Money Musings: đ If you were a fly on the wallâŠ
If youâve been receiving the Money Musing newsletter for a while (and maybe even if you havenât), you know I LOVE money parties. đ„ł
I look forward to the end of the month JUST because it means I can have a money party. I know I have a warped sense of fun. Thank you for accepting me anyway.
Money parties are very personal. While there are certain things youâll want to do each month, quarter, and year (you get a money party checklist in my Financial Adulting book), there is a lot about a money party thatâs up to you.
Like⊠how you make it feel like a party, how you will reward yourself at the end, and who you invite to party with you.
Hereâs what mine are like:
Mine definitely err on the side of cozy. I usually have them in my bed, in a very non-ergonomic way. Iâm propped up in my PJs with some ice cream đš and tea. I have my money party playlist đ¶ playing in the background.
J is more an active bystander than a co-host. Heâll look up info or answer questions as I ask (and I ask him a lot of things LOL), but Iâm the one running the show.
This is what Brian Walsh (CFP at SoFi and PhD in personal finance) calls knowing your âmoney personalityâ. We play off our money strengths here.
I used to reward myself with a soak in the tub, planning a fun date night, or a happy dance. Now, I love money parties so much that they are the reward. Again, this is NOT typical but it could happen to you. đ
Iâd love to hear about your money parties. How do you make them fun? How do you reward yourself? Do you do them solo or with friends and family? Hit reply and let me know!
MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
MAP OUT YOUR 2022 SINKING FUNDS.
Larger, infrequent expenses like a bachelorette party, a vacation, the holiday season, or our quarterly haircut can throw our finances out of whack. We can make our lives a lot less stressful by setting aside money (automatically) each week, each paycheck, or every month for these expenses. Then, the money is waiting for us (and earning some interest!) when itâs time to use it.
The key? Having specific accounts for each expense so each dollar we set aside has a purpose.
Think back to times of year that are typically stressful financially. Also look ahead to anything you might have coming up this year. These might be reasons to set up a sinking fund!
While sinking funds are a really helpful tool, try not to get carried away and create too many all at once (Iâm speaking from experience here đ). Start with a couple so itâs not too complicated. You can always build up from there.
Get a step by step guide to setting up your sinking funds here.
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
EQUAL PAY DAY FOR ALL WOMEN.
ICYMI, yesterday was Equal Pay Day â the day that women have to work until in the current year in order to earn the same amount that their white, male counterparts did in the previous year.
Ugh. Thatâs an extra three plus months. Or as EqualPayDayToday.org put it, "if you look at a typical 9:00-5:00 work day, women start working for free at 2:40 p.m."
Women earn $0.82 for every $1.00 a white male earns, meaning that we worked until March 15, 2022 to earn what a white man earned in 2021.
Itâs very important to note that this stat is an average for all women. BIPOC-women earn far less. AAPI Equal Pay Day is May 3rd ($0.75 for every dollar), Black Womenâs Equal Pay Day is on September 3rd ($0.58 for every dollar), Native Women's Equal Pay Day is on November 30th ($0.50 for every dollar), and Latinaâs Equal Pay Day is on December 8th ($0.49 for every dollar).
If youâre sick of earning less for doing the same job or youâre just sick of hearing about this, here's what needs to happen to close the gap (I, with the help of brilliant experts, also cover this in chapter 4 of my book).