I learned GREAT money management skills by watching my parents manage the heck out of their paychecks. (Never mind all of the other implicit issues that were going on).

I made it a point to learn and study money & was (still kinda am) THE GO TO Diva for money advice….

JOB= Good Money Management Skills = I would be rich

I thought I was good……

A JOB MEANS = JUST. OVER. BROKE. Learned that after my first post grad paycheck but didn’t pay attention.

Note: JOBS ARE NOT BAD!!!

Steady Paycheck: A most certain necessity

Enough to keep you in check to do the bidding of the man: Yep

Enables you to engage in a lot of financial BS if you are not disciplined: Double Head Nod.

Ok.Ok…..But what if it’s a well paying job?

Not a damn!

Leave or Lose that job

How long can you sustain yourself at your current level of spending?

Why does it take us at least 3 years to save between $5 and $10,000?

Because we are too busy eating out….

Take out some Education Debt (crappy choice #1)

3 degrees and $110,000 later you would have thought I had learned a better way.

Student loans = Easy Money =

Perpetual Indentured Servitude.

CounterPunch

Eat out a lot….But I’m a YOUNG PROFESSONAL. I have to Network. Be Social.

BS!

Eating out costs a lot of money (and helps you gain weight).

$10 for iceberg, a teaspoon of tuna and 3 shreds of cheese is the norm. Meanwhile- your stove is dusty and your bank account is empty.

That steady paycheck had me fooled….

I was a decent saver- but think about how much MORE I could have saved if I bought my own dang lettuce ?

o_O for being lazy

Heartsisters.org

Get out of Debt and Go Back Into It (about 3x to be exact)

WHO DOES THAT?

Me…

For Good (Ahem…entrepreneurship) and not so good reasons.

Except that its Still Mind Blowing when I think about it. But that steady paycheck meant I had the CASH to do this.

Note- credit is not bad…

…except when you use it to eat out…all of the time…

Budget Perpetrator

I had a budget.

But if I didn’t like it, I changed it to meet my needs.

I had a JOB so it was all good.

The money came every other Tuesday at 6am. Like Clockwork.

Word! Budget? Spending plan? Whatever.

Wall Street Journal 2006

Allowed me to buy this pretty- yet overpriced house in a wonderful “up and coming neighborhood”…AKA drug den.

Bank: You make X- we’ll qualify you for a $500,000 mortgage.

Me: o_O. Didn’t spend that but still ended up with a healthy mortgage.

It was ok because I (had) great Credit and a JOB!!

Happily…my neighborhood is no longer a major drug den. SCORE!

I decided to pursue my passion, (preserve my sanity), quit my Job and start my business ( I also went back to school).

The movement had been percolating for a while.

Nothing like a new nut-job of a boss to make you move post haste.

When those steady paychecks stopped coming- I got one of the longest (3 years, 4 months 2 days and 18 hours to be exact) wake up calls and lessons of my entire financial life.

At some point I realized that…

Was my enabler. I was financially DISCIPLINED to take care of expenses, SAVE, MAINTAIN great credit, PAYOFF debt and CREATE those retirement account.

The cold hard truth?... I never learned how to MANAGE MONEY without actually having a STEADY PAYCHECK.

Entrepreneurship changed the game

Are fleeting in the beginning. (You know that 3-5 year rule? Its True).

Even as your business makes money- you still drain your own resources. You put everything you have into your biz.

Learning how to manage bills when there is no direct deposit is quite interesting.

Then you have to get (really) creative. (All legal of course)

Sometimes you can’t pay all of those bills and things get uber frustrating. (FEAST OR FAMINE)

But in the hard moments- I’ve learned some of my best lessons.

Has been quite random but let’s talk about what I have discovered:

The names of my bill collectors and the various types of payment arrangements that exist. Eye opening!

Note: Relationships are everything.

How valuable those abandoned metro fare cards really are (Almost like Christmas).

But then you get stuck on the Red Line so everything free does come with a cost.

How much I LOVE walking I learned how to walk my way around DC.

Walking = the natural cellulite blaster and ass lifter that Mother Nature intended.

My “crafty bastard” has gone up triple fold.

In addition to making my own jewelry, I have figured out how to make a convertible dress

and

I fixed a really ( I mean really) pair of expensive sunglasses.

RECEIVE

I was never good at it because I was always so used to giving.

There is an art to asking for help and receiving with grace.

I am still working on it. Artofgrace.com

“Bread Butts” They gross me out.

But they make a great meal when you have 1 egg, a pat of butter and a can of Salmon.

I’m still a Foodie…but Bread Butts and I have made peace.

For the first time in my life- I was able to consume all the food in my pantry, fridge and freezer.

I am the Queen of Pantry Cuisine

I’ve learned how to entertain myself.

Enjoyment of Life doesn’t come from spending money,

but by learning how to be CURIOUS and FULFILLED in the moment.

Author, Todd Kashdan

That WORKS!

A business model that embraces simplicity and integrity.

A revenue model that removes the middle man and focuses on what I do best.

And it better work or else I am going to go back and get a JOB.

For those of us who are not independently wealthy:

Be realistic about where you are financially.

Mange your money as if you don’t have a steady paycheck.

If Entrepreneurship is in your future- prepare yourself financially NOW.

Cut down on the eating out. Your stove misses you. Your ass will thank you.

Spend your money (and your time for that matter) on the experiences that are important to you

Note: Several Credit Cards were harmed in the making of this presentation.