Talking Finances Can be Fabulous

It’s a subject that I never feel comfortable talking about; money. I’ve never been good at making budgets or sticking to the ones that I have made. This year I’ve made it one of my goals to be more money conscious, not only for my sake, but for my family’s sake.

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending an event at the fabulous Warren Tricomi Salon on Madison Avenue hosted by GoGirl Finance, a company that helps women find confidence when dealing with money and Manisha Thakor. It was a night full of blow outs, manicures, and great financial advice from Personal Finance Expert and Author, Manisha Thakor.

I love to get my hair and nails done, eat healthy, and take care of myself, but I’ve never thought an aspect of that would be taking care of myself financially. It is.

Manisha gave us a witty and down to earth lesson that being financially savvy is sexy too. She broke down her financial tips into four categories: Love & Money, Saving for the Future, Estate Planning and Insurance, and Self Employment.

Love & Money

Couples who fight about money at least once a week are 30% more likely to get a divorce than other couples. If you are anything like me, money wasn’t on my top priority list of things to talk about when MacKay and I were dating. I am very lucky that he is financially smart and does his absolute best to prepare our family for what we need in the future, but he didn’t necessarily hit the finance savvy jackpot when he married me.

Manisha emphasized that it is extremely important that we are on the same page financially with our spouse. Don’t be afraid to “talk money with your honey” as she called it.

Money is a popular topic in our household, especially with baby number two on her way very soon. I’ve learned that the more honest and open you are about finances with your spouse, the more likely you are able to work together in doing what’s best for your family financially in the future.

Saving for the Future

The three most powerful words in finance are, “Start Saving Now.” If you start saving money in your twenties and thirties, you will have significantly more money than if you start saving later in life.

If you LOVE to shop as much as I do, why don’t you sit down and think about what those new pair of shoes are really costing you. Find out how much money you make in an hour (take your yearly income and divide it by 2000, which is the average number of hours we work in a year.) How many hours of work will it take you to splurge on that new pair of shoes? Are they really worth the time and energy you spent working your butt off?

That one analogy Manisha used put everything into perspective for me. I’ve never thought of money or the things I buy that way. Maybe that new top that will probably be out of season next year wasn’t worth it after all.

Estate Planning and Insurance

Planning for this isn’t one of the most fun parts of financial planning, but it is one of the most important, especially if you have children. Manisha suggested that you should at least have: a medical power of attorney, a will, life insurance, disability insurance, and umbrella liability.

Be sure to keep in mind that when purchasing life insurance you should be saving 5-10 times your annual income and even more the younger your children are.

It’s scary to think that I don’t think I have any of those and have never even thought about it either. The time to get on it is NOW!

Self-Employment

This was particularly interesting to me because within the last year I have established a little business for myself doing social media consulting. While currently managing three companies, I’ve never stopped to think if I am protecting myself from my personal and professional finances.

Manisha emphasized that there needs to be boundaries set for both and setting up an LLC is easy and can even be set up in seconds online (she suggested Legalzoom.)

Yes, talking money might not be one of the most interesting or glamorous things to talk about, but it is super important. As someone who thinks of herself as financially incompetent, hearing Manisha speak and attending this GoGirl Finance event was a major wake up call that I really need to think about my future more. Not only physically and mentally, but financially as well.

After all, being financially prepared makes for a pretty fabulous future!

Thank you to Jill Seiman of Glamamom for throwing such a fabulous event. And thank you to the fabulous team at GoGirl Finance and Manisha Thakor for opening my eyes to the world of financial security!

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. I just think that this is important for all women to know! I did receive a gift bag from the event.

Photos courtesy of Rebecca Weiss Photography