A $150,000 Update and Other (Plutus) Boons

Holy guacamole, it only took ten months to gain another $50,000. This is the power of financial literacy and putting it into practice. Hello, new $150000 net worth!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDm1IFUHre1/

I wish I could say this is a long time coming, since that phrasing implies patient, hard work that’s finally received its due. But there really wasn’t any work I wasn’t doing before; in fact, there’s even less of it, now that I don’t have to work a second job or deal with commuting. I have more time on my hands now than I ever did, even as a student. No classes, homework, teacher meetings, counselor meetings, or tear-inducing extracurriculars to bother me now!!

I knew I’d reach a $150000 net worth before we saw 2021, even if the market gave zero returns the entire year. I really don’t think this growth is sustainable during a once-in-a-century pandemic, but staying the course sure has worked out for me.

Financially Speaking

Fun fact: I turned 26 just this last month! Having this much moolah at my relatively young age really brings a lot to the table for me; if I’m just a little bit patient, it also brings a lot more. If I let my money do its thing and grow, I will end up:

• Earning an average of $15,000 minimum by leaving it in stock market index funds, or:
• Giving me $500 a month for the rest of my life
• Reaching a million-dollar net worth when I’m 47 years old, assuming I never contribute another dime. But if I keep on investing $40k, that means:
• Reaching a million-dollar net worth when I’m 36 years old

And just for fun, let’s take a look at all of the things I could blow that fat stash on TOMORROW:

• A three-bed home in my hometown or other rural area, IN CASH
• A $750,000 home anywhere else, assuming I use my $150000 net worth for the 20% down payment (slideshow of the possibilities below!)
• 230 plane tickets to Europe (assuming each ticket is ~$650)
• A Harvard MBA degree… twice over
• Five years of life (or HALF A DECADE) without needing to earn money
• 150000 trees planted with nature conservancy organizations like the National Forest Foundation or #teamtrees
• All the adoption fees for 13 foster children
• All the in-state college tuition fees for 4 people
• 46,000 orders of chips and guac at Chipotle (I’m a simple lady)

Real Talk

When I say money gives you options, I MEAN MONEY GIVES YOU OPTIONS. It gave me the option to live alone instead of with roommates; it’s also gifted me with a stress-free life at odds with the millions of people still struggling. You might feel dread now when thinking about budgeting or putting your money at risk in investing; I get it. But if you do it, your life can transform in just a few years’ time. Even if I had tens of thousands of dollars of debt, I’d already be debt-free by now. If I had a significant other with a $100,000 student loan debt, I could pay it off and still be in the green.

Just imagine what having a $150000 net worth would do to your life. Or to anyone’s life. Imagine the dreams and goals that are suddenly that much closer to bringing into reality. Especially if you haven’t yet reached your 30s or 40s or 50s. It can butterfly-effect its way into a lifetime of incredible experiences and joys, positively influencing countless more lives along the way. And once your frugality muscles and income streams are adequately worked, it becomes as natural as breathing.

Extra Joys

Learning so much about money has positively impacted my life in ways that go way beyond the material things. I’ve gotten emails, blog comments, and social media messages from others that thank me for (over)sharing my money views. It’s also led to finding the elusive Holy Grail known as “my people”. My heart is so fully and firmly connected to the friends I’ve met in the finance community.

And just yesterday, it gave me the news that this blog is a finalist for the Best New Personal Finance Blog award via the Plutus Foundation. AKA, the Grammys/Oscars of the personal finance world.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CEAZFR4nnPH/

I may have screamed.

Just a little.

I GOT NOTICED BY THE PLUTUS AWARDS

SO THAT FREAKING HAPPENED.

If you want to know who the biggest names are in personal finance, you’ll find them listed as former Plutus Award winners and finalists. My $150000 net worth seems like baby’s first piggy bank compared to the stellar strides these people have taken for themselves. AND for all those who consume their content to boot. You’ve seen above how awesome that $150000 is, so this comparison it to illustrate how ASTRONOMICALLY FABULOUS these folks are as well!! So for the rest of the Internet: I’m ready for my close up.

These people come from all walks of life, regions, incomes, lifestyles, genders, races, ethnicities, and sexualities to bring you the financial education you were formerly denied. With so much wealth of diversity and experiences here (it ain’t just counted in dollars!) we all celebrate the wins and empathize the losses. We also don’t shy away from discussing and taking action against the injustices of the world, especially those that set up barriers for others to reach the heights we have. We’re about climbing mountains with others, not hoarding gold piles in rank caves.

