Weekly Update 25
The big news this week is that I am probably going to get involved in a little bit of financial coaching! I contacted the head of counseling services at my church about serving in the financial component of the premarital counseling ministry (which Kyle and I thought was great when we went through it). He suggested one-on-one meetings with engaged couples as a way to start. Then, on Saturday, I attended a 3-hour financial boot camp put on by volunteers at our church, and when I introduced myself to them after the seminar they were excited to add me to their group of counselors. I was concerned about, you know, being a layperson with no training or experience, but they didn’t seem to be. They said that 90% of what comes before them is just needing help with budgeting, which no one does professionally, so anyone who can do that in her personal life is qualified enough. So I hope to get started with that ministry soon!
Posts I Liked
My Money Design detailed a wonderful explanation of mutual funds. Definitely check it out!
Tie the Money Knot listed seven good reasons to pay with credit cards. ONLY IF YOU NEVER CARRY A BALANCE!
Amber Gilstrap from Money Under 30 listed seven solid suggestions for saving money on meals.
Kristin Wong from Get Rich Slowly explored the blurry boundary between luxuries and burdens.
iHeartBudgets shared his family’s experience of determining that they need to switch from credit cards to cash for their food expenses.
Leigh from Leigh’s Financial Journey asked how her readers’ lifestyle inflation compares to that of their peers.
Kathleen from Frugal Portland has decided to frame her financial mission in the positive terms of financial independence instead of the negative terms of debt.
Mentions
Jeremy from Modest Money included If I Were My Financial Advisor, What Would I Tell Me? in his favorite posts.
Kathleen from Frugal Portland featured If I Were My Financial Advisor, What Would I Tell Me? in her weekend link love.
Carnivals
What Do You Consider a Good Salary? was featured in the Carnival of MoneyPros.
Vacations: This or That? was featured in the Yakezie Carnival.
Super-Frugal Chicago Trip was featured in the Festival of Frugality.
One-Car Lifestyle Update was featured in Nerdy Finance #3.
Top Comment
A REAL financial advisor, Average Joe from The Free Financial Avisor, actually commented on my post If I Were My Financial Advisor, What Would I Tell Me? and reinforced that the most important first step is “clearly defining your goals” and that he would look at our retirement goal, not the percentage we’re saving, to see if we are ahead or behind.
Most Frequent Commenters
- Edward Antrobus
- Jeremy @ Modest Money
- Kathleen @ Frugal Portland
- Holly @ Club Thrifty
- Jefferson @ See Debt Run
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Thanks for mentioning the Festival of Frugality carnival. Yay!
Cheers!
Missy recently posted..Festival of Frugality Blog Carnival
Thanks Emily! That’s awesome that you get to coach others on their finances. I wouldn’t worry too much about not knowing everything. Sometimes even having an interest (or a blog) in something can give you some authority. Good luck and I hope you change some lives!
My Money Design recently posted..Weekend Wind Down 7/21/2012
After attending this boot camp I realized that I know a LOT. And because I’ve read The Total Money Makeover and listen to Dave Ramsey’s podcast, I know how that system is supposed to work as I imagine most people I see will want to implement it. In the entire 3-hour seminar, I actually only encountered 1 unfamiliar term/concept (it had to do with estate planning). And I hope knowing a lot includes knowing when the people I’m talking with need to be referred to professionals.
Thanks for the mention!
The financial counseling sounds like a great opportunity for you! I hope that goes well.
Leigh recently posted..Levels of Lifestyle Inflation
I agree that it is pretty cool that you will be helping people with their finances at your church. I think it’s the same way that non-professional personal finance bloggers have ability to help people. Just sharing your own strategies and experiences is so much easier to relate to than some textbook lessons. I’m sure you’ll do great.
Modest Money recently posted..The Carnival of Financial Camaraderie #42
Thanks for the encouragement! I think it will be hard to talk with people whose attitudes are very different from mine (and other PF bloggers) but it’s always a good experience to learn to talk with people who are unlike you – I’ve certainly learned that through my scientific education!
Nice work on the counseling gig! I would love to do it at my church, but I am currently tapped out for volunteering time (running sound). And glad you liked my post 🙂
I used to lead a high school small group but that stopped several months ago, so I’ve been looking for another ministry to plug into so this is a perfect opportunity. Kyle is being trained right now to run the soundboard at our church, actually!
That sounds like a really good use of your volunteer time. Young couples in your church are in for a treat!
Kathleen @ Frugal Portland recently posted..Jumping in
Thanks! I’m looking forward to it. I even asked for some volunteers from my small group to let me practice on them and got two!
Just came across your blog for the first time, looking forward to your posts!
DC @ Young Adult Money recently posted..3 Ways My Wife and I Save Money
Thanks! I checked out your blog but I prefer to comment just with my URL and not sign up for new accounts so I probably won’t leave any footprints there soon.
[…] for your encouragement last week on starting financial coaching through my church! This week I arranged THREE practice sessions […]