About Me

Welcome to my personal finance and career blog! I started writing a few years ago, out of frustration with my lack of knowledge around money and how to advance my career. I also had a strong desire to have real conversations with other millennials.

The Journey Begins... 

I remember graduating from college during the recession and having no real plans as to what came next. As a first-generation college graduate, I felt an immense amount of pressure to be sure of myself without having any guidance or previous road map.

I went on countless interviews and finally realized that I would have to move back home after graduation. At the time, I thought that this change would be a drastic step backward. Thankfully I landed a job, but it required me to work 50+ hours a week at a retail store as part of a management trainee program. In retrospect, it was one of the most humbling times in my life because it shattered the idea that having a degree was a guaranteed path to career success.

Outside of having a fantastic time with my family, I was also able to put a substantial amount away in my savings. The decision to live at home was crucial since I decided to move and start my MBA graduate program seven months later.

Welcome to The Chi...

The reality of graduate school was hard. At that level of a program, everyone is smart, accomplished, and driven. I think that was the first time I truly understood impostor syndrome. Often I questioned my capabilities, intelligence, and if I could navigate the program as well as living in a big city. I genuinely embodied the “fake it to you make it” daily.

Thankfully, after two years, I graduated with my MBA.

More Debt More Problems...

Then another shock happened. The realization that obtaining an advanced degree did not necessarily equal a grand job. There I was two degrees under my belt, with MASSIVE amounts of student loan debt, while working as a nanny.

Sidebar: Have you ever seen that episode of Sex and the City, when Carrie realizes her entire net worth is in her closet? Yea, that was me looking at two shiny pieces of expensive paper with my name on them.

So in a swirl of real panic, I mass applied for jobs.

Wasted So Much Time...

I never took the time to develop a strategy for my career and finances. I thought it was all a numbers game. If I applied to a ton of jobs, I would increase the odds of me receiving interviews, which will lead to higher chances of me getting hired. Once I accepted that amazing job, I would be able to pay off my enormous debt, which included my growing high-interest credit card.

It’s fine to laugh and cry with me at this former thought process.

At one point, I had applied to so many jobs that I had to create an Excel spreadsheet to keep track. How ironic that at the time, I wasn’t tracking my spending or credit card usage? In hindsight, I wasted time applying to roles that did not align with my interests or skills.

Process to Progress...

Fast forward eight years, and I’ve had the opportunity to work for a variety of amazing organizations, which have included multiple Fortune 500 companies and the 2nd largest advertising group in the world. I have lived in 4 states and two major cities and accomplished some significant financial and career milestones once I developed a plan.

More Specifically, I have…

• Paid off close to $10,000 in credit card debt

• Negotiated a salary that resulted in a +55% increase

• Increased my credit score by 200 points

• Aggressively working to pay off my student loans ($25K paid down)

• Starting my FIRE (financial independence retirement early) journey