I often analogize financial planning to dieting and exercise (as if financial planning isn’t unappealing enough already). The pain and effort comes now and the benefits come later. Both are also the subject of numerous New Year’s Eve resolutions that are cast aside by Groundhog’s Day. Continue reading “How Financial Fitness is Like Physical Fitness”
I visited my doctor recently for a routine physical. I’m entitled to a physical once a year through my insurance, so I make sure to take advantage of this benefit. When I visit the doctor’s office, he usually asks me if I am experiencing any particular ailments or symptoms, to which I usually reply “Not really, I feel pretty healthy.” Nevertheless, my doctor checks my blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, weight, and other vital signs. I’m glad he does this, because while I may FEEL fine, the reality is that there may be something going on inside of me that I am not aware of. Continue reading “How’s Your Financial Health?”
I’ve just returned from a girl’s weekend vacation with a group of 5 friends who I have known for ages, a few going back as far as elementary school. Now we share pictures of grandkids who are about the same age as when some of us first met. Since I’m the number cruncher, I got the task of tallying up the tip and dividing the bill when we went out for a meal, and when the conversation turned to buying new homes or college costs, I was always asked to weigh in with my “professional opinion.” Continue reading “Yes, I’m A Finance Geek”
The week of October 7-13 marks the 12th annual Financial Planning Week that was designed by the Financial Planning Association to create awareness of the importance of having a personal financial plan. In the spirit of promoting a profession that we love, the Resident Financial Planners at Financial Finesse will be writing about our experiences providing workplace financial education. Continue reading “The Life and Times of a Financial Educator”
I read this article about how we are working fewer hours now than prior generations and we have more “leisure time” than prior generations too. At first, I was thinking that the article was absolutely wrong. I know that I spend way more than the 33.7 average hours per week in this report. Most of my friends do as well. With our smartphones receiving emails and text messages from coworkers, along with the other technological tethers that many of us live with, it seems like we work all the time. Continue reading “Perception vs. Reality”
This article caught my eye as I was doing some Internet surfing and really…. how couldn’t it? How many times do you get to read a story about a runaway llama? I know that for me, it’s a first. Continue reading “Do You Need a Taser For Your Inner Llama?”
One of my friends sent me this article about credit scores impacting a job search to ask my opinion. And, he confided in me that this is probably a part of the reason that his wife has been unable to find work for nearly two years and has just about given up on her quest to find another job. This is a very troubling trend in the workplace and all too often good people are being denied the opportunity to work in this dreadful economy that just hasn’t produced robust job growth. Continue reading “Is Your Credit Score Hurting Your Job Prospects?”
Wow! Sometimes words can’t adequately express just how awestruck (and not always in a good way) I am when I read about the financial choices that some people make. When that happens, all I can say is “Wow!” And this story definitely has me Wowing… 
Continue reading “Financial Progress Comes From Changing Our Behavior”
Here we go again! Yet another celebrity has filed for bankruptcy. Dionne Warwick owes over $10 million in accrued penalties and interest from back taxes along with other debts and this combination of debts drove her to insolvency. (Couldn’t her psychic have warned her about this???) She has an income of $21,000 per MONTH and expenses to match plus, lots of debt on top of that! Hey, with that kind of financial track record we should send her to DC as a member of Congress. If it sounds like I’m a bit less than sympathetic here, it might be because my initial reaction is one of frustration. Here’s why: Continue reading “Another Celebrity Bankruptcy…”
America Saves Week is an annual opportunity for organizations to promote good savings behavior and a chance for individuals to assess their own saving status. We are one month away from this year’s kickoff on February 25, 2013, which is the start of the 7th annual event. The Week is coordinated by America Saves and the American Education Savings Council, which is a program of the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Research Fund. Typically, over 2,000 organizations participate in the Week, reaching millions of people. Continue reading “Plan Now For Next Month’s America Saves Week”
Whenever I facilitate a financial education workshop for employee groups, I always encourage the attendees to ask questions that come to mind – no matter how basic or odd they may think the question is. I promise them that there are no silly questions, and I’ve heard quite a few that prove employees are hungry for financial education. As a financial planner, a benefits specialist, HR representative, or payroll manager, sometimes it is easy to forget that what we talk about every day can seem like a foreign language to your workforce. Here are a few examples: Continue reading “There REALLY Is No Such Thing As A Silly Question When It Comes To Financial Education”
No matter how much financial education you provide to your workforce, ultimately it is up to your employees themselves to alter their financial bad habits and focus on improving their financial well-being. It all starts with creating a culture of accountability, according to best-selling author Roger Connors. I was fortunate to pick up a free copy of his book Change the Culture, Change the Game a few months ago at the SHRM Annual Expo in Atlanta. Although some of you might disagree, one of the things I like most about attending these conferences is the ability to visit all the vendors’ booths, find out what’s new in the benefits arena, and best of all, collect the freebies and giveaways. At one of the booths, Roger Connors was autographing his latest book, where he outlines a breakthrough strategy for energizing your workforce and creating accountability for results. Continue reading “Can You Change Your Workforce Culture to Increase Their Financial Wellness?”
