Paychecks & Balances | Personal Finance & Career Advice for Millennials

This week we’re welcoming back Sylvia Inks to the show! As a Personal Finance Coach and author of the book, Small Business Finance for the Busy Entrepreneur , Sylvia’s mission is to help small business owners make more money to create and grow profitable businesses. On this week’s show, Sylvia shares her productivity tips and ignites an in-depth conversation on how each of us can strategize our next steps, in order to create forward momentum towards profitability.   In this episode, you’ll hear us discuss our methods of accomplishing necessary tasks, balancing relationships and your business, and how to take control of your finances in order to level up in your career.   Highlights: Volunteering your time and practicing your presentation skills Tell people what you do. Do not be shy! Financial Advisor vs Financial Coach To- Do List Debt and Productivity Hacks The 2-Minute Rule: “If any takes two minutes…. Get it done NOW!” Accomplishing High Priority/ Non-Negotiable Tasks to break out of “paralysis by analysis” Theme your weekdays to set purpose and create momentum in your week Navigating relationships and your business schedules Determining when you can afford to hire help, for your business The different ways to pay yourself as a small business owner   Key Takeaway: The name of the game is STRATEGY. You must focus very specifically on your goals, non-negotiable tasks, and the direction you want to go in order to be successful with your small business. It’s not enough to create a list of To-Do tasks and work several hours a week. You have to deliberately accomplish high priority tasks and become financially responsible, in order to change your life.   Paychecks & Balances Website:        

Diania Merriam joins Marcus and Rich on the podcast today. Diania is the creator of EconoMe. EconoME is a one-day conference aimed at reclaiming the American Dream. The American Dream started as an idea that every person had the right to pursue his or her own idea of happiness. EconoMe is about reclaiming that right! While EconoMe has roots in the FIRE movement (Financial Independence, Retire Early), EconoME really believes that happiness comes from freedom, creativity and community. It subscribes to a new American Dream that doesn’t necessarily include excessive material possessions, conveniences or money.   In today’s episode Diania talks about her journey into getting out of $30,000 of personal debt and what gave her the motivation to pay it off by aggressively saving 60% of her income. Her debt journey and her philosophy about the American Dream led her to create EconoMe.   Highlights:   Being 8 years away from being financially independent Money Mustache, the blog that started it all for Diania Saving 60% of income to aggressively pay off debt Focusing on a goal gives you a real reason to start saving 25x your yearly expenses, the magic number for being financially independent Investing via low cost index funds Maxing out retirement accounts Planning and launching a conference   Key Takeaway: The American Dream doesn’t have to include excessive material items and money. The American Dream is really living your ideal lifestyle and working on things that you want to do, not things that you have to do.   Paychecks & Balances Website:        

Rich and Marcus are back with another freestyle episode. Today they’re doing a mid year check in and breaking down how they’re feeling mentally and emotionally in 2019, as well as touching on some career and entrepreneurial things that have been prominent in their lives as of late.   Highlights: Using moderate amounts of anxiety to help you accomplish goals Being proud of your accomplishments Expectation gaps by comparing yourself to others Journaling as part of your routine Taking a little extra time to figure things out when you get a new job Creating a user guide to help co-workers understand you Finding it difficult to enjoy the journey AND the destination It’s not about hitting all your goals its' about having goals to hit   Key Takeaway: Your mental state has everything to do with dominating your career and building solid relationships with friends and family.   Paychecks & Balances Websites:

On the show today we welcome Tori Dunlap of “Her First 100k”. Tori is a financial advocate who educates millennial women and other underserved communities on financial literacy. She’s on track to save her first 100k by before her 26th birthday and has made it her mission to help others pay off debt, save, invest and get their money right so they can be in the driver seat of their life.                                                                                       Her father taught her about money from the age of 9 when he helped her start her first company, a vending machine business. It was this experience that kick started her savings account and her entrepreneurial drive. Some years later, after getting her college degree she began to see her female friends get paid less than their male counterparts and miss out on career opportunities because of being female. She knew she had to fight back.   In this episode Tori talks to us about her financial upbringing, her business, her financial philosophies and her passion for disrupting the current financial ecosystem that is overwhelmingly dominated by older, straight, white males.   Highlights: Owning 15 vending machines by the end of high school Growing up with privilege Take that loose change to the bank, avoid Coinstar machines A crash course in marketing after landing a huge job outside of college Becoming a financial advocate for the underserved Landing a job when you don’t meet the requirements The relationship between privilege and money Getting ahead financially in a system that wasn’t built for you The guilt and shame surrounding money Priority based spending Automating your savings Not getting credit for your success   Key Takeaway: A lot of the current financial guru’s aren’t in touch with the financial issues of the millennial generation. It’s our job to make our voice heard and disrupt their antiquated financial advice.   Paychecks & Balances Websites:              

Today on Paychecks & Balances, we freestyle! This episode is all about entering back into the job search world and the trials and tribulations that come with that. Both of us decided recently to make a career shift and today we share our stories with you. Whatever your case may be: whether your current role isn’t a good fit, you want to pivot in your career, or need to feel truly challenged, the first step is putting yourself out there. And that’s terrifying! But with a little preparation, realistic expectations and unbreakable stride, this job search could have you become a stronger, more confident version of yourself. In this episode, we discuss the advantages of “internal mobility” within a company, how you can prepare aggressively for your next job interview and what happens when things don’t go according to plan during a job search.   Highlights:   Using everything to your advantage during a job search The pros of internal mobility Cover letter tips and key points to focus on LinkedIn Learning Courses Prepare 10x for your next interview/ skip the mock interview Seeking that sensation of “truly feeling challenged” Challenging the perception of yourself The differing perspectives on job happiness   Key Takeaway: Getting clear about why you want a new job or that career change is critical when entering the great unknown of job searching. Luckily, passion and preparation are two major assets you can arm yourself with when beginning this journey.   Paychecks & Balances Website: