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How Outsourcing Can Improve Your Life
Grocery shopping. Cooking dinner. Washing (and folding, ugh) the laundry. Mowing the lawn. Some call them chores, others adulting, but the simple truth is that they are necessities for most people. When you are trying to balance growing your business (or career), family, and friends, they often create conflicts that lead to stress and dissatisfaction. Friends of ours who both own businesses know the secret to interrupting the vicious cycle of working or doing chores until they go to bed. They simply replicate what they do at work – they hire competent people to do the things they can't or don't like to do at a pay rate that's less…
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How To Boost Your Credit Score
“Bad Credit? No Credit? No problem, your job is your credit!” scream shady used-car salesmen. Unfortunately, that’s not true. Bad credit is a problem. It makes your life more expensive in the form of higher interest rates on loans. Bad credit can make it harder for you to rent an apartment and can even keep you from getting your dream job. Your credit score is a widely misunderstood measure of your cash flow health and financial habits. It’s possible to have a great credit score and terrible overall financial health and vice versa. Credit scores range from 300 to 850, the higher your score is, the better. The way your…
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How to KonMari Your Spending
I love Marie Kondo's book "The Life Changing Method of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing." I'll be honest, my home is still a little cluttered but I do periodically go through and try to pare down my belongings. I just went through my old work clothes this week. Wow. There were a lot of items I felt I "needed" to hold on to "just in case" that in reality, I never wear anyways! Did you know that you can use the same KonMari method to "declutter" your spending? We all spend money on things, food, and experiences that really don't bring us lasting joy. In fact,…
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How Will The Tax Cuts & Jobs Act Affect Families?
Wondering how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) will affect your taxes next year? The tax law will affect families in a myriad of ways. While there were a variety of changes made that affect everyone, this post will focus on the ones that are most impactful to families with kids. Keep in mind that many of these provisions are set to expire in 2025, but this will at least give you something think about as you move through 2018. Tax Rates Were Reduced Tax rates were reduced for all brackets except for the lowest bracket, which remains at 10% of taxable income. There was some shifting…
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6 Things To Do With Extra Cash
Whether it's a stimulus check or a tax refund many people will soon have some extra cash on hand. I don’t know about you, but when I find myself in the fortunate position of receiving some extra money from a bonus or tax refund, my first instinct is to get Chinese take-out. Probably not the greatest financial move. While I’m probably not alone there, our instincts aren’t always our best guide. It helps to pause and be more intentional with unexpected cash. Sometimes our instincts are good, but not always. Unfortunately, when it comes to financial decisions, our instincts don’t always lead us in the right direction. How can you…
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Eating Healthy on a Budget: Pro-tips from a Pro-Athlete
Guest Post! I'm very excited to bring you a guest post on eating healthy, real food while on a budget from Brandon Hudgins an elite middle distance runner with Sketchers Performance. Brandon is also connected with AthleteBiz a non-profit 501(c)3 organization that connects world-class track and field athletes with fans. Check out the bottom of the post for more information on Brandon and AthleteBiz!Are you trying to eat healthier food? Are you worried that eating healthy food might stretch your budget? If you are just now making the switch to healthy eating, you might be scared of spending more money, or scared that you can never eat things you enjoy…
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Is an HSA Right for Me?
Should you take advantage of an HSA? Many people sign up for a high deductible healthcare plan (HDHP) either at work on the exchange but don’t realize that these healthcare plans work best when paired with a healthcare savings account (HSA). An HSA is triple tax-preferred. What the heck does that mean? It means you can save on taxes three ways: You can take a deduction against your income on your taxes or make pre-tax contributions through your payroll provider. Money contributed to an HSA grows tax-free while inside the HSA. Money withdrawn for qualified medical expenses (as defined by the IRS) is tax-free. Want to know more about the…
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Do I Qualify for Public Student Loan Forgiveness?
Student loans are the bane of many young professionals’ existence. I have worked with several physicians with $200,000-300,000 in student loan debt. Fortunately one of these physicians met the 4 requirements for Public Student Loan Forgiveness. Which means that if he continues working for a qualified employer and makes 120 on-time qualified payments on his Federal Direct student loans, via a qualified income based repayment plan, a good portion of that debt could be erased. Tax-free. There are 4 important requirements you must meet to qualify for Public Student Loan Forgiveness and to stay qualified until your remaining loan balances are actually forgiven. Today we’ll go over four things you…
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Maximize Your Salary: How to handle the question every job seeker hates!
There's one question all job seekers hate- "what is your current salary?" If you are interviewing for a new job I have some good news - in some areas of the U.S. this question is illegal. Unfortunately, a lot of job seekers are still going to have to deal with this tricky question. This question really bothers me and as a Certified Financial Planner Professional I want to help my clients not only grow the money they have already saved but maximize what may be their largest asset - their earning power! With that in mind, I spoke with two of my friends who are truly HR rockstars having built…
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Hidden 401(k) Loan Risks to Your Career and Finances
Getting hit with a cash crunch is stressful. What should you do if you need quick access to cash? For many of us who have been working and saving in our 401(k)s, that pot of money can be very tempting. Let’s be honest - 401(k) loans can be relatively cheap and easy to get. They’re kind of like the fast food version of loans. And just like fast food, 401(k) loans can seem like a good idea at first, but they can quickly lead to heartburn. What you really need to know: there are some serious risks involved with tapping a 401(k). There are two major risks you…