On the final day of the ISCEBS Symposium held this past month in San Francisco, Adam Wootton, Ph.D. with Towers Watson, kicked in the fun factor during his morning session on Using Games to Increase Employee Education. It was obvious that Adam loves his job as Director of Social Media and Games, and he shared some very interesting facts about gaming in the U.S. It was no surprise that 2/3s of American households play computer games, but what did amaze me was that 40% of all players are women and that adult women represent a greater portion of the game-playing population than boys age 17 or younger (which is what I envision as the typical gamer). Actually, the average gamer is 34 years old and has been playing for 12 years. Now, when I think about online games, what comes to mind is Angry Birds or World of Warcraft, which so far I have avoided getting hooked on. But what surprised me was that frequent flyer programs can also be considered games since members accumulate points, you can win prizes, and there are the status goals of reaching gold or platinum levels. So what does this have to do with helping your employees? Continue reading “Can You Game Your Employees To Take Action?”
As financial wellness becomes more of a common component to workplace wellness programs, many smaller employers are considering the cost sharing aspect of bringing financial guidance to their employees. With tight budgets, some CEOs view the ability to meet with a financial planner during working hours as a perk that employees should be happy to pay for. But are they willing? Continue reading “Should (and Would) Employees Pay for One-on-One Financial Guidance in the Workplace?”
In just 3 weeks from now, I’ll be traveling to Atlanta for this year’s SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition, which takes place June 24 to June 27. In addition to this year’s entertainer, Jerry Seinfeld, there are so many opportunities to learn what’s new and cutting edge in the HR field, from practical tips to innovation in HR to motivating people. I’m excited to be able to share my own experience in the field of financial wellness, and I’ll be speaking about Health and Wealth: Adding Financial Wellness to Your Wellness Program on Monday, June 25. Using a case study of a Fortune 500 company that has been embedding financial wellness within their wellness program for the past few years, I’ll be revealing the results of an ROI analysis and sharing best practices for financial education. Continue reading “Meet Me in Atlanta”
A while back I had the opportunity to do what most college kids and moms with extra-large comforters find themselves doing. I was a frequent-flyer member of my local laundromat.
I was in the process of having a laundry room put in at my house. Great news, except that instead of having the convenience of working from my desk while my laundry churned away, I was going to have to haul my laundry elsewhere. No problem, I thought. I will tough it out. The project was set to be completed in 2-3 months’ time. Continue reading “What $40 and a Basket of Dirty Laundry Taught Me”
Physical wellness is a much easier concept to understand than financial wellness but they are actually intertwined together since finances are the leading cause of stress and stress is the leading cause of illness. This hit me this week because I decided to try something new (that’s my New Year’s resolution — try 52 new things) so I went to a yoga class called Yin Yoga. Continue reading “Financial Wellness: Getting Started by Taking it from Concept to Practice”
America Saves Week 2011 is scheduled for February 20 to the 27th. What have you planned to encourage your employees to take financial action through saving, debt reduction, and wealth building?
The American Savings Education Council (ASEC) first piloted America Saves Week in 2007, with the goals of:
