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).

Our Women’s Personal Finance Facebook group also 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 104

1. A Love Letter to the FIRE Movement We Want Guac

“The FIRE movement, at its core, is about having you live your best life.

That changed me for the better. Before that I struggled hard with allowing myself to spend on anything. I thought struggle was inherent to my life and accepted I’d have to gasp and strain my way towards a nicer existence. The distant future had always been my motivation and strength to fuel my life. The FIRE movement not only brought those dreamsmore forcefully into focus, it lassoed that future and pulled it decades closer.”

2. I Don’t Want a Career Anymore. What Should I Do? One Frugal Girl

“This should’ve been the year that my youngest went off to kindergarten. I planned to walk into the classroom, hug my son, and then drive off to my new job, but COVID-19 threw a wrench into that plan.

In January, I was actively looking for work. By March, I stopped my search. At the time, we withdrew my five-year-old from preschool and began the arduous process of virtual school for my eight-year-old.

At the beginning of the year, I intended to return to my former career as a software engineer, but as the days tick by, I find myself changing course. The more I think about it, the more I realize, I don’t want a career.”

3. 5 Pieces of Advice I Really Need Now She Picks Up Pennies

“What if this quest for financial freedom that we are on isn’t just about the destination? What if I’m not just growing my income, reducing my expenses, and saving and investing the difference to make my future self happy?

The future is no better than the present. The person that I am set to become in 5, 10, or 20 years isn’t more deserving of happiness, health, or air conditioning than present me.” 

There have been so many moments during the pandemic and its aftermath that I’ve waffled, clutching my wallet. I hemmed, I hawed. I spent a great deal of time refusing to adjust my budget despite the fact that grocery prices were soaring. For months, I did this with virtually every aspect of our money.

What I couldn’t quite bring myself to admit was that my savings became an obstacle, not an asset. Instead of rolling with the situation, I created more friction. Not for any real reason other than I wasn’t ready to let myself spend my savings. But you know what? It’s OK to spend your savings.”

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 the Women of the Financial Independence Community.

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