*** Due to world events, I temporarily lost steam in writing this, so yeah…big delay in publishing. #StandWithUkraine *** I’m starting this post on a cruise ship as it’s pulling up to a pier in Cozumel. It’s my first vacation in over 2 years, and that seems like the case for a lot of people on board. Anyway, travel has been my favorite thing to spend my hard-earned money on since my age ended in “teen”. So even though this trip is not at all exotic by my standards (not my first cruise, not my first time to Cozumel), it’s a HUGE reminder of how much I still enjoy travel. It has been my “why” si ..read more

Ah January – the month where every retailer pushes deals on their storage and organization products after the mayhem of Christmas gifts and decorations. I’m in the market for some steel garage shelving so that maybe, just maybe, I can get both cars in instead of one. Or find that thing I know I have in there somewhere and don’t want to buy again. I have no attic or basement, so it’s probably more important to get all that in order than I like to admit. Garage shenanigans aside — I’m not pushing a deal, but I am going to push you to make keeping tabs on your money really easy and accessible ..read more

I’m a huge fan of small, consistent moves that keep me organized and moving forward. Given that we all have dozens of things vying for our limited attention at any given moment, it’s reallllly easy to let your finances glide along on their existing autopilot. For years. I know, we all do it to a certain extent with things that don’t have immediate consequences. Like hm, should I take 15 minutes to set up automatic bill pay on my utilities or should I walk the dog? Well your bills won’t crap on the carpet if you ignore them, so the dog always wins by default (plus, dogs are awesome). I think ..read more

I have a dirty little money secret. I’ve never lied about it, but I’ve never shared it despite something like 12 years tweeting about personal finance. I DON’T KEEP A BUDGET. I know — it’s downright BLASPHEMOUS! It’s the foundation of All Things Personal Finance & Financial Planning, and I don’t do it! I’ve heard and read a million times from every single money blogger and book that you must have a budget and keep track of it, but I’ve just never felt the need for it personally. I’ve tried – I really have! – but it seems to fall by the wayside fairly quickly, like using a planner or a diet ..read more

So I’ve mentioned before that I really want to kick off a weekly money podcast for solopreneurs – just a shortie, like 10 minutes, because I’m just not wired to blabber on much longer than that. That’s a good thing, since plenty of people aren’t wired to listen to financial stuff for much longer than that. And I really don’t want to put anyone to sleep, especially since a lot of folks listen to podcasts while driving. Yikes! Unfortunately, length and topic are the only aspects of my podcast-to-be that I’ve figured out. Now, I’m not a total newbie to recording audio, but other than having a goo ..read more

What’ll it be – Coffee? Tea? Caffeinated hot chocolate? No judgment here, I love them all! [And yes, caffeinated hot chocolate does exist!] My name is Katie and I am a money nerd. Nope, not admitting to a problem here – I say it with pride! I’ve been a personal finance buff since the 90s, when I lived in Scotland. I started to pursue their financial planner qualification purely for personal understanding, but after passing the first module, I broke up with both my then-boyfriend and the inflexible UK, and moved back to NYC. Two years later I broke up with having a boss. Okay so that last one w ..read more