Happy New Year and Happy 1st Blogaversary!
photo credit: ginnerobot
Well December 17th 2007 marked the day I got started with this blog as a personal finance blog for women but I wanted to celebrate it today. I purchased this domain back in 2003 after reading the book Girls Just Wanna Have Funds, and, inspired by my own need to address personal finance issues from a woman’s perspective, this blog was born.
Many have asked what’s the point of such a blog, doesn’t money mean the same thing to everyone? After all, it isn’t green to men and pink to women. Tis true, but understanding and taking charge of your finances often has different implications for women and men. I don’t write articles that are just laser analysis of current financial news but I try to broach it from the perspective of a woman who needs to know what this means to me, as a woman.
Some of us are single, married, divorced, single with children, divorced with children and depending on what category you fit in, personal finance means something different for you. I want each reader to leave here empowered and educated about personal finance issues that relate to women. Sure, we’re seeing bailout after bailout but what does that mean for you on a personal level? Will your taxes go up? Do you or your partner work in an industry that may be affected by the economic crisis looming? How will you reinvent yourself? Will you be paid on par with the other men in your field/workplace? Will your position/job be there once you leave for maternity leave? Can you afford to take care of yourself should you and your partner not work out while on maternity leave?
These are issues that uniquely affect women and why I started a blog that approaches personal finance from this angle. As a young college grad that moved to DC I was intimately aware of these issues seeing my mom save every penny once my father died suddenly at age 12. I guess you could say my love for personal finance from a woman’s perspective came about during my formative years seeing and understanding how it affected my mom. So this is something I have always carried with me because I believe that with money comes the ability to live life on your terms and not be limited by circumstance. When my father died my mom had to do something she hadn’t been forced to do before, become a sole parent taking care of everything on her own.
That’s this year’s motto is Challenge Yourself To Do Something You Haven’t Done Before. If you weren’t a saver in 2008, then you open up an ING account TODAY and start saving even if it’s $5 a week. If you didn’t pay your bills in 2008 then you call up your creditors one at a time and ask how you can be brought current on all accounts. Just do it! There are no excuses, you have one life and one chance to make it right!
Happy New Year!
Question: What financial changes will you be making this year? What are your top 3-5 personal finance concerns at this time? How can I make this blog better and relate more to your needs?
Happy Bloganniversary. Did I spell that right? I love the challenge for the new year. I need to think about what I am going to do. Will share later. Happy New Year. Peace, Ananda
Congrats to you! I love your blog. It is so critical for women to be more comfortable discussing and controlling their finances. In fact, I just started a similar journey myself and started a blog too. I'll continue to look to you for inspiration on how to do it right!!!
Just discovered your blog about a month ago. Glad to have found such a resource.
I recently deferred part of my school loans for 8 months. I'm gonna use what is deferred and apply it toward my credit card bills and savings. My uncle and I were just talking yesterday and he's gonna help me with this, and he recommended ING as well. I also have a part-time job in addition to my full-time job and hope to put aside a little something from that.
My main financial concerns:
- credit cards (only 2 but with big balances)
- school loans (which will probably take another 30 years to pay off)
- having enough savings for a rainy day
- my mutual funds and their growth during these hard economic times (talked with my advisor yesterday)
(continued because the last post was too long, had to split it in 2)
Top financial changes:
- more savings in my savings accounts
- looking into a Roth IRA; my full-time job only offers 403b
- looking into life insurance
- creating (or at least starting) a will
- contributing more money to my mutual funds
Luckily I'm pretty decent with money and not spending too frivolously (as a matter-of-fact, I feel guilty treating myself), so hopefully I can reach these goals by the end of the year.