Let’s start with some basic information about the state of insurance in the U.S.. Or, rather, let’s start with some facts about the insured. Based on the most recent Census data, as of 2022 8.4% of Americans did not have health insurance. Truthfully, at first read that seemed lower than I was expecting and it has gone down over the years, much in part due to the Affordable Care Act. But, upon closer inspection I was pretty appalled by this number. While as a statistic 8.4% is not very high, it accounts for over 27 million people. Twenty-seven million! That is a lot of people. That is about 6 Louisians! That is 7 million more people than live in the state of New York! That is too many people who are most likely not getting the medical care that they need or deserve. 

And then let’s talk about the rest of the population. Of those with health insurance (again, these numbers are from the most recent Census): 

• 54.5% have employer based insurance

• 18.8% have Medicaid

• 18.7% have Medicare 

• 3.4% have Tricare or VA Insurance (armed forces)

• 10% purchase their insurance directly from carriers or from the marketplace

Those numbers combined are actually a bit over 100% and that is because some folks had multiple types of coverage or multiple types throughout the year. 

I’m glad so many people have health insurance. Not having health insurance is scary -- medical costs are extraordinarily high in the United States and a single medical bill has the ability to completely derail someone’s financial security. The fact that over 50% of folks get their health insurance from their employers makes me feel a few things. Again -- I’m happy folks get coverage, but anecdotally I know that this coverage can often feel like a set of fancy (or at least decent) handcuffs. Leaving a job that isn’t a good fit and starting something new, especially starting something entrepreneurial is a huge, terrifying, often incredibly gratifying leap, but because there aren’t great options for coverage outside of employer based plans (we’ll get to that 10% in a moment), it means that a lot of people don’t feel able to go out on their own. They feel stuck at jobs they’re miserable at. 

For a country that prides itself on the American Dream, small businesses, and the ability to pull oneself up from the boot straps, this feels like an incredible structural oversight. Actually, I don’t really think it is an oversight. I think those in power just don’t really believe in the things they say they do. I think they think it is okay that the only people who are financially able to start their own businesses are already wealthy or have safety nets and few responsibilities. 

So let’s talk about that 10% of folks who get their health insurance on the marketplace. While Verdi now has its own company based health insurance, I have experienced direct pay a lot over the past decade and it is how most of my clients get coverage so I feel pretty well versed in the manner. I’m glad that this option exists, but I hate how complex it can feel. I hate that in many states there are only a couple options for coverage which means that the options that do exist are rarely very good. I hate that coverage often feels overpriced and full of loopholes. I hate that small group insurance (coverage for businesses with fewer than 50 employees) is often more similar to the individual marketplace than the large company coverage. And, most of all I hate that if you don’t have coverage at all you are super screwed and if you do have coverage you are…well, still screwed. 

Sorry this week’s post was a downer, but this topic really bums me out. 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

P.S. The incredible course that Puno of ilovecreatives and I run, Finance Friends Forever, has a great chapter on insurance. If you want to learn more or learn how to determine what type of coverage(s) you need, I highly recommend checking it out. 

P.P.S. AND the most recent podcast episode is live! I get even more in depth on this topic this week and I’d love for you to listen. If you enjoy the podcast please rate, subscribe, comment, or like. All of that engagement is incredibly helpful and appreciated :) 

I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling pretty overrun by holiday shopping ads. It seems like a never ending barrage and this year for some reason feels more heightened to me. 

So, I wanted to take some time in the newsletter to share the system that I’m using to make sure that I have a successful holiday shopping experience. And, by successful, I mean that I stay within a set amount of money I’ve decided to spend, that I’m happy with my purchases, and that I don’t feel too stressed. 

Some parts of my plan may seem over simplified, but by a super not scientific poll conducted by me asking clients and friends, it seems like very few people use any system at all, so I hope this helps! 

