Welcome to another week of the Women’s Personal Finance Wednesdays roundup. I started this series after months of debate because I wasn’t certain I wanted to up the ante and commit to publishing three posts a week. However, now that I’ve started sharing these posts, I’m so glad I started.
There are so many fabulous women writing about personal finance online, and yet there is still a perception that women aren’t good with money, don’t care about money, or don’t understand it on a granular level beyond perhaps knowing how to coupon and score a good shopping deal. These roundups are my way of doing a small part to change that perception. There are no shortage of women online doing their part to make it clear that they DO understand money, and these posts are meant to amplify that fact.
The hardest part of this post every week always is narrowing it down to my favorites, because there is just so much good content out there. If you’re ever interested in what else I’m reading, I share quite a few other posts on Twitter (and that’s also where I read most of the content to begin with these days).
OurWomen’s Personal Finance Facebook groupalso has a sharing thread on Fridays, and that’s the place to read all the blog posts written by members over the previous week. If you’re looking for more articles written by women, that’s a great place to continue reading (plus we have plenty of great discussions on finances the rest of the week as well!).
If you don’t have the time or inclination to go searching down myriad posts, though, I will be continuing this series every week to showcase some of the best of the new content I read. If you ever read a post you think I absolutely need to consider for this roundup, please let me know! I am always open to reading new blogs (and posts of blogs I do know, because I miss some).
Women’s Personal Finance Wednesdays – Week 46
1. What’s happening with the podcast? His and Her FI
Bethany was the cohost of one of my very favorite personal finance podcasts and writes over at the blog with the same name. They aired two seasons and were just named as finalists in this year’s Best FIRE Podcast category, which is a very well deserved honor, in my opinion (and not just because I recorded an episode with them previously).
They took a step back from the podcast since wrapping up season two and took the time to really analyze how best to move forward. After that break, they decided to wrap the podcast up after two seasons, while Bethany continues to write on the blog by herself.
Just because something is successful and something to be proud of doesn’t mean you need to feel obligated to continue with it. Life changes, situations change, and sometimes what served you well for a time isn’t the best use of your time any longer. And when it’s something that was very good, it is that much harder to know when to quit. I’m very much going to miss their podcast, but I fully support and am so impressed when someone is able to understand when a season has closed and when it is time to move on.
2. How FIRE led me to burnout Table for One
As much as I’m a proponent of the pursuit of financial independence and the possibility of early retirement, that race to the finish line can be a very unhealthy way to live. The idea that full financial independence is an all or nothing endeavor can be a dangerous one that draws us to make decisions that aren’t actually in our best interest with the idea that our lives will be *so* much better far in the future.
I really appreciate Frugalish Physician’s discussion on this topic as someone who is experiencing the “golden handcuffs” of a very high paying profession. When you can make significantly more money by constantly working more hours, it’s tempting to always push for more. But, as she concludes: “Letting go of the belief that the future is going to be so much better than the present, and the desire to burn through time in order to get there.”
3. Are You Wasting Your Degree If You Retire Early? The Frugal Engineers
This conversation is particularly focused on women engineers, but it is easily extrapolated to any male dominated field. After scrabbling your way through the ranks of a career that isn’t traditionally female, there is extra pressure to stick around even once you’re ready to be done, the pressure to make sure to prove your worth in that field.
This bleeds out into family planning and the feeling of needing to prove your degree was worth it. Whether you work in your field for five months or five decades, leave for early retirement, to raise kids, or to an entirely different career, education is rarely wasted, in my opinion. The cost of that education is a different discussion altogether.
I hope you enjoy the posts this week as much as I did. I read a ton of content and it was hard to narrow down my favorites. I’m looking forward to sharing some new ones with you again next week!
As always, if you’re looking for a categorized list of self identified women writing and speaking about personal finance, here is my comprehensive guide to theWomen of the Financial Independence Community.
