A couple of years ago, I wrote a series about my career journey for Tish County News. The series was inspired by an invitation to speak to the Career and College Readiness classes and the football team at my alma mater, Tishomingo County High School. The message I wanted to convey to those high school students wasn’t about my job and current life, rather the journey that it had taken to get there. I was not and still do not have a high profile job or career. My life after high school took some ups and downs and winding roads. I wish someone would have been able to give me the 30,000 foot view while I was experiencing it all at ground zero. It would have been helpful to have insights and perspectives along my journey after high school. The invitation to speak to high school students and to write this series was an opportunity to fill in the gap I wish I’d had. I hope you will follow along for the next several weeks as the story unfolds. There will be tips and tidbits shared as I look back with the wisdom that only hindsight can bring. I’ll share what I would tell my younger self as I look back on the moments when I struggled with extreme anxiety, low self esteem, low confidence, feeling altogether lost, and walking through big life events such as my mom’s passing, divorce, and multiple job changes. Now is a great time to subscribe if you haven’t done so yet. Don’t miss this series! It’s packed full of actionable insight no matter where you are along your career journey.
In a recent post, I wrote about using “pocket money” for a special treat during the week. What is pocket money and why is it important? Pocket money is an amount of fun money set aside each month to use for special treats throughout the month. Pocket money can be in the form of cash you literally keep in your pocket or wallet to use for the month. Or it can be a line item in your money plan that you track to insure you spend the appropriate amount.
Do you enjoy a Starbucks coffee treat? Or maybe lunch with a friend? What about that pair of shoes you’ve been eyeing? Maybe there’s a gadget you’ve been thinking about that you’d like to try. Pocket money included in your monthly budget gives you permission to treat yourself to some fun during the month. Why is this important?
Utilizing intentional discipline with a money plan is hard. It’s intentionally flexing money muscles that may not be super strong yet. When you are working hard to save or pay off debt, it’s important to build in rewards along the way. Setting aside pocket money is a great reward system.
My husband and I set aside $100 for each of us every month. We get to spend $100 each on anything we want, no questions asked. Most of the time my $100 usually goes toward a Chick-fil-a run for an unsweetened tea with lemon. The Chick-fil-a run started during the pandemic as a way to intentionally get out of the house and see other humans. And it just kind of stuck. Here’s an example of what our pocket money looks like in our budget. We track ours electronically, however, there was a time where we used cash only for our fun money. The nice thing about cash, once it’s gone, it’s gone. You don’t have to question if you spent too much.
Pocket money has no strings attached with no guilt associated with however you choose to spend it. There are some guidelines to consider when figuring out how much pocket money you can afford.
1. Do you have a money plan in place for the month? If you do, then you will know how much income you have minus all your expenses, bills, etc. When you know how much you are spending each month, you can determine what you can afford for pocket money.
2. Pocket money is not a free for all spend category. It’s an intentional amount of fun money set aside determined by your money plan.
3. Maybe you can only afford $10 of fun money for the month. That’s ok. Get creative with how you will make that money stretch! Be intentional. Hello, thrift store!
If you have money goals to pay off debt or to save; your fun money amount might be small for a time until you pay off that debt or meet your savings goal. The key is to keep going! And rewarding yourself is absolutely necessary to help you continue moving forward. Savor the fun that you can afford for now and keep your dream in mind of what your fun, pocket money will be once you meet your money goals. Be intentional!
This week, I witnessed an intentional act to save money. On Monday around lunchtime, I was waiting in the Chick-fil-a (CFA) drive thru for an unsweetened iced tea and noticed a CenterPoint Energy truck. Side note: My husband and I set aside pocket money each month. Pocket money is intentional money set aside to spend on whatever we would like. Mine is usually spent on unsweetened tea with lemon from CFA as a treat. I make unsweetened tea at home but sometimes it’s nice to have someone else make it! Back to the story. As I was waiting in line, I noticed a young man get out of the passenger side of the work truck and walk around to the opposite side. These work trucks have so many different compartments that house all kinds of tools. I watched him as he opened one of the compartments, removed a large bag, place it on top of the truck, and then proceed to pull out a microwave! A microwave? Yes, a microwave. This certainly piqued my curiosity! What was he doing with a microwave in a work truck? I watched him as he carried it to the tailgate of the truck and place it there. Next, he brought out a portable power station bank that he used to plug in the microwave.
It’s not everyday you see a plugged-in microwave on the back of a truck. But It wasn’t just the sight of it. It was an intentional act to save money. Did I mention I was in a Chick-fil-a drive thru line? The driver of the CenterPoint Energy truck walked inside the Chick-fil-a to get his lunch while his workmate dragged out a microwave and portable power station to heat up his lunch.
I might also mention that the street the work truck was parked on was positioned by not only the CFA, but also a Burger King, a Chipotle, and a Taco Bell. He could have walked to so many options, but instead he chose to make the extra effort with his microwaved lunch.
These are EXACTLY the actions it takes to win with your money.
1. Have a strategy, such as your budget or money plan for the month.
2. Know where your gaps are, such as spending too much on eating out
3. Enable your defenders, such as bringing your lunch to work.
This young man was intentional with his time, energy, and effort. It will all pay off for the young man, especially if he continues these actions each day.
Eating out can be one of our biggest money gaps. Let’s compare a prepared meal at home to take for lunch versus eating out.
Let’s use an example of a pot of chili made at home. I’ve used this recipe many times and it is so good! It makes 6 servings. Plus, I’m adding in Jiffy Cornbread. Each ingredient I’ve included in my breakdown are all organic. Please note that this meal could be more cost effective if you source non-organic ingredients.
4 strips bacon, sliced ½-inch thick – Aldi – $2.20
1 ½ pounds ground beef – Aldi – grass fed beef – $9.86
1 medium yellow onion, diced – $0.37
1 green bell pepper, diced – $1.81
3 garlic cloves, minced – $0.18
2 tablespoon chili powder – $1.00
1 tablespoon cumin powder – $0.85
2 teaspoon paprika – $0.25
1 teaspoon dried oregano – $0.10
1 teaspoon salt – $0.02
2 tablespoon tomato paste – $0.73
1 (28-ounce can) fire roasted diced tomatoes – $3.10
1 (15-ounce can) black beans – $1.55
1 (15-ounce can) red kidney beans – $1.55
2 cups chicken bone broth – $2.59
1 bay leaf – $0.40
Jiffy Cornbread mix – $0.64
1 Egg – $0.57
½ cup milk – $0.30
Grand total: $28.07
Divided by 6 servings = $28.07/6 =$4.67 per servingof chili and cornbread
Given the quality ingredients used in the above recipe, let’s cost compare to a Chicken Burrito Bowl from Chipotle with a drink. See screenshot order below. $15.20 total for one meal
$15.20 – $4.67 = $10.53 in savings by making your food at home
If you change your behavior to making your lunch at home versus buying, you could save $10.53 per day or more. Weekly, that would be a savings of $52.65. Monthly, that would be a savings of $210.60. Yearly, that’s a savings of $2,527.20.
What would $2,527.20 extra this year do for your household? What would it pay off? What goal would that help you save toward?
How are you being intentional today with your money?
Do you have a financial or money goal for 2025? Pay off a credit card? Save for a vacation? Save for a car? Save for a medical procedure? Something else? Do you wonder why your money disappears so quickly? Do you have more month than money? It’s disheartening to work so hard for our paychecks and feel like there’s never enough money. Did you know in the 1970’s people were exposed to 500-1,600 marketing ads per day? Today, the average is estimated between 6,000-10,000 marketing ads per day. We see more than 12x more ads each day than we did 50 years ago. 🤯 That’s one indicator of why we can’t keep our money for very long and why we lose track of it. The reality is every ad you see is vying for your hard-earned dollar. Marketers are smart and they want to separate you from your money. They know how to play into your emotions and how to make you think and feel like you can’t live without a product or service. Not to mention all the data our phones collect about what we click on, how many seconds we watch or stop scrolling to see an ad. With this data, marketers can put even more pinpointed products and services in front of you in the form of ads. What do we do about it?
1. Game Plan and Defensive Strategy
When you play a game, the goal is to win. Think of this as money goals = winning. Next, to win, you need a solid defense strategy. In its basic meaning, defense means having a defender for every gap. Where are your money gaps? How do you know what they are? Once you know, you can enable your defenders.