And now I can formally say “we” as one of them.

Before I wrap this up, here’s a short list of other finalists this year I’ve especially enjoyed:

All Options Considered

This blog is run by a BRILLIANT queer couple Ali and Alison, who reached financial independence 3 years ago and have been cruising around the world ever since. Seems like a lot of awesome ladies – and their brands – end up with the initials AOC 😉 I highly recommend their Instagram feed, which even in COVID times is filled with incredible scenes and reflections of life well lived!

Michelle is Money Hungry

She runs both a blog and a podcast (Girl Gone Frugal) nabbing a finalist position in the new category of Best Current Events Content Related to Personal Finance. Specifically, for this, which is one of the most in-depth and insightful pieces I’ve seen in the finance community. Michelle is a Black woman who makes everything about handling money and entrepreneurship as transparent as can be; that’s not an easy resource to find, let alone cultivate to the level that she has.

Bitches Get Riches

This year they were nominated for four different categories, and for GOOD FUCKING REASON. Kitty and Piggy are fully committed to teaching others about financial literacy through this sharp, sharp mix of feminist takes, god-tier humor, and a nonjudgmental approach that leaves me staggering as bad as Gwyneth Paltrow from… whatever caused her to say this:

Rich and REGULAR

I have never seen such honesty, or vulnerability, transformed into near-unshakable strengths as I have with Kiersten and Julian sharing their financial lessons learned. They’ve taken their passion for improving Black lives and forged a bedrock of resources and support to achieve exactly that. Their latest content series is Money on the Table, which combines money talk with cooking Food Network-worthy meals. Food and finance: two of my most favorite things. Enough freaking said.

I Like to Dabble

HOW Daniela accomplishes all of the things she does leaves me with my mouth hanging open. If you’re like me and want to try everything under the sun to see if you like it, Daniela’s got the low-down for you. Seriously, by the time you’ve even vaguely conceived of an interesting potential side hustle she’s already vetted it, saw it through, and published her review on its viability and fun-ness. Plus, she stuffs her social media full of insanely-helpful resources as well.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDbhVebBUvx/

Tread Lightly, Retire Early

Angela is a freaking Rockstar at both personal finance and environmental responsibility. Even Microsoft Word recognized her badassity and automatically capitalized that R in Rockstar. She proves my point many times over that living green (i.e. lowering your carbon footprint) goes hand-in-hand with keeping green (i.e. getting rich). She also makes a point of lifting the voices of others via her Facebook group and by curating Women’s Personal Finance Wednesdays.

And, of course, check out the other content creators who are new to the scene like me. Each one has made me realize I need to step up my game up, because they inspire me with their focus on their story and how they can help others get there. These folks are:

Brave Saver – a financial and philosophical blog run by Elyssa, who is INCREDIBLY supportive to boot!

Cash for Tacos – my food-name soul sister whose outgoing personality flies out in her writing

FIRE With a Family – they hit EVERY money topic your average family faces while being ultra-approachable and friendly

Literally Broke – Scarlett makes money stuff look glamorous, and her aesthetic is total #goals

Mama Bear Finance – I don’t even have a baby and I got sucked into her posts about finance with a little one

Trip of a Lifestyle – I’ve been lowkey creeping on their content for a while, and they’ve got incredibly refreshing takes on everything finance

Check them out! I’ll wait.

And the craziest thing is, I wouldn’t have found hardly any of these people if I didn’t start up We Want Guac. Might’ve even fallen off the wagon of saving as much too if I didn’t have so much positive reinforcement. Whoever said that thing about “this will come back to you tenfold” really wasn’t kidding around. It’s why I consider helping others to be a selfish thing, because it brings you so much more than what you initially put into it. Kinda like investing, in a way.

Plus, this barely scratches the surface of all of the creators out there. Peruse the Plutus Awards finalist collection and click on literally any link there; it’ll open you up to thinking about money in some original way you’ve never encountered before. No bland same-old stuff here. These are all innovators, and folks that send my own $150000-net-worth star rising just by virtue of being among them.

Cover image credit: Judith Ekedi Jangwa via Unsplash