Step 1: Make a list! (Actually make a few lists)

• Make a list of everyone you would like to get a gift for

• Make a list of any events you are attending

• Make a list of any events you are hosting

Step 2: Identify Your Non-Negotiables

For each of the above lists check the non-negotiables (i.e. you have to and want to go to your sister’s annual New Year’s party and you absolutely will be giving a gift to your niece). 

Step 3: Eliminate the Fluff

Is there anything not on the non negotiable list that you really don’t want to do? If so, cross it off! I know! It is nuts! If it is an event, make a calendar event for that day/time that says something along the lines of, “Congrats! You made a good choice and get to do whatever you want instead of going to XYZ!”. If it is a gift for someone, ask yourself if you need to tell them. If you do, give them a heads up and explain that you are working on larger financial goals that mean that you’ve needed to cut back on spending this year. Or - better yet - blame me! Tell them your financial coach said to cut it out. 

Step 4: Budget it OUTTTT

Here’s where the rubber meets the road. Give yourself a gift giving budget, an event hosting budget, and an event attending budget. 

These budgets should all either be doable for you with your expected income or should be something that you want to pull from savings for. They should not be amounts you are planning to put on a credit card. 

Not surprisingly, I like to use a spreadsheet to map out my plans. For each gift or event I write out all of the expected expense items, the amounts of money I plan to spend, the links for anything I am buying online, how much I actually spent, and whether I went over or under my goal. 

Step 5: Buy the things! 

Pretty sure this step is self explanatory :) 

A couple tips just in case you’re feeling stuck: 

1. Accept help if you are hosting an event. People really do want to bring things! It makes them feel useful and good!

2. When buying host gifts, think about things you can buy in bulk.

3. If you need a special outfit for an event, but don’t think this will be something you use much in the future, look into renting the clothes instead! A lot of my clients love Rent the Runway. 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

P.S. If you are reading this and thinking, “but Caroline, I have no idea what my budget should be!” then you may be ready for some financial guidance. If you want to try something low commitment, but meaningful, check out the Money Diary (clients actually call this tool LIFE CHANGING). If you’re ready to go full hog and get all your financial ducks in a row (oh my goodness, too many animal puns, I’m sorry), then schedule a free call with me or fill out the client inquiry form. I’d love you to join me for coaching in December or January! 

I specialize in working with folks with fluctuating income. That means business owners with fluctuating business revenue (and therefore often fluctuating take home income), folks who work with commission based salaries, freelancers, and gig workers. Today I want to focus on the gig workers, specifically the gig workers in the film industry, but the takeaways can apply to other industries as well. 

I’ve worked with folks in front of the camera (the “talent”) and those behind the camera (the crew and post production team), and the overarching financial narrative is complex and often painful. 

First off, there’s a vernacular in the industry that I think muddies how folks think about their work. My film industry clients talk about their work as if the industry is their employer. On the other hand, other freelancers I work with never talk that way. My freelance graphic designers don’t say the Graphic Design industry employs them -- they say individual clients employ them. By saying it is the industry as a whole, my clients unknowingly take the individual humanity out of the equation. When something is wrong and you say it is caused by “the industry” that is vague and often not actionable, but when something is wrong and you say it is caused by Steve, that is actionable. 

In general, folks who work in the film industry feel like they have been sold a bill of goods -- the industry, and what the industry makes, is cool. It is pop culture. Unlike most work, the finished product actually gets seen by millions of people. You can tell someone you worked on Barbie and they are going to think you are cool. Most of my clients in the industry would never say that that matters to them. They typically say that they love the functionality of their work - they love working on creative projects and they love the teamwork that is inherent to the job. That is all very legitimate! Those are great reasons to love the work and, I think for some, they outweigh the drawbacks. But, the cool factor is there too -- and it muddies the waters. It makes it hard to recognize the problems and makes it difficult to explain the problems to outsiders. 

Over the course of the last 7 years I’ve also come to more fully understand the drawbacks of the work and, therefore, who is the most likely to “make it” in the industry. 

Drawbacks: 

• Lack of control over pay

• Requirement to come with your own equipment/upkeep 

• Either no benefits or it is challenging to qualify for benefits

• No control over schedule

• Tied to location 

Let’s talk more specifically about a couple of these drawbacks. 

The norm in the industry is to talk about pay in terms of your day rate - which, depending on the role you have, can be pretty high. For example, a PA (Production Assistant) makes about $200 a day and a camera operator makes about $600 a day. A Director might make $4,000 or more a day.

This makes people feel like they make a ton of money when they are working on set, or at least have the potential to make a lot of money. The problem is that very few people in the industry actually work enough days to have the math work. It is not abnormal to go entire months without working -- or, depending on your role, to even go years without working. 

These ups and downs mean you don’t know when you’ll work again and therefore most people feel forced to take the next thing that comes up no matter what -- thus taking on things that aren’t good fits or overworking and burning out. This happens for creative freelancers in other industries as well, but in most other career paths you can work up to turning your freelance work into a (relatively) stable business and can run that business like any other small business. But, if you are a Grip in the film industry you will almost definitely never be able to run your work like it is a standalone business. 

And that doesn’t even begin to take into account the expectations of what each individual employee comes to the table with. If you are on the crew, you likely are expected to own a fair amount of your own equipment -- often thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. You need to take care of this equipment, fix it when it needs repairs and keep it up to date to industry standards (i.e. replace items, buy new items regularly). 

If you are talent, you are expected to invest significantly into your skills and appearance. This means regularly hiring acting coaches, participating in expensive acting classes and spending a lot of money on appearance related activities (personal trainers, fitness classes, facials, makeup, etc). These things add up and are not covered in any way by your employers. These are the pay to play costs and, for the most part, are non negotiable. 

Some of you reading I bet are thinking, “why would anyone agree to this?!”

I think a huge part is the day rate vernacular. 

When you are talking in day rate terms it is really hard for our brains to compute this in a helpful way. People typically think of money needs in terms of months -- how much we need to make in a month in order to cover our monthly expenses (i.e. I need to make at least $5,000 to cover my base expenses). So, when doing the day rate math you end up thinking -- I need to work X days/month to hit my minimum revenue needs. And, quite frequently the number of days you need isn’t outrageous so it feels doable, but, again, the lack of control that individual workers have means that hitting that number is a roll of the dice. 

Honestly, working with so many people in the industry over the years has made me think of the industry as pretty toxic. In fact, for some of my clients it almost feels like an abusive partner -- it pulls you in, gives you presents (day rate), makes you feel special (cool factor) and then turns around and cheats on you (don’t get hired) or expects too much from you (equipment investments). 

It really doesn’t have to be this way. I’m thrilled that the strikes seem to be making some progress in the right direction and I hope there is more of that in the future. While the work may not be saving lives, it is something that touches most of us most days and it would be nice if we (actually, not we -- the industry!) treated the people on the ground with more respect and kindness. 

As always, I’m rooting for you. 

XOXO, 

I talk, or at least mention, Money Diaries a fair amount on Instagram and in this newsletter. They are a crucial aspect of my personal money journey and are a crucial tool for the vast majority of my clients. But, upon some reflection, I realized that it has been a long time since I actually explained what a Money Diary is. 

So here goes! 

First, the purpose of a Money Diary is to enable you to track your income and expenses in an organized and thoughtful way so that you can glean helpful information which, in turn, will help you implement new financial strategies to better reach your goals. Whew, that was a mouthful!

To simplify…

Money Diary = Tracking Income & Expenses = Data = Habit Shifts = Goal Accomplishment!!

See? They’re really cool. 

There are a lot of Money Diaries out there, but they don’t all call themselves that term. There are things like YNAB and Mint and there are Pinterest versions of pen and paper written diaries. 

I have never found a version that I think truly captures what I want, so when I started this work in 2016 I made my own. I have tweaked it over the years to the point that I don’t think the original would even recognize the 2023 version, but that means the 2023 version is pretty gosh darn amazing. 

