About
Our wish for you
Understand what matters to you
Life is busy. We don't always have time to stop and take stock. To ask ourselves - "What matters most?" and "Is this the life I want?"
As you read the articles on our site, we hope you take time to reflect. Where you can, make changes to get closer to the life you want. Even small changes make a big difference in the long term.
Know that you have what it takes
"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can" - Arthur Ashe
We know managing money can be confusing, overwhelming and intimidating. There is a lot of noise and not enough straight talk. Know that you have what it takes. You can start from wherever you are. Take the first step - the rest will be much easier.
Achieve financial success
Financial success means different things to each of us. For some, it is being able to afford the life we want. For others, it is a paid off house, emergency savings or enough money to retire. However you define financial success, we want to make it easier for you to get there.
Meet our founder
Background
I have a BA in Economics from Princeton University, an MBA and MA in Education from Stanford University and over 15 years experience in financial services and management consulting.
My friends describe me as:
“a travel loving foodie”
“an avid reader of many things from financial statements to Jane Austen novels“
“a great listener“
I am most passionate about education, capability building and helping people achieve financial success. I am happiest spending time with family and friends, eating good food or going to concerts and shows.
Neka
My money story - how I went from $26K to $1M in 5 years
In my early 20s, I didn’t think about money. I made $30K to $45K a year and took pay cuts to work at jobs I found interesting. I saved a little in my 401K but not much else.
When I was 28 and in business school, a prof asked us to write down what we really wanted to do and what scared us. We had to think of countermeasures for each of our fears.
I wanted to start my own business. I realized my biggest fear was not having enough money if an emergency happened like a family member getting sick.
My net worth then was $26K. I wrote down 3 countermeasures
- Get a job after business school that pays at least $150K
- Save and invest money to get to $500K by 35 and $1M by 40
- Start a business in my 40s after building a nest egg to handle any emergency
In 2017, I started my job after business school at age 30 earning $150K. Fast forward 5 years to 2021 and my net worth was over $1M.
Here are the 5 things that helped me go from $26K to $1M in 5 years
- Make more money – In 2009, I made $41K and saved $7K – about 17% of my salary. In 2017, I made $150K and saved $70K – about 47% of my pay. When you make more money, it is easier to save more money.
- Save as much as you can while enjoying your life – It’s challenging to continue saving if you’re not enjoying your life. I kept money aside to travel, explore new restaurants with friends, and attend shows. Aside from that, I saved as much as I could. I made it easy to save and difficult to withdraw.
- Invest for the long term – When you invest for the long term, you pick investments that keep their value over time, and you leave your investments alone to grow. You worry less when the market goes down. For example, in 2022, the market went down, and my net worth fell to $920K. I feel no concern. I won’t withdraw that money for the next 10-30 years, so its value today is unimportant. Between now and 2053, the market will go up.
- Use credit cards only for points – Credit cards are one of the most expensive types of debt. Most investments earn you 3% to 10% annually. Credit cards charge 16% to 25% annually. I use my credit cards to get points to spend on travel. I pay off my balance in full every month.
- Keep it simple – I tried many different things when I first started investing. Now I keep it simple. Focusing on just a few things reduces the complexity of investing and helps you get more from the limited time and attention we have in our busy lives.
Editorial promise
We want you to achieve financial success
We believe in the 80/20 rule - 20% of your actions produce 80% of the results. We write about the 20% that will have the most impact. Our goal is to make the 20% simple and actionable so you achieve financial success.
Independent
We recommend strategies and companies based on our experience or an independent evaluation. We are transparent about how we arrive at our recommendations. Our opinions are our own.
Strategies backed by real world experience, data and research
Our writers have real world experience in saving, building credit, making money and investing. We back up our experience with data and research
See our privacy policy, terms, and disclosures page for more information.