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By Sarah Li Cain 13 Comments

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6 Best Personal Finance Books That Will Change Your Life

Books saved my life when I was at a really low point in my life, especially my bank account. It’s amazing how you can get years of advice within just a few days (depending on how fast you can read).

My love of reading didn’t develop as just a habit, it was necessary to get me on the path to financial freedom. What I didn’t know at the time was that it nursed me back to health, spiritually, physically, financially and emotionally.

I want so badly for it to be the same for you too. You deserve to be healthy. You deserve to have all the riches in the world. And most importantly, you deserve to lead a life that fills you with purpose and ultimately lead to unlimited happiness.

Here are a list of 6 best personal finance books I’ve personally read that will really help you change your mind about what’s possible with your money. [Read more…] about 6 Best Personal Finance Books That Will Change Your Life

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Simple Ways to Develop Better Money Habits

Thanks Lily for asking today’s question:

Hi Sarah, I’m really bad at developing better money habits and making them stick. I want results right away, then I just get so impatient and frustrated and I just want to give up. Do you have any suggestions for me?

There are things that I use on a daily basis to reassess my habits all the time. It sounds to me like you know that having a really good solid foundation by having better money habits is really what’s going to get you on your way to a better financial future. Good for you!

I have three tips for you: [Read more…] about Simple Ways to Develop Better Money Habits

By Sarah Li Cain 4 Comments

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Rebecca Was Forced to Pay Her Parent’s Bills – Here’s Her Story

Sarah here. I was approached by this young yet totally mature lady about her experiences growing up and taking care of her family since she was a young child. I’m not talking about being a caregiver in the traditional sense, she was actually doing all the bills and such even though her parents worked and was physically fine!

The following was told in her own words which I transcribed.

When I was kid, I was the one who ran the household. In the strict Asian family I come from, usually the females end up taking care of everything. So that fell to me.

I wasn’t the oldest which made it weird. But by the time my mom remarried again and we moved, my siblings and half-brothers and half-sisters had moved out, so I was the oldest one in the house. It was a really weird transition and I remember helping out with my younger siblings and new ones too that were my stepfathers. [Read more…] about Rebecca Was Forced to Pay Her Parent’s Bills – Here’s Her Story

By Sarah Li Cain 7 Comments

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Women, It’s Time to Rise Up and Own Your Financial Prowess

No offense men, but this post is for all the ladies in the house.

Now let me get to the point ladies: stop shying away from your money. Own your financial prowess. Own your power. Own your life and how money is a tool to achieve everything you dream of.

I’m not talking about the wage gap here. I’m talking about the lack of confidence around our finances. It’s all about the messages women receive and tell themselves about whether or not they can thrive financially.

I know that there are situations out of our control. Or we have so much and feel guilty that others have so little. Stop it. Just stop it.

We need to rise up and help each other out. [Read more…] about Women, It’s Time to Rise Up and Own Your Financial Prowess

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How Joseph Beat One of the Worst Investment Mistakes

Joseph is one of the smartest people I know, and when he asked me to share his money story, how could I not? If you’re intimidated about investing (I used to be one of those people) you’ll want to read his story.

I lost thousands of dollars on one of the worse investment mistakes but learned a valuable lesson that can help your nest egg grow

I don’t usually share exactly how much I lost on this money mistake but it was nearly five-digits…so yeah, a mistake I don’t want to make again.

It’s one many other beginner investors make yet few ‘experts’ seem willing to help solve the problem. It’s probably because those supposed investing experts directly benefit as investors pay millions in fees and drive advertising dollars.

My own money story is a roller coaster and a little embarrassing for someone that has since become an investment analyst but one that I wanted to share so others don’t make the same mistake.

By Sarah Li Cain 3 Comments

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Getting Rid of Stuff: Why It’s So Surprisingly Emotional

Once you’ve figured out your finances, that’s it right?

Wrong.

As someone who has been knee-deep in learning to love my finances for a very long time, I still haven’t figured it all out yet.

If someone out there says they do, run far far away from them.

Let’s be honest here. Figuring out your personal finances is an ongoing process. Always. Just because a budget or a spending plan works for you now, doesn’t mean it’ll work for you down the line. Life happens.

Take me for example, I thought I had wrapped my head around the whole emotional side of spending. I have had no desire to purchase frivolous items and have said no to quite a few people because I knew I would end up spending obscene amounts of money around them.

Not the case at all.

When I moved back from living in China for the past 8 years, I had to face a whole new set of challenges. Adjusting to a career which involves staying at home with my son all day. Still being away from friends and family. The exhaustion that came with moving, including where to store, move and ship all those items.

And let’s talk about all that stuff shall we?

That was what got my emotions around finances in a tizzy. [Read more…] about Getting Rid of Stuff: Why It’s So Surprisingly Emotional

By Sarah Li Cain 5 Comments

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How Melanie Overcame $100,000 Worth of Student Loans

Hey peeps! I’m excited to feature my friend Melanie from the blog Dear Debt and her experience with crippling student loan debt and how she overcame it. She also has a book out which I’m devouring right now. Go ahead and check it out!

I got into $81,000 in student loan debt. I borrowed $23,000 for my undergraduate degree and $58,000 for my graduate degree from NYU. With interest, I probably paid closer to $100,000. I went to California State University Long Beach for my undergrad, which was fairly affordable, but NYU was my “dream school” — a very expensive, private school.

For so long, I believed what everyone told me: that student loans were the “good debt.” I thought education was worth it at any price. I was shocked that I got into NYU and had always wanted to live in New York, so it was really easy for me to justify taking on those student loans to make that dream happen.

At the time, I was confident about my life after graduation and thought I’d be able to pay back my loans easily. Unfortunately, that wasn’t really the case.

I had a moment of debt denial shortly after graduation [Note: In case you didn’t know, debt denial is when you don’t acknowledge your debt and pretend it’s not there. Melanie’s story of debt denial is unfortunately too normal for many of us, and if you read her book and are in debt, you may see yourself in her shoes.].

I signed up for Mint.com and synced all my student loans, income and expenses. I was shocked to find out that after five years of making minimum payments, I still had $68,000 left. Seeing that number in black and white made me nauseous.

By Sarah Li Cain 6 Comments

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Are You Victim to These 4 Money Blocks?

You feel like you’re just not getting it. You work hard, you pinch pennies, and yet, you’re not getting ahead. Or you’re telling yourself things like “I’ll be successful when…” or “If only I had the money I would…”

Yeah, been there done that. It sucks. It really sucks. Caught in this vicious cycle of endless struggling and thinking you’d never make it with your finances.

What I was doing was creating money blocks. And believe me when I say that everyone (yes, everyone) experiences these. And no matter how successful or well-off you are, different money blocks will come up.

Take me as an example. I went from being in credit card debt to saving about half my income in less than three years. And when I had opportunities to earn more, I resisted it. So much so that it took a few more years for me to finally realize that I had to get better at negotiating. Now that I’m my own boss, I still struggle with money blocks.

Like the saying goes, the first step to change is awareness. So take a look at some of the following money blocks and see if you exhibit any of them.

By Sarah Li Cain 6 Comments

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How One Couple Lost Their Next Egg and Successfully Retired

Let’s say you have about a million dollars in your bank account. The next day, it all disappeared.

After you stop freaking out, what would you do? Would you find out who is to blame? Or find a way to make all that money back again? How can you make it all back and still feel like you’ve successfully retired?

This situation is exactly what happened to both Dan Robertson* and Steve Schullo. They managed to lose about $1.5 million, but gained it all back in a few short years. The amazing feat was that they were both teachers (think average salary) and Dan was retired when this all happened. They’re now both happily retired, and enjoying their life in California.

Their key to gaining it all back? They were both comfortable with their financial mistakes.

By Sarah Li Cain 22 Comments

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The Time I Quit My Job With No Backup Plan

I still remember the soulless cubicle the day I left it. All photos of friends and family were taken down, company documents were piled in a neat stack, and the push pins on the cork board were arranged into a star.

My name tag was off around my neck. I looked around and stuck it promptly under the pile of documents. I pushed in the chair and never walked back.

There was simply an email written to my supervisor that I quit my job and letting her know why I wasn’t coming back on Monday. I made sure to turn off my phone that weekend so none of my coworkers would call, asking what happened.

Oh, did I mention I had no job to go to the following week after I quit my job, or any plans on how I would earn a living?