It includes: 

• Directions for using the spreadsheet

• A way to update and personalize all spending categories 

• A way to update and personalize all income categories

• A sheet for each month of the year

• Emotional reflections that help you recalibrate and more quickly reach your goals

• A year in review doc that can be used throughout the year to better understand trends

And now it also includes a Learn-At-Your-Own-Pace Video Module where I walk you through how to use the spreadsheet, some tips and tricks for how to streamline the process, guides for what to do when things don’t go as planned, and how to match the diary process with your larger financial goals. 

Tracking income often gets ignored, or at least not highlighted, when doing traditional budgeting, which has always driven me bonkers. Income is half of the equation! And, by understanding our income mix and trends we are better able to plan for the future (i.e. if you understand that you always have lower income in the summer it is easier to plan for that throughout the rest of the year). 

And expenses. Oh expenses! Often the goal in traditional budgeting is to lower all expenses as much as possible. While lowering expenses in certain categories may be helpful for reaching your goals (it often is!), it is often counterproductive to try to reduce all categories, or even many categories at once. For one thing, some expenses are out of our control! And, some expenses bring joy and ease into our lives such that removing them or drastically reducing them would end up working against our larger financial goals.

That’s why the reflection piece matters. You need to be able to understand which levers to pull and which ones need to be left alone. Knowing is empowering and exciting. Knowing means you can move forward with clarity, structure, and ease! 

Ready to get going? 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

The decision 

Back in August I wrote a piece on Amazon Palm Readers and, at the time, I said I was on the fence about them. 

Well friends, I’m off the fence! I have an opinion! 

To start, let me explain that any time you’re making a financial transaction you are picking between options that all have real downsides. 

For example, cash is very hard to track and almost impossible to recover if stolen. Swiping cards gives you the highest chance of having your bank or credit card details stolen. The chip is better than the swipe, but not perfect. 

Then there are the last two (other than things like Venmo, Cash App, which we’ll talk about at a later date), the Tap and the Palm. 

Between the two I think it is a no brainer. 

The tap system actually creates a unique ID for each individual purchase, making it extremely difficult for your card details to be stolen. While the technology isn’t perfect (and not ubiquitous yet), it is improving quickly. 

The palm scanners are also extremely secure -- no one’s palm is exactly the same and therefore, unless you steal someone’s hand a la Total Recall, your info is pretty safe. The downside, which I think overrides the security at this point, is that the companies that control the Palm Reader technology (aka Amazon) now have access to biological data on the users above and beyond the already huge wealth of information they have. For now, this feels like information I’d rather not give away for free. 

Maybe the inevitable is moving us toward palm readers and iris scanners as the way of identification and payment. Maybe in a few years I’ll feel like that’s okay because I’ve been slowly whittled down into thinking it is normal. Or maybe the future is going to include a backlash to this kind of data mining. Who knows?!

But, for now, I don’t see an upside to Amazon knowing even more about me than they did before. And, let’s be honest, is it soooo hard to tap a card?! 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

P.S. I didn’t even touch Apple Pay or Google Wallet today! If you are curious about my thoughts or want me to one big comparison for all the ways to pay, shoot me an email at caroline@verdiadvising.com

I am not a big fan of grocery shopping. Probably because I’m not a big fan of cooking. The exceptions to this rule are Trader Joe’s (snacks for dayyysss) and Whole Foods (they’ve really figured out how to make me feel seen -- maybe it is the olives?).

For most of my adult life I avoided Whole Foods since it has a tendency to eat money quickly, but one of my kids has a lot of food allergies and we’ve found that there are some things that he really loves that we can only find there. So, I’ve started being a somewhat regular Whole Foods shopper. 

As a complete side note, one of my most clear memories from high school is telling my dear friend Brendan that I wanted to do something really good for the world (i.e. work a “noble”, but poorly paid job), but still be able to buy cut fruit from Whole Foods whenever I wanted it. For some reason that, and probably expensive jeans, seemed like the end all be all in high society living for 16 year old me. 

That all is a long preamble to tell you about a recent trip to Whole Foods where, as I was checking out, the attendant subtly pushed their new “palm reader” to pay. I immediately laughed awkwardly saying that it completely freaked me out and that I’ll skip for now (thank you very much!). 

