A self-made millionaire shares her recipe for success, happiness and financial freedom
From the category archives:
The traditional view of achievement assumes that results come from a combination of talent and desire. Therefore, when you fail, it must be because you are not talented enough or that you don’t want it bad enough. However, failure also occurs when talent and desire are abundantly present — but optimism is missing!
Why is optimism [...]
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How do we learn about money? 80% of parents surveyed believe that schools provide classes for their children on money management and budgeting. (source)
Sorry to break the bad news, Mom and Dad — your kiddos probably aren’t learning personal finance in school. Our school system requires English, math and science, but not a practical life-skills [...]
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Most people don’t talk openly about money. We are raised to believe that talking about money is rude, embarrassing or boastful. But where has this belief gotten us? Without open discussion, money management often becomes a mysterious and difficult task, causing strife in our relationships.
Furthermore, our children learn from our example. If we behave as [...]
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Happy Mother’s Day!
While eagerly waiting for our adoption referral from China, we gave much thought to parenting. How would we raise our daughter to be strong and independent; sensitive and thoughtful; curious and happy?
Obviously, I don’t believe money is the biggest determination of a meaningful and joyful life. Success and happiness come from within, and [...]
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In response to my recent post, Will your parents’ financial decisions leave you holding the bag?, Steve wrote,
I agree with the premise that a person’s retirement should be taken care of before saving for a child’s education, but saving enough for one’s own future seems to be a moving target.
When does a person ‘have enough [...]
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Emma Johnson from MSN Money pitched me the link to her recent article, Will you end up supporting your parents?, and I have to confess, her article brought up very uncomfortable memories for me.
15 years ago, my mom and I started having conversations about how she planned to handle her retirement. She’d admittedly not been [...]
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One of the most complicated questions I’m asked is, “How, exactly, did you do it? How did you become a millionaire?”. I find myself scratching my head and “uhmm”-ing in response, not because I don’t remember, but because it was a process rather than one identifiable event. My short answer is this: we lived below [...]
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Known to the blogosphere and on national TV as “The Millionaire Mommy Next Door”, Jen Smith went from earning minimum wage as a graveyard shift donut and coffee pusher to financial freedom as a self-made millionaire by age 40. Jen bootstrapped half a dozen small businesses while working from home in her pajamas. She learned how to invest in the stock market and in herself. Her story is more than a rags to riches story, it's a rags to a rich life story.
Now Jen is on a mission to inspire and empower others through financial education so they too can enjoy the life they want to live. Jen freely shares her recipe for success, happiness and financial freedom via writing, blogging, speaking and coaching. As part of her commitment to community, Jen pledges her blogging revenue as 0% microloans through Kiva.org to small businesses operated by working, impoverished women in developing countries.
