LaKesha Womack

Archive for the tag “Money”

15 Feb 2013

Follow Kimberlee’s My Money Matters Journey: Week 1

I am so grateful to all of the people purchasing My Money Matters workbooks and to the groups that are inviting me to their meetings to host My Money Matters Workshops!

A couple of weeks ago, I received a special surprise.  A fellow blogger, avid reader and friend posted on Instagram that not only had she ordered the workbook but she is also planning to blog about her journey through the 52 week program.

Kim taking challenge on instagram

Take some time to meet Kimberlee Stevens and check out week one of her journey - My Money Matters: Week 1

You can also check out the YouTube videos to hear me discuss tips for your money matters – My Money Matters Video Series

Finally, join our community on Facebook – My Money Matters – you can ask questions or post thoughts on your journey through the weekly lessons

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21 Dec 2012

Money Lessons for Kids

It’s hard to teach what you don’t know…

A lot of parents struggle to teach their kids about money, budgeting and investing because many of the techniques that would make the kids successful money managers have not been mastered by the parents.

Here are three money lessons that you can teach your kids, even if you are working on them yourself:

  1. The difference between a want and a need.  In our society, want and need are often used interchangeably without any real thought given to whether the thing we are describing is something that we need or something that we merely want.  When making purchases, especially on a budget, it is important to identify whether the thing you are considering is a want (something you would like to have) or a need (something that you have to have).  Helping your kids to learn the difference will also help them to  prioritize their spending.  They should be taught that the things we need (such as a place to live, electricity and water) should be a priority over the things that we want (cable, cell phones, eating out).  
  2. How to be  a disciplined saver.  My son has two “piggy banks”.  One has money that he saves so that when he goes to the store, he will have some spending money and the other has money that he is not allowed to touch.  For adults that would be the difference between money that we have set aside and money that we are saving for a true emergency.  Kids should be taught to be disciplined about their saving and not allowed to use it for non emergencies.  Teaching them this at an early age will help to prepare them to be long term savers as adults.  Most adults have not mastered the art of being disciplined savers, therefore, they often dip into their savings for non emergencies and are not able to accumulate the standard three to six months of living expenses that should be set aside for real emergencies.  Being disciplined is about doing the things that you know are best, even when you don’t want to.  Spending is much more fun for most of us than saving but having money saved is best for us.  Not teaching your kids to how to save for the long term will do them a huge disservice.
  3. The correlations between working and earning.  Giving your kid an allowance is great because you are providing them with the opportunity to begin managing money.  However, some kids are not developing a strong work ethic when their parents give them money without them having to do anything for it.  This is having an adverse impact on them as they get older and get real jobs.  Some of the complaints about Generation Y include them having a sense of entitlement and not respecting organizational structure/ feeling like everyone in the organization is equal.  Providing an allowance based on the chores completed or grades attained is not rewarding for them things that they should already be doing but it is teaching them that there is a correlation between their work and their earnings.  Some people may disagree but the alternative is them thinking that they are entitled to money simply because they need it to survive.  If that were the case, there would be money trees growing in all of our yards.  The reality is that as adults we are compensated based on our performance.

I hope these tips are helpful as you try to teach your kids to be financially responsible.  Don’t forget that you can also order them a My Money Matters workbook from amazon.com and/or book me to present a My Money Matters workshop for them or for you and your friends.my-money-matters-kids-front

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17 Dec 2012

5 Investments You Can’t Afford NOT To Make

Most serious investors know that there is no such thing as a sure bet.  However, I am about to share with you five investments that you can’t afford NOT to make…

Start where you are and grow!Image courtesy of leadingandlovingit.com

Start where you are and grow!
Image courtesy of leadingandlovingit.com

  1. Invest in yourself – Knowledge is power!  The more you know, the  more you grow!  I have a million of those sayings that I can use to encourage you to become informed.  It doesn’t matter what but invest in depositing some knowledge about something into your mind.  The brain is a muscle and you need to exercise using it for more than posting on social networks and watching reality television   You ever fill out an application and you get to the part where it asks for your skills and you can’t think of anything to write?  That’s a problem.  There should be some things that you know that you know, something that will actually help to advance you in life.  Even if you have a skill or two, consider investing in continuing education to stay abreast of the latest advancements.  You should never stop learning.
  2. Invest in your health – If we truly believe our bodies to be temples then why do we treat them so poorly?  Some of us treat inanimate objects better than we treat our bodies.  The body that we have is the only one that we are guaranteed to receive so why don’t we treat it better? Why don’t we invest in eating healthier foods (I say invest because in our society it costs more to eat healthy than to eat junk food)?  Why don’t we invest the time and money into working out?  We can think of a million excuses not to do something good for ourselves when all we really need is one excuse to do it…
  3. Invest in your  passion – Not every passion turns into profit but that doesn’t mean that you should not pursue it.  There are some things in life that simply make your heart smile.  Even if that thing, such as baking, gardening or sewing, can’t be your full-time job; you should still invest in it.  Personal happiness leads to personal success.  Why is that?  When you feel as though you are doing something that gratifies you then you are not as concerned with what others think.  When you are doing things to please others then your success is dependent on their definition of how well you are doing.  Don’t know what you are passionate about?  Try a few things out that you think you might like and keep trying until you find something that you love.  Just remember that you are always one try away from success.  If you never try then you are guaranteed to never succeed.
  4. Invest in your community –  As government officials are constantly debating which social programs will receive a reduction in funding; it is time for us to start investing in our communities.  Many people complain that they want lower taxes but the reduction in tax revenues will directly correlate to a reduction in government services.  Many organizations such as after school programs, music and art programs and even some sports programs are likely to see further reductions in their budgets.  Take some time to evaluate which programs in your community are effective and serving a need then assist with their fundraising.  You could donate $10 per month and encourage a few other like-minded  persons to do the same.  I have several friends that host fun events and donate a portion of their  proceeds to causes that they care about.  It’s time for us to start taking personal accountability for supporting the things that we say are important to us.
  5. Invest in your assets - We know that it takes money to make money but it also takes money to manage money.  It’s tempting to look for the cheapest and easiest way out but when you purchase an asset, you need to do so with a mindset of what it is going to take to maintain it.  It doesn’t matter if you buy a house or a car, you need to think about the maintenance and upkeep of your asset so that it can retain market value.  Some homes lose their value, not only because of a decline in the housing market, but also because the owner did not properly maintain it.  The same is true with cars.  You may want to sell your car but if it has not been properly maintained then you could end up getting less than what other similar cars in better condition are valued at.  When I look at people’s budgets, I rarely see a line item for maintenance or home repairs and that is very unfortunate, especially if they don’t have a savings account or cash reserves.

When most people think about investments, they immediately think about money but time is also an investment tool.  Some of the investments that I am suggesting will require a reallocation of your time resources while others require you to look at how you are managing your financial resources.  We all have our lists of priorities but when we look at how we invest our time and money; many of us are not investing in the things that we say are most important to us.

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17 Jul 2012

Book Release: My Money Matters 52 Week Money Management Workbooks for Kids, Teens and Adults

The average American has less than $25,000 in savings, including their retirement account.  The majority of Americans don’t have enough cash reserves to handle a $1,000 emergency.

When I read these statistics on creditscore.net, I wasn’t surprised.  As Americans, many of us fail to plan for our financial future and have not created good money management habits that we can pass along to our children.

“My Money Matters” is a collection of money management workbooks based on the Basic Money Management Principle, “I will not spend more than I earn.”  There are three workbooks created for kids (young people receiving an allowance), teens/young adults (young people working part-time or living away from home) and adults.  Each workbook features a weekly money management lesson as well as weekly budget sheets that allow the user to track the money coming in and going out.

Visit http://LaKeshaWomack.com/MyMoneyMatters to get a sneak peek of each workbook

While Author LaKesha Womack worked as a financial advisor for a reputable financial services firm, she realized that most people don’t know a fraction of what they should about money management.  Although most books aimed at promoting financial literacy are filled with a wealth of information, they often leave the reader wondering, “What should I do first/next?  How can I take this information and apply it to my situation?”

“My Money Matters” is divided into four quarters, 13 weeks each.  The first quarter focuses on creating and maintaining a management budget while the second quarter discusses saving strategies and goal setting for their financial future.  During the third quarter, the reader develops a basic understanding of financial management.  Finally, the user will learn basic investing principles and the role that investments could play in their overall financial plan.

Who do you know that needs help with their money matters?  Order ten workbooks and get your copy for FREE!

“My Money Matters” is perfect for families.  Each weekly lesson focuses on the same general lesson although the information is tailored to the age group it is written for.  The workbooks are also perfect for groups wishing to promote financial literacy.  Groups can hold each other accountable by meeting quarterly to review the upcoming lessons and their progress from the previous quarter.

Order twenty-five workbooks for your group for $200.  The workbooks retail for $10 each so that’s a savings of $50 or 5 free workbooks, which can be passed along to your members or sale them at retail and use the $2 per workbook as a fundraiser.  This offer includes free shipping.

About the author…

LaKesha Womack has over ten years of business consulting experience including owning and operating Womack Consulting Group, a firm specializing in helping entrepreneurs start and grow small businesses.  She has worked within a variety of industries including retail, financial services, publishing, technology and many more.  She is also the author of “Building a Brand without Spending a Bundle”, “Success Secrets for the Young & Fabulous” and “Is She The ONE?”  In addition, she is the Executive Producer and Host of “The LaKesha Womack Show” as well as a young adult minister within the AME Zion Church.

Host a “My Money Matters” Workshop!

Each workshop includes twenty-five workbooks and you can choose between

  • The two-hour session where we define the Basic Money Management Principle and discuss budgeting strategies
  • The four-hour/ half day session to explore the Basic Money Management Principle, discuss budgeting and saving strategies and create a SMART money goal
  • The six-hour/ full day session to explore the Basic Money Management Principle, to discuss budgeting and saving strategies, to create a SMART money goal and to discuss the role that investing should play in their financial plan

For media appearances, email LaKesha at contact(at)LaKeshaWomack(dot)com

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21 Jun 2012
3 Comments

Are you afraid of being labeled a “gold digger”?

Steve Harvey presents a very interesting case for ‘gold diggers’ in his book, “Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man“…

To paraphrase Steve’s concept, he states that ‘gold digger’ is a term created by men so that they would not have to be accountable to financially providing for women…

By labeling a woman as a ‘gold digger’ if she asked a man for money, the woman would be deterred thus allowing the man to do what he pleased…

I find this mode of thinking interesting on so many levels…

First of all,  I know that some guys really think like this.  I remember dating a guy who would tell me stories about previous dating experiences where the woman asked him for money and the negative feelings he had associated with that.  I giggled because I knew where he was leading, otherwise what would be the point of him telling me this.  He was trying to discourage me from asking him for money so that I would not be labeled a ‘gold digger’.  Another guy kept complimenting me on being an independent woman who didn’t need him to do anything for me o_O I laughed at that because there was no way any man was going to get off that easy.  You think you’re going to be my man with no sense of obligation to me, for what???

On the other hand, I know some women who make gold digging a profession.  They don’t work but drive the nicest cars, live in fly spaces and demand (yes, demand) to eat at the most expensive restaurants.  They target guys who can afford them this lifestyle knowing that they have little to nothing outside of personal attention to provide in return.

Where does that leave us?

We have a group of men who are afraid of being used financially and a group of women with a primary motive of getting all they can get…

In the middle of these two groups are ordinary men and women seeking mutually beneficial relationships.  A woman who wants a man who will provide for her and act as the head of his household, not because she demands it but because that is the role of a man in a relationship. And then there’s the man who wants to treat his woman like a queen but he’s met so many imposters until it is almost impossible to tell the real thing when she comes along.

So now we have all of these independent women who don’t need a man to take care of them (neck rolling and all) and men who are skating on easy street with no sense of responsibility in a relationship.  Yep its all messed up…

Here’s the catch though… 

Most of the women claiming they don’t need a man, don’t have a man.  Most of a women that need a man so that they can maintain their standard of living, have a man.

Wonder why?

Because no matter what a man says, his primal instinct is to provide for his woman.  Most men will cheat on their wives to be with someone who makes them feel needed rather than taking for granted the things that they do.  Gold diggers may not have genuine feelings for their man but when he’s around, they make him feel like the best thing since sliced bread while all of the independent women act like they could care less if he’s around.

I’m not afraid of being labeled a ‘gold digger’…

Image courtesy of pinterest.com

I have standards in a relationship.  I know what I want and what I deserve.  I don’t care how much money a man has or what type of car he drives but I do care about the role he desires to play in our relationship.  Does he see himself as a provider or does he think it’s every man/woman for themselves?  Does he make sure that I am taken care of or does he just assume that everything is ok?

Also… I dropped the independent woman label a long time ago because when you say you don’t need a man, you act like you don’t need a man. (Read I Don’t Need a Man).  I need a man because two is stronger than one when planning a future, raising a family and dealing with the turbulence of life.  I need a shoulder to cry on, a smile to gaze upon and laugh to share.  I don’t just want those things but I need them in my life because I believe that I will be greater when I have a King to make me his Queen.  Will I settle for any dude that comes along flashing a big wad or a nice smile, definitely not because I know my worth but I also won’t allow some dude to manipulate me into believing that he shouldn’t have to do anything for me or that would make me a gold digger…

Want more relationship advice from me?

Posted in Relationships 101 and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

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