The attendant acted surprised that I was freaked out. It made me wonder if my reaction was unusual. I mean, it feels like a pretty sci-fi device -- wouldn’t the other uptown moms (i.e. the majority shopping population at my local store) also be kind of freaked out by this shift in payment structures? Or am I just a dinosaur?

I haven’t done enough research into palm readers yet to know if I’m truly for or against them (Amazon claims that they are more secure than traditional methods), but I will and when I come to some sort of conclusion I’ll absolutely share with you. In the meantime, I’d love to know your reactions! 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

I’m pretty sure I need all new school…er, I mean office supplies 

We are solidly in August and, at least in the Southeast, that means it is time for back to school! Target is filled with cute school supplies, I’m getting catalogs in the mail reminding me that my kids totally need adorable cardigans for the fall (while I sit here sweating in 97° heat), and I’m feeling that start-again-fresh energy in the air. 

I have always loved this time of year. I was a kid who was pretty obsessed with school and by the time the last few weeks of summer rolled around I was chomping at the bit to get back to it. I loved learning and did well academically, which certainly helped, but I think the real reasons I loved school were social and material. I rarely got in trouble at school, but when I did it was because I wouldn’t stop talking. I LOVED coming to school with new supplies. I loved my gel pens and trapper keepers. I loved a fresh notebook and new pair of jeans. I loved it all. 

And now I’m adult who apparently works all year long and doesn’t need school supplies to start out the new school year right. 

Lame. 

I’m trying to capture that same back-to-school energy this year -- 1) because it is fun, but also because 2) that energy is infectious! It helps me figure out what’s next. It helps me see growth potential and clarify my priorities. Every business owner (and human) needs that in their lives. 

In an attempt to not go overboard with things that I don’t actually need, I’ve been working on a small back-to-school shopping list.

My Back-to-School Shopping List:

• Notebooks (I use these mostly for action item lists, but also journaling and random brainstorming)

• Stickers (I’ll probably share with my kids)

• Fun folders to upgrade the ones I use all the time for domestic administration stuff 

• iPad cover to make it easier to use my iPad as a second screen when on the run

What about you? Are you gearing up for some back-to-school fun? Ignoring the sales altogether? Tell me alllll about it, friend. 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

I’ve always had a bit of a shopping problem. No…I don’t really mean that. I don’t want to place a judgment on it from the get go. 

I’ll start over - I’ve always loved shopping. I love new things. I love trying on outfits and there were many times in my life when I spent a great deal of time, energy, and money on my clothes. It made me happy. 

During my first pregnancy I sort of gave up on all of that. I had just started my second trimester when Covid shutdowns went into place and I didn’t feel the need to spend money on clothes that no one would see but me and my husband. In retrospect that was likely a sign of depression, but I think at the time everything was in such upheaval that I didn’t recognize it as such. 

That first pregnancy was difficult and my second one, while less challenging than the first, was nerve wracking because my previous pregnancy put me in a high risk category. I struggled with postpartum depression and anxiety after my first, which unfortunately went undiagnosed (mostly because it was so much better than what I experienced during pregnancy). The PPD and PPA got a lot worse after my second child was born and, thankfully, that time around I had folks around me who helped me recognize what was going on. I went on medication, made lifestyle changes, and went to therapy.

During all this time I continued to shop, but mostly out of habit and desperation (my shoe size changed with EACH baby) and the simple fact that postpartum Caroline was a size (actually many sizes) that I had never been before and therefore I needed at least some clothes that fit. 

Over the last few months my PPD and PPA have really improved. I still have challenges, but they are more manageable and, as my therapist would say, I have more tools in my toolkit. I know how to recognize what is happening and I have multiple ways to move forward. 

One of the outcomes of my improved mental health is that I really want to get dressed in things that spark joy for me. I want to put on clothes that make me smile. I want to wear things that make me feel powerful and strong -- that make me feel capable. I do feel all of these things, but it has always helped me when the outside reminds me of what I know to be true on the inside. 

As such, I’ve been shopping in new ways recently. What had felt more like a chore and habit is feeling exciting, but also a little bit overwhelming. I want to buy so much, but I know I can’t afford to go overboard. I also know that both my style and my body are in flux and investing too much money into a style at this point is likely premature. 

To be completely honest, I haven’t quite figured out how I want to move forward in this space. I could buy a lot of new things at a low price point (Old Navy, Target) or I could buy more things at a mid-range price point, or I could invest in just a couple things at a higher price point. Pre-pregnancy Caroline would have chosen the mid or high range and postpartum depression Caroline would have chosen the low price point. The question is, where does post pregnancy, stable mental health Caroline go? 

If you’ve been in a similar place and have advice for me, I’d love to hear it! Shoot me an email at caroline@verdiadvising.com or comment below. 

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

I like to think of myself as someone who does not google medical questions. 

That is absolutely not true. 

When I’m feeling sick or one of the kids has something going on, my Google search history turns into a cornucopia of hypochondriac questions -- things like…

Rash on stomach

Rash on stomach and arms

Rash on stomach and arms pregnant?

Early pregnancy symptoms

Pregnancy rash 

And you know what? I never find helpful answers. At best, I find information that helps me narrow down the possibilities, or that helps me better understand something that I already have basic information on (for example, one of my kids has a lot of allergies and Google has helped me understand how allergies work, what antihistamines are, and how different longer-term treatments might go). That is all incredibly helpful, but it didn’t help me diagnose the allergies to begin with or even to narrow down whether or not the symptoms were allergy based. 

I have found that many folks use Google for their financial questions the same way I use it for health questions. Once you know enough to know what specific questions you need answers (i.e. “How does the debt snowball method work?”; “What are expense ratios?”) then you can get some pretty helpful information. On the other hand, more general queries often put you in the internet wild west (i.e. “how to get out of debt”; “how to invest”). 

As I’m sure most of you (maybe all of you?) know from personal experience, the internet wild west is a terrifying, terrifying place. It is full of mis-information, confusing explanations, half-truths, and outdated facts. I’m not saying folks are necessarily being malicious, but they don’t actually know you, your personality, your values, or your particular financial needs. Without those inputs, it is more likely than not that the results are going to be really unhelpful.

For example, if someone has $18,000 of credit card debt, both of the following solutions technically work, but neither would work for everyone. In fact, neither work for MOST people! 

DEBT ELIMINATION SCENARIO 1

• Stop using credit cards today

• Pay $800 extra on your credit card each month until you’ve paid off your cards 

DEBT ELIMINATION SCENARIO 2

• Stop using credit cards today

• Ask your parents for a family loan and set up a 0% interest rate payback schedule with them 

• Potentially do this again if/when you go into debt in the future 

That’s why getting personalized advice can be so life changing -- either from a medical professional or a financial professional (shuts down most recent set of google search tabs).

As always, I’m rooting for you!

XOXO,

P.S. Check out what a past client said about their experience with Individual Financial Coaching: 

Caroline has a knack for making me feel relief and self-compassion around my finances, while also giving me the confidence to make the practical improvements I need to. Speaking with Caroline feels like having the perfect balance between a non-judgmental, uplifting friend and a financial expert who seriously knows her stuff. Money can be an incredibly emotional topic and Caroline gets it!

- Emily

Private School vs. Public School…

This is a topic of conversation that comes up pretty frequently in my day to day life. I am a parent of young children, have a lot of friends with school-age children, and used to work in public education. I’m not going to get into all of the complications related to this topic in this post (there are many!), but I just want to flag two things that I think are really powerful to think about when/if you are trying to decide between paying for private school or sending your child(ren) to public school. 

1. If you own property where you are sending your child(ren) to school then you pay for public school via property taxes. If you rent then you indirectly pay these too (I’m sure your landlord took those costs into account when determining the monthly rental price for your place!). That may not mean that you want to send your kids to those schools, but it is important to keep in mind that if you choose private school then you are actually paying for both options. If you choose public school, then you are only paying for public school. 

2. Many folks feel overwhelmed by the prospect of paying private school tuition on top of all of the other costs of raising children. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard something along the lines of…”well so-and-so does it and they seem to manage okay”; “This is just what is done in my circle of friends and peers”; “It doesn’t really feel like an option, but I also don’t understand how everyone is paying for this plus the (fill in the blank here -- i.e. new car, vacation, fitness classes, etc)”. 

The answer is that many people probably aren’t paying for everything on their own, or at least not with their earned income alone. Many grandparents pay for private school tuition. Many trusts or inheritance payments cover tuition. I say this a lot and I’ll say it many more times -- the comparison game doesn’t work when you don’t know all of the inputs. 

Maybe these facts don’t change anything about the calculus for you -- maybe sending your kid to that specific school is the most important thing you want to do with your income. If that’s the case, no judgment here! But, if you add in property taxes to the private school tuition and all of a sudden public school feels a lot more valuable, that’s probably telling. 

If you do the math and you realize that paying tuition means that you’ll have to forgo other things that you want from life, then it is a question of priorities -- is that education worth those vacations?

As always, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO, 

P.S. In one of my most recent Sprint Days I worked with a client to create and implement a new account optimization system (hellloooo modified profit first!) and designed a tracking system so that tax time will feel easy next year. Wins all around!

This is the first summer since 2019 that I’ve traveled for fun. The last few years it just didn’t feel possible: 

• 2020 was 2020, plus I was pregnant

• 2021 still felt dicey, plus I had a young baby and was pregnant 🤯

• 2022 I had two young kids (2 under 2!)

But now I feel the itch to get out and do! I want to see people, give my kids the opportunities to explore new places, and enjoy life after a few very challenging years. 

Here’s what’s on the list:

• I took my kids to the beach with friends a couple weekends ago

• This past weekend we visited my sister and her family in Minneapolis

• We go to Florida with my husband’s family in a few weeks

• I go to California to see friends at the beginning of July

• My sister, cousin and I have a mini trip planned later in July

• And then we have plans in the works for another beach trip in July and for a family trip to Montana in August

Even if the last two plans fall through, this is more travel than I’ve done in years and way more travel than my kids have ever experienced. It feels both comforting to be back to what feels like a more normal summer schedule for me and, simultaneously, it feels pretty overwhelming. 

Financially it feels overwhelming because I’m used to paying for one or two adults, not a family of four. On top of that, flights, gas, and most related travel costs are higher than they were in 2019. The numbers add up quickly and even though I’m not doing anything that I can’t afford, I’m not used to seeing these costs on my statements or Money Diary (curious about Money Diaries? Book a free consultation call with me or email me at caroline@verdiadvising.com).

When my anxiety started creeping up around travel I assumed that it was just because of the money, but after the beach trip with friends where I ended up forgetting half of the clothes I thought I packed I realized that another factor - potentially a larger factor - is the fact that each of these trips takes an immense amount of time for me to plan well.  

I have always been a fan of packing lists. I keep ones on my phone so that all I need to do for the next trip is modify it for the number of nights away or weather. I like making these lists days or even weeks in advance (depending on the scale of the trip) so that if I need to get anything new to bring with me I have plenty of time to find the right deal. 

As a mother my love of lists has only grown, but the level of detail I need to get to in order to make sure we all have all of our bits and pieces is pretty obnoxious. My son has a lot of allergies and therefore needs to travel with several medications at all times. He also is still in diapers and diapers take up a crazy amount of space in a suitcase. Kids go through a lot of clothes. Kids have accoutrement (!!) that seems necessary (bibs, favorite toys, sound machines, etc). Some of that I could probably skip, but it all feels easier once we are away if I don’t. Life is easier if kids have some of the same things they are used to having -- they feel safer and therefore can have more fun. That feels worth it. 

And so, I spend a lot of time thinking about what they need and end up leaving myself as a deep afterthought. Hence, I showed up at the beach without shorts or either of the dresses I felt sure I had packed. I forgot my allergy medicine, but had every type of medicine under the sun for my kids. 

Thankfully I have several upcoming trips where I can try again. I’m giving myself even more time to make the list so that I can complete it without feeling rushed. I’m letting myself mull over the list over the course of a week+ so I have plenty of time for those middle of the night, “Oh yeah!” thoughts. I’m learning what I feel comfortable skimping on and what I feel better overpacking with. It feels like a lot of growth and learning in a really short period of time, but isn’t that true of so many things in life when you’re actually out there in the world interacting and experiencing? 

Overall, what I’m learning is that the more information I have and the more planning I do, the less stressed and anxious I become. I can’t control everything - or even most things, but I can make sure the Epipen is packed (lol) and that I have shorts to wear.

As always, I’m rooting for you. 

XOXO,

P.S. You know what happened last week? I helped one of my clients finalize her business runway so that she can comfortably leave her 9-5 and work full-time for herself starting in the fall! Woohoo!!

I love this question because our spending habits, whether as individual human beings, or as companies, say a lot about our priorities. Or, rather, they say a lot about what our priorities actually are, but not necessarily what we want them to be. Whew - that’s confusing. Let me break it down. 

If you look at my family’s spending over the last three months the four categories with the highest expenditures are: 

1. Home (i.e. mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities)

2. Kids (i.e. childcare, clothing, activities) 

3. Food (groceries & restaurants)

4. Financial (taxes and retirement saving) 

If you look at my business’s spending over the last three months the four categories with the highest expenditures are: 

1. Payroll (by FAR the highest expense)

2. Software (Zoom, Quickbooks, etc.)

3. Office expenses (mostly tech equipment) 

4. Meals 

I feel good about both of these lists. My business expenses are largely related to my personal expenses (i.e. payroll) and my personal expenses are aligned with my values. That isn’t to say there aren’t things I’d like to change. I’d love if travel was a more common personal expense and I look forward to sending my two young children to public school in a few years, but I’m happy to pay for a home I love (and spend a LOT of time in!) and for childcare that is safe, loving, and nurturing. I’m glad I am able to spend on food the way I do and I’m glad my family is paying our taxes and saving for retirement. 

All of that being said, when I first started unpacking my finances (I’ll get more into the nitty gritty of this another time!) I did not at all feel good about the lists. I spent a lot of money on clothes that I didn’t necessarily need or even wear. I spent a lot of money on debt repayments that I knew weren’t strategic. I spent money on food that I didn’t really enjoy because I wouldn’t plan far enough ahead to have groceries at my house. I spent money in a way that reflected my lack of clarity and connection with my finances. 

And I felt SO. MUCH. GUILT. I felt guilty that I wasn’t trying harder. That I didn’t know what to do. That I didn’t understand how to fix the problems because I didn’t even know what the problems were. I felt guilty that I had just stuck my head in the sand. 

I wish I could say that I figured out this perfect, easy system for getting rid of that guilt, but truth be told, it just took time, reflection, a lot of hard work, and reminders to be kind to myself. I may not have always made financial decisions that made me proud, but I worked hard to change that. I learned a lot on my own and then, eventually, I went back to graduate school and switched careers to focus on helping others expel that guilt I once felt and to create systems and structures that mean that when they open their bank accounts they can feel proud too. 

If you’re in the sticking-your-head-in-the-sand phase, I feel you. It can get better. I promise. 

If you’re in the midst of figuring it out -- keep going! You got this!

If you’re in the proud-of-my-spending bucket -- yay! Keep it up my friend!

No matter what, I’m rooting for you.

XOXO,

HOT TIP CORNER

The annual option for subscriptions is often significantly cheaper than the monthly subscription option. The trick is making sure you are ready for that larger lump sum transaction when it comes along! Put in a calendar alert so you don’t forget about upcoming expenses and check here in the next newsletter for a trick on making sure your account is prepared for annual costs!