Back in 2008, I enrolled in Financial Peace University at my home church, Greensburg Alliance. Then it was a 13 week course and it was going to teach me: how to do a budget, buying on credit, insurance, saving for retirement (at 27 far from my mind), and real estate 🏡.
I got through the course but the truth of the matter is that in 2008, I was angry with myself. I was broken and I felt like the world was laughing at me. I had a degree from Slippery Rock but what was the point when I worked a menial job? My 38-39 year old self understands this better than my mid-20s self did. Why is it so hard for us to understand that nothing goes according to plan? Shoutout to Jim and Michelle Teague and Teague of Your Own for providing this piece of advice yesterday.
I registered for the class a week ago and on Sunday introduced myself to Pam Hill, the coordinator for Financial Peace University. I told her that I had taken the class before as a 13 week course. She told me that the nine week course would be just as good despite some of the changes.
I arrived on Tuesday night ready to learn. I said hi to Pam and ran into a familiar face (Ed Malinoski). I found out he has been involved in FPU since 2008, Pam since 2009. I took my seat at the table assigned for me. I met my leader, Scott Lauer, and those who would join me at the table. We all got to know each other and after prayer 🙏 we would watch the video.
Dave Ramsey was on stage talking about budgeting. He told some great stories that had the audience laughing. Dave, if you don’t know him, has a reputation for making sure you will be debt free. His radio show has had many folks call in trying to get rid of their debt and start saving money so they can live like no one else.
His daughter Rachel told us you can have fun putting together a monthly budget with your spouse if you can agree on it. I liked her thinking when it came to breaking it down too. She played the percentages well. Chris Hogan, a financial coach for Ramsey solutions, also chimed in on the video. He specializes in personal finance and retirement planning.
We learned that when it comes to budgeting, there are nerds and free spirits. Nerds love doing the budget. Free spirits feel threatened by the budget. There has to be a balance between the two ⚖️. We ate some nerds after our class wrapped up.
We learned our first baby step out of the seven the Dave talks about. Baby Step #1: Put $1000 in an emergency 🚨 fund. If something comes up and it will, then you will have that money ready to go. It’s also known as a rainy day fund.
This was a serious blog and for good reason. It’s important to have common sense when it comes to money. A majority of marriages end because of money 💰 fights. That’s what this class is for, to teach you to be smarter with your money, to plan for big events like college and retirement, or to pay off your home as well as to give.
Time to close off the blog with my advice to you as the weekend nears. Live your best life. Be your best you. ROCK out because you are worth it. Live like no one else so, later, you can live like no one else.
Put together a nice outfit and rock it even if no one’s paying attention to you. Don’t forget to laugh because laughter is the best medicine.
Bye everyone. ❤️ you 😘 🤗.
Stylish 🍒 