2. Money Plan vs Actual Spending
The best tool to identify where your money gaps are is going to be…wait for it…a budget. Yes, I know! The horrible “B” word. 😉 If it feels better for you, refer to it as your money plan instead! You’re going to take a little time, set out a money plan for the month and then track what you actually spend. Then compare what your plan was versus your actual spending. This exercise will identify your gaps. Where are you overspending? Do you have enough income to cover your basics expenses?
3. Mind your Gaps
Once you know where you are overspending, then you can enable your defenders. Are you shopping too much? Defense: consider deleting your shopping apps or unsubscribing to email lists. Take away the temptation. Are you spending a lot of money on fast food? Defense: consider making sandwiches at home to take for lunch. Are you finding that you aren’t able to cover your basic expenses: housing, food, clothes, transportation? Defense: What are ways you could make more money either by side hustle or finding a job that will pay more?
It’s great to have money goals. That’s step one, establish your goal because that’s how you’ll know if you are winning. Money goal = winning. How are you going to move forward toward accomplishing your money goal? Define your game plan, identify your gaps and enable your defenders to fill in the gaps. You’ve worked hard for your money and you should keep it or at least tell it where to go instead of wondering where it went.
Our modern world 🌎 is so fast paced. The expectations are right here, right now, and on demand. Today’s modern life depicts that we can have anything and everything at the touch of a button 🔘. Consider Netflix with endless streaming options; or Amazon with a conveyor belt of products to your front door 🚪 with what your heart desires. Consider DoorDash making food options seem endless and easy. What’s wrong with having options at the touch of a button? On the surface, there’s nothing wrong with it. However, there’s a better question to ask instead: What are we missing?
How much time ⏱️ do you spend deciding what to watch on your streaming service? So. Many. Options. Anxiety creeps in about picking the wrong show or movie to watch because there might be something better if I just keep looking 👀. How much time do you spend binge watching a series? Has that box popped up on the screen asking “Are you still watching?” because the same show is still playing after watching 3 episodes. What are we missing?
Time. ⌛️
Time scrolling through too many options. Hours spent watching episode after episode. What else could you do with that time? Read a book, learn a new skill, study for a class, practice a hobby, pray, hang out with a friend or your spouse, volunteer. Are we intentionally making the decision of how we want to spend our time? Or are we allowing our time to slip away? ⌛️
What about shopping online with a business like Amazon? What are we missing?
Delayed gratification. Money. Social interactions.
Amazon is like a genie in a bottle. Make a wish for a product and it arrives lickity split except for that whole exchange of money 💵 thing. 2️⃣0️⃣ years ago, if I wanted a new shirt, I would have to plan when I would drive to the nearest mall. The next thought would be checking to see if there was a sale happening soon so my hard-earned money 💵 stretched further. I might have planned to go with a friend to make it a more enjoyable experience. 2️⃣0️⃣ years ago, I would intentionally plan when I would shop, how I would spend my money, and who I would bring along with me. All the planning and thought also meant I was delaying my gratification of getting a shirt right away. We say “no” to our children because it’s not healthy to have a piece of candy anytime they want it. Are we saying “n”o to ourselves often enough to ensure we have a healthy delayed gratification muscle? 💪
What about a service like DoorDash? What are we missing?
Cooking skills. Health. Money. Family heritage.
Beyond the excessive expense of the service, fast and processed food 🍕has eroded our health. Our bodies need nutrient dense foods 🥗. If we cooked more often at home, we would have better control of the ingredients we are putting in our bodies to nourish them well. Developing cooking skills are being limited by allowing restaurants to do it instead. Cooking is a major life and survival skill. There’s no need to be a Chef, however, everyone needs to know their way around a kitchen, how to plan a meal, and know where ingredients are in the grocery 🛒 store. What about your grandmother’s recipes 📝, something your mom or aunt always made? Is it possible that family heritage is slipping away without the knowledge, practice, and cooking skills to keep them going? Regardless, you are paying a hefty price 💲 for convenience.
