I was raised by a very smart, independent mother. Although her and my dad were married for 20 years and she was a stay at home mom before divorcing, she taught me life lessons that all woman should follow:

1. Go to school, no one can take away your education
   1. My story- graduated with a bachelors in Computer Information
      Systems at age 37
   2. My 4 year old and a 2 year old went to night classes with me
   3. Doesn’t matter how long it takes or how difficult keep at it
2. No job is beneath you
   1. My story- starting out at 14 working in the fields topping corn
   2. I was 4 foot 2 and couldn’t reach the tassels but they found me a job
   3. I learned a valuable lesson that hard labor was NOT what I wanted to do in life
3. Never depend on a partner for financial support
   1. My story- I have NEVER not had a job (or at times 2 or 3) that allowed me to pay my own bills
   2. Sometimes I didn’t know how I was going to eat and pay my bills so I worked at food places (figure it out)
   3. A partner (man or woman) should be a companion who helps in the process but you should not depend on anyone else to take care of you
      1. What if they leave, what you gonna do then?
      2. This ensures you are self-sufficient and self-aware
   4. If you need help don’t be too proud to ask for it
      1. Example: the Wic program provided milk for my young boys for a year at no cost
   5. Create a budget and use the envelope system (Dave Ramsey tells you how to do this today but my mom did this before Dave was born)
      1. My story- I have a spreadsheet that shows where every dollar of my money goes every payday
      2. A meal plan will save you hundreds of dollars because you actually plan your lunch and dinner rather than guessing every day what to eat and you shop for only those ingredients
      3. The meal plan we created when our boys were at home saved us over $400 a month in groceries
      4. Put money away for emergencies- it will happen and items do break even if it’s 10 a week, the dog will get sick and the car will need new tires
      5. Plan for fun- put money away to reward yourself for doing great- date night, movie, or even a pedicure, it doesn’t have to be big but budget for it then you’re not mad when there’s nothing left at the end of the month
   6. Don’t finance if at all possible and never lease
      1. My story- I am still a work in progress on this one
         • We all know cars are not cheap and most of the time we can’t afford what we want to drive
         • Never buy a new vehicle, always buy used so someone else pays the depreciation

1. It is possible to find great used cars with low miles at a very discounted price and don’t be afraid to ask for a lower price
   • Dealerships are in business to make money and they have some wiggle room regardless of what they tell you
   • As a woman you need to do your research because salesmen think you are stupid (sorry but true) so when you go in with nada book values and fair market pricing they can’t help but talk to you differently
   • My husband in 28 years has never bought any of our vehicles because I love the satisfaction of getting a good deal (he usually leaves when the money talk starts, and don’t be afraid to walk away)
2. I have made up my own rule on this one, if you have to finance make double payments and try to pay the car off in 1 year or 2 at the most

• When you lease you are making rent payments essentially and never gaining ownership of anything and the interest charges would make you pass out if you knew what they are

6. Make a vision board not resolutions
   1. My story- I cut out pictures, quotes, or anything else I want to accomplish each year
      • These can be goals, wants, needs, anything really
      • Post them on a bulletin board and be specific about what you want to achieve
      • Put it in a place you see it everyday
        1. Mine is on the wall by the bed in my room

1. This puts it out in the universe and helps it come to fruition
   • Don’t believe it try it what do you have to lose
   • I did this with my son’s house and his starter home was almost identical to the photo I had on my board
2. If everything isn’t done at the end of the year that’s ok but I guarantee it will be more than you ever thought was possible without it

Make 2017 Great