About

I am a financial coach. My goal is to inspire you to reach for financial achievements that align with your vision for the future, and motivate you to educate yourself on financial matters so you can be better equipped to reach those goals. I will share what I have learned and the resources I have used to obtain information with the hope that you will become a student of the things that are important to you.

I am certified through AFCPE® as an Accredited Financial Counselor. My knowledge and skills have been acquired through intensive training and continued education as well as my love of reading books, blogs, listening to podcasts and webinars, taking classes, consulting with those who know much more than me, and my personal experience with utilizing these tools and helping others do the same. I continue to read and learn as I write these pages and consider myself a lifelong student.

It wasn’t until recently that I was introduced to FIRE, an evermore popular movement, it seems. It stands for Financial Independence Retire Early. I was intrigued and started reading books, watched documentaries, listened to podcasts, subscribed to newsletters and started asking questions.

Although I am a late starter at 43 years old, it may still be possible for me to accomplish this. Maybe not very early, but earlier than I would have, and with more stability than a reliance on social security, which may or may not be available by the time I get to that point.

But for me, the focus is on freedom. It’s not about becoming wealthy. It’s about putting myself in a position financially where I have the freedom to pursue the endeavors that are on my heart, to give with generosity, and to find contentment with what I have.

The books and blogs I have come across tend to focus on what this journey looks like for someone in a very different position than myself and many others I know. A lot of the stories I’ve come across are from folks who have a much higher income or are much closer to their goals and so there is less focus on the beginning stages for someone with much less, and starting so late.

As someone in recovery, it is on my heart to help others who, like me, found their way out of the ashes with no idea how to clean up the mess. This is one of the reasons I volunteer my time teaching members of the recovery community about basic finances, setting goals, and planning for the future. But this effort is extended to anyone who has an interest in learning.

In addition to my efforts in creating and maintaining this website, my intention is to facilitate classes and individual coaching sessions so stay tuned for details in the future.

One of my goals is to work with and possibly create non-profit organizations that focus on educating and raising awareness about financial matters for those who might never have been taught these basic skills and are not likely to be able to afford a financial counselor.

I believe that people who have known the gift of desperation have a skill they are not even aware of. If they learn to use the same resourcefulness that kept them alive in the middle of the mess as a tool to create for and stabilize their future, the lives of many will be more successful and satisfying.

My dream is to inspire others to seek information, to use what they learn to improve the quality of their lives, and to become teachers, sharing their knowledge and experiences. I believe that when you share your gifts, you plant seeds everywhere you go. Some of them will grow, and each seed has the potential to produce many more if it is nurtured. This is our contribution to changing the world, to leaving it better than we found it.

If you’d like to read in a little more detail about my personal story, please reference my first blog post The Ashes.