and even when we do, we grossly underestimate what it will cost. This can cause us a lot of stress and affect our financial goals. If you are budgeting for a move in the near future, here’s how to do it
When I first started my money journey it was really helpful to see how much people were spending on certain things. Not because it was important to compare myself with others or that I should spend my money the same way. But more because it opened my eyes to what was possible and gave me a spending frame of reference.
I remember finding out that one of my friends spent a fraction of what I was spending on food and dining out. Yet, her life didn’t seem that much different from mine. It made me realize I had a lot of room for improvement.
Groceries have been in the spending spotlight the last few months as we’ve stockpiled (often marked-up) shelf stabilized goods and haven’t had the opportunity to dine out.
I noticed that being crunched for time with work and toddler, J and I turned to the same meals over and over. I got really sick of eating the same things and did a complete 180. I went too far in the other direction and started spending way too much precious evening time pinning Pinterest recipes that were complicated and time consuming and left me frustrated and ready to order pizza (again).
We’ve since found our groove. Here’s what’s worked for us as far as meal planning to save money and time.
Once you’re ready and excited to make the switch to a socially responsible bank, the next logical question is “which one?”
We know you’re eager to align your spending with your values (while also reaching your financial goals), so we’ve done the research for you and outline the best socially responsible banks.
How and why to switch to an ethical, green, and socially responsible bank.
At the Fiscal Femme, we’re all about aligning our spending and investing with our values. Every time we make a spending decision, we’re voting with our values. In an ideal world, we should be able to look at our recent spending and have a good idea of what’s important to us.
The idea of negotiating the salary we deserve is fraught with setbacks. There’s the discomfort with negotiating in general. It’s hard enough to talk about money, but having to ask for more money from our boss or manager can take us over the edge.
Women tend to fear the repercussions of these conversations more than men. Will this hurt my career at the company? Will they view me as greedy or pushy?