Don’t get me wrong. I have a Netflix subscription, an Amazon Prime account, and I have DoorDashed on a rare occasion. These options aren’t wrong, however, it is VERY easy to slip into living your life on auto pilot. The endless scrolling, buying, and eating out because it’s easy. There’s a price 💲 to pay for convenience. There’s always a price!
One very valid argument is our busy, hectic schedules demand that we continue moving at lightening ⚡️ speed. I agree, our schedules aren’t slowing down and I would suggest using these options as measured 📏 conveniences. Measure them by being intentionally aware. Be intentional when you need to use them. Be intentional in the money 💵 you spend on convenience. Be intentional in what you are trading for your time ⌛️. Be intentional of how your decisions are impacting your health 🩺. Don’t lose yourself in the haze of busy and put your brain 🧠 on autopilot. Live the life you have to the fullest and intentionally choose what works best for you. Let’s be aware of what modern conveniences provide, how they can make our lives easier, and let’s also consider what we are missing or giving up by using them. Be intentionally intentional with your time ⌛️, money 💵, and health 🩺.
Coaching started for me when I became a fitness 💪 instructor in my late 20’s. I fell in love with fitness classes, and one of the fitness instructors I fangirled over encouraged me to get certified to teach 👩🏻🏫.
So, I did.
I LOVED ♥️ every minute of teaching, coaching, encouraging others to push past their limits, and achieve their goals 🎯. There’s something addicting about watching someone have a “light bulb💡 moment”. A moment they completed an exercise, lifted heavier weights, completed an entire class, lost the weight, got stronger, etc. All things they had told themselves they could not do.
And then…they did. I got to witness this over and over and it never got old!
Fast forward to the year 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣0️⃣, the start of the pandemic. I wasn’t instructing fitness classes anymore. Instead, I found myself working from home full time. As with many industries and corporations, 2020 was a challenging year. The oil and gas industry was no different and my corporation went through a major headcount reduction starting with executive level all the way down to hourly employees. So much was out of my control with the uncertainty of my job and with the virus. To help pass the time ⏰ and focus on something that was in my control, I completed Financial Coach Master Training, earned my certificate 📜, and became a Financial Coach.
Many may not know that I’m a nerd 🤓 when it comes to money 💵 . My undergrad degree from Mississippi State University is in Finance so you’d think that’s when the nerd came out, but it wasn’t. I’ve always been into saving money, even from my youth. It wasn’t odd for me to put on a jacket and find money in it. Money that someone gave me and I put in a pocket to save for later.
In my Junior year of college I read the Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. After reading his book 📕, I would occasionally listen to his radio 📻 talk show. It made sense. I loved that there were baby steps and I could understand it. Now, mind you, I did not follow the baby steps to a “T”. When I graduated college, I had student loans, a credit card, and a car 🚘 note.
Fast forward through a lot of life and getting remarried in my mid 30’s. We found ourselves in debt. Between tax debt, car 🚘 loan, and student loans; we owed just shy of $30,000. We followed the baby steps and got out of debt within a year’s time. Now we continue to work to pay off our house early and are aggressively saving for retirement. With the 1️⃣1️⃣ year age difference between my husband and me, I hope to retire when he does. That cuts off about 10 years of retirement contributions and savings for me, so it’s hustle time! 👊🏼 #goals
In 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣3️⃣, I became a Leadership Coach in my corporate oil and gas job. I work one-on-one with leaders with direct reports and influential leaders. Influential leaders are ones that may not have a team reporting to them, but they have many people that they must influence to deliver results and progress projects. In reality, we are all influential leaders in our jobs. During coaching sessions I help clients develop goals that we will work on together. During sessions, we talk through challenges, progress, tools 🛠️ , and potentially even new or refreshed goals. My role as a leadership coach is not to solve the problem for my clients, rather to ask ❓ the right questions , give feedback, reframe, and offer perspective that helps the client find their solution.
Anyone starting to see 👀 a theme here?
Coaching.
Regardless if it’s fitness 💪 coaching, leadership coaching, or financial 💵coaching similar skills apply. I’ve always had in inner coach within me. Especially if you’ve read my writings very much, you’ll see 👀 or read 📖 it. I’m frequently asking questions, encouraging improvement and progress, etc. What goals do you have? What are you willing to do differently to achieve them? Who is holding you accountable? What’s holding you back? What is your plan to achieve your goals?
Coaching is all about finding the answers to those questions, creating a plan to execute, and having accountability along the way.
Stay tuned, I’ll have an opening for financial coaching soon! Details to come!
Is it just me or has life become expensive? Recently on a grocery trip, I spent $55.40 for only 10 items, the majority of which were vegetables! What in the world?! When prices continue to rise and our paychecks aren’t keeping up, something must give. Ready or not, now the holidays are upon us. Maybe you don’t have money to spend on presents this year. That’s ok. Let’s explore ways we can keep costs down this holiday season.
First, if you need to scale back gift giving, let your friends and family know. Be upfront, be honest. Even if it feels vulnerable, do it anyway. Who knows, it might bring a sigh of relief to your friends and family because they are feeling the pinch too. See…your bravery in being honest has already been a gift for your friends and family!
Let’s focus on what we can do instead of what we cannot do, shall we?
1. Name drawing – everyone’s name goes into a bowl, and you draw one person in which to purchase a gift. Ground rules would need to be set, such as max dollar amount for the gift. Make sure the ground rule maker knows what your budget is to help manage expectations.
2. Potluck meals – if you are normally the host or hostess of a holiday meal, ask your guests to bring drinks, sides, desserts, appetizers, etc. This might add extra effort in organizing to cover all the bases of the meal, but organizing is FREE and the payoff is you aren’t incurring the full expense of the meal.
3. Handwritten letters – when was the last time you received a handwritten letter? When was the last time you wrote one? Texting, emails, and posts on social media are what is considered communication these days. What if you wrote a letter to your son or daughter telling them how you’ve witnessed them grow this year? What if you wrote your mom or dad a letter reminiscing about memories and how you think of them? Handwritten letters are priceless! It means that you took time out of your busy schedule and thought of them.
4. Draw/Art – do you like to doodle or have an artistic knack? Do you have access to pencils, crayons, colored pencils, markers, paint, etc.? Why not draw your friend or family member a picture? Before you dismiss this idea, it is like handwritten letters in that you took time and drew from your talents for someone special in your life. While growing up in Iuka, there was an elderly lady that was a member of the Iuka Church of Christ. I believe her name was Lenile Archer. Every birthday I received a postcard from her. On one side was a written happy birthday message and on the other side was beautiful art that she had drawn. Even as a young child, I knew how special it was to receive one of her works of art.
5. Gift certificates – not the ones that you are thinking. These gift certificates will not cost money. Who on your Christmas list is a new parent? Could you offer babysitting services to give mom or mom and dad some time for errands or a date night? Do you have a skill that someone could benefit? Do you know how to fix mechanical issues on a car? Do you know how to do simple home repairs? Know how to wash a car? Your gift certificate would be for your time and skill to help your loved one.
6. Experiences – do you know how to make a great cup of coffee? What about a signature meal or dessert? Is there someone in your life that you’d like to spend more time or catch-up with? Your great cup of coffee or dinner or dessert would be a setup for quality time with your friend or family member. Invite them over or bring your goodies to them to have great conversation and reconnect.
7. Photos – when was the last time you printed a photo? How many are on your phone? Who on your Christmas list would love to have the special moment you captured on camera either from years ago or recently? Dollar Tree has inexpensive frames last time I checked.
8. Volunteer together – as we feel like our dollars aren’t going as far as they used to, one of the best ways to move our minds off our present circumstances is to help others. There are many ways to serve our communities. Look to your local churches to serve a family in need. Look to your local animal shelters to donate your time. Visit your local nursing home to sit with someone that may not have loved ones close by anymore.
Money is a resource. Time is also a resource. Sometimes there is more and sometimes less. Look for the blessings regardless. Less money requires creativity. Think outside the gift box. You might be surprised when you don’t miss the number of presents under the tree. The time and experiences that you’ve created instead of buying them will be tucked away in your memories for far longer than the latest gadget fad. All of us have limited time with our loved ones. Many of the suggestions listed are based upon time. Time is an investment. Is fighting crowds to find a gift how you’d like to spend it? Or endless time online shopping? We only have so much face-to-face time with the people on our Christmas lists that we won’t get back. Choose and spend your scarce resources wisely.
