personal fundamentals Archives - Page 25 of 30 - Kim Wilkish

Money Lessons

In thinking about the topic of money, I know I’ve learned most of what I know as a result of trial and error, what I learned from my mom or other sources.

My mom taught me how to balance my checkbook. Her words of advice in regards to money was to spend within your means, always pay cash for consumables (food, gas), get a good job with benefits and put money in your 401K. I’ve done those things but there is more to it than that.

I worked many part time jobs to put myself through college. I worked hard. I worked a lot of hours while going to school full time. I barely had a social life. When I look back I know I was fortunate to have some great bosses that worked with me and my crazy schedule. I so appreciate them and will forever be grateful for their support!

One thing I wished I had learned in the early days of my working life but which you can benefit from is that many companies offer paid internships. The positions tend to pay pretty well, give you the opportunity to not only see the type of work you may do in your future but also give you the opportunity to meet people and help you to start developing your network. Professional organizations often have student memberships which can be leveraged for scholarships, networking and job leads.

If you can utilize your company to pay for or contribute to your education, do it. Learn the rules of the loans, scholarships, or grants that you take out. Read the small print as it can benefit you greatly in different ways.

Educate yourself & get help to support you.

Here are some books I have found interesting on the topic of money you may be interested in:

The Spender’s Guide to Debt-Free Living: How a Spending Fast Helped Me Get from Broke to Badass in Record Time by Anna Newell Jones
The Art of Money: A Life-Changing Guide to Financial Happiness by Bari Tessler
The Soul of Money: Reclaiming the Wealth of our Inner Resources by Lynne Twist

I’m just starting to read Beautiful Money: The 4-Week Total Wealth Makeover, A Holistic Approach to Increasing your New Worth by Leanne Jacobs.
I’m looking forward to the soon to be released book (Feb 2017), Worth It: Your Life, Your Money, Your Terms by Amanda Steinberg.

by Kim Wilkish

Money Talk

In reflecting about the year, I noticed the topic of money came up in every conference or workshop I attended this year. Themes came up as:

Education and money – we don’t teach it in school
How we talk and discuss money with our kids- we talk differently to girls than boys about it
Our relationship to money – how do we view money, what does money mean to each of us
How to acquire money – crowd funding, acquiring capital, how do you get it, earn it,
Why and how to save money
Investing money
Spending and debt

I bought something I wouldn’t ordinarily buy this year for Christmas presents for my daughter and nieces. I gave them books about money. You would think that it wouldn’t be too hard to do. Just go to the bookstore or Amazon and buy a book on money. I actually did that but found that there really aren’t many books on the subject for kids & teens.

These are the two books I bought.
It’s a Money Thing! : A Girl’s Guide to Managing Money from the Women’s Foundation of California publication date April 16, 2008.
A Smart Girl’s Guide: Money: How to Make It, Save it and Spend it by Nancy Holyoke from American Girl, publication date May 27, 2014.

by Kim Wilkish

Work process

I don’t know about you but I know when I am starting to work on something I tend to have everything spread out in front of me. I’ll start brainstorming or making a list of ideas. I’ll use different markers or pens. Notebooks, pads of paper or books I may use or work from will be out in front of me.

It’s not usual for my family or coworkers to make comments like wow your working on something because you are surrounded. Look at all the paper and stuff you have around you.

I’ve also heard people say “watch out, something is brewing look at all the documents all over your floor and desk”. What on earth are you doing? I’m a visual person so I like to be able to see things and spread it all out in front of me. Eventually, I’ll organize items in a document on my computer but there is something to the physicality of seeing what I’m working on that helps me to dig in and organize my work. I love paper and pens. Yes, I’m a bit “old school” but I find it’s just my process.

What about you? What do you find to be the best way of working for you?