4 Ways To Make Your Money Work For You

4 Ways to make your money work for you

The path to true wealth isn’t some magical secret or something unobtainable. It’s really simple actually:

Make money, invest that money to make more, and make sure your expenses don’t exceed your income. What does this mean? It means the way to wealth isn’t by how hard you work but how many streams of income you have.

You’re probably thinking “well that’s much easier said than done”. Girl, trust me I know! But I’m going to give you a few ways you can start the process. These strategies work even if you’re starting with $100 or $1,000. Keep in mind, all of these take work to get started. If you’re not ready to put the work in then this post isn’t for you.

Interest Income - the concept is simple, loan your money to someone else and charge interest for it. No, I don’t mean loan it to your broke cousin who never pays back lol. There’s websites that offer “Peer to Peer Lending.” Peer Lending is when you loan money to a business, another person or even a charity. You’re basically a bank. You can pick the qualifications of the person that receives your money. For instance, you can chose to only loan to those with a good credit history and a $50k+/yr income. It’s completely up to you. But in return for loaning them the money, you can charge a interest rate and start earning money. Yes, there are risks involved which is why you want to qualify the person that receives the money so that you’re minimizing the risk. Want to know why banks are so rich? No, it’s not because your Uncle Joe leaves his retirement fund in there year after year. Most people think banks are in game of HOLDING money, but they’re actually in the game of LENDING money and earning interest. Here’s what I mean, 65% of Americans own their home. The avg home is $200-500k (depending on your state of course). The avg American doesn’t have that much money so how are they affording these homes? The bank gives them the money and in return the homeowner agrees to pay the bank interest plus principal for the next 30 yrs. The current interest rate is 3%. You may be thinking, well 3% for 30 years isn’t so bad when you consider how much money they’re giving you. But baby, do the math! After the 30 years are over you’ll be paying double for the home if not more. Listen, I’m not mad at the banks. I’ve learned to beat them at their own game (we will talk about this anothe post) but if you can’t beat them, join em! Do what they do! The best part of all? You can start with as little as $500 and there’s no work involved after you’ve given the money! You just set up payment dates and start earning interest. So, regardless of if you’re on vacation, sick or creating another stream of income you’re collecting your coins!

Rental Income - this one may sound familiar. Its when you earn money from a property or item that you rent out. If you have a small budget but want to get into real estate rentals, you can start by renting a room in your home. There’s even websites that allow you to rent your car. For example, you can buy a used car for $7k and rent it out for $90/day. You’d be making $32/year without doing much leg work. My husband rents out jet skis (it’s always warm where we live) and makes his other source of income that way. We bought the jet ski for about $8k and rent it out for $500-1k/day. The jet skis mostly gets booked on Thursday-Sundays but it’s still income we earn without doing much. There’s plenty of ways to get started in rental income, just get creative. Ask yourself what is it that people in your area NEED but aren’t willing to purchase themselves? If you want to jump into real estate, be prepared to invest a lot of money. I know a lot of YouTube “gurus” say you can get started with no money down🙄 but I’m going to be honest with you, it takes money to make money. I bought my first property last year when interest rates were at its lowest and it’s already gone up $75k in value! So yes you may have to invest a lot of money up front, but you’ll make it all back! Do your research, save money, be patient and invest when the time is right for YOU!

Stocks, bonds or ETFs - this a good way to start making money work for you if you don’t have much capital. Stock prices range can from $1.00/share to $1,500/share so you’re able to invest with little to a lot of money. Bonds and ETFs are a really good way to increase your money without a lot of risk. But keep in mind that the more risk involved, the more the reward. So yes, stocks may be riskier than bonds or ETFs but there’s a reason for that. I know you’ve heard that stocks are risky, you can lose money, and Wall Street is full of crooked white men. All that is true but so the fuck what! Corporate America is risky! They can fire you at any time, but society still tells us to get these jobs. You can lose money by investing your pay check into a 401k, but society still tells us that’s the right thing to do. Our country is ran by crooked white men so that’s nothing new. The best way to succeed in stocks is simply by doing research and being patient! If you read my previous post about how I saved $24k last year, most of it was because of investments I made. I made some risky choices, lost money and gained even more. But let me tell you, nothing will ever feel better than waking up and realizing I made money in my sleep.

Business Income - making money in a business is one that’s most common. The concept is simple - solve a problem and get people smarter than you to run the operations. The common mistake I see with entrepreneurs is that they become a slave to their business. What’s the point of having a business if you’re just going to work FOR it? If you’re doing everything in your business that’s a hustle, not a business. Now before you get mad at me, just listen. I understand that it takes time to transition from a one person show to a team but I just want to say that so you remember, in order to run a business that’s successful, generates a REAL profit, and has your money working for you, you need employees. For those that are new here, I run a virtual bookkeeping and accounting firm that helps women organize, save and grow their money. I’ve seen the backend of over 100 businesses ranging from $5k/year to $1.7m/year in revenue and what I’ve noticed is that the most profitable companies have a team running the business, while the CEO runs the team. The best part about making money with a business is that the income potential is limitless.

These are just 4 ways to start putting your money to work. Let me know if you want more or if you have any questions 🦋

best advice you’d give a girl?

-Hone in on what you love doing right now and don’t stop doing it. Anything like painting, theater, reading, etc. will become grounding activities as you grow older, and you’ll find it imperative to stick to your roots.

-The best thing you can do is live for you. Not for anyone else. Let people guide you but don’t ever let them overrule you. You make yourself, so ensure that the you you’re creating is authentic.

-Don’t wait until you do so and so to feel ready for something else. Keep active plans to get to your goals.

-Don’t talk to anybody romantically until you know who you are first. People won’t be able to connect with you on that level if you can’t first connect with yourself. Also, don’t bother “holding” anyone down but yourself. People are fickle, you exist until you don’t.

-When we transition from girlhood to womanhood, most of the time we still hide behind “older” people because we see them as more knowledgeable. You have to let that idea go. Adults are just as stupid as kids, except they can legally drink. Don’t be afraid to put your voice out there, even if it opposes seniority.

-Learn how to create and cultivate friends that genuinely care for you. Those people that barely text you or forget about you when events come up are not your friends. Don’t take bullshit from them because you don’t want to be lonely.

-Learn moderation. Partying, drugs, sex, etc. all become more prevalent as you grow older and there’s nobody to tell you to stop but yourself. Don’t become an alcoholic because you didn’t wanna seem like a drag to some drunkhappy friends.

-Don’t wait until later to start building a financial foundation for yourself. Get a good savings account now, adopt a budgeting method, look into investing. Go to seminars and conferences about money even if you’re the youngest person in the room. You will be lightyears ahead of your peers.

-Find value in slightly older friends. They’ll show you what you shouldn’t do and help prepare you for your future. It’s how I know the majority of the things I do.

-Avoid quick gratification. It’ll satiate you for a while but you will still be hungry for something better afterwards.

-Being alone is important. I highly recommend living alone before you get roommates (if that’s financially affordable) because you learn not to base your identity off of other people’s belongings. Our homes become an extension of us. You need to learn how to be independent and how to cultivate your space free of others’ opinion. You need to cook naked in the morning and dance in your living room at night. It is a feeling of freedom that is irreplaceable, and it’ll be one you always remember if someone tries to make you dependent on them. Outside of your living space, go to museums and festivals and operas alone. Have fun. Make new friends. Realize that you shine just fine all on your own. You are not meant to be hidden behind other personalities in your friend group all the time.

-Everything you do, learn how to do it well. And then learn how to turn that well into damn near perfect. Always strive for the best when your work is representing you.

-Deletion ain’t nothing but an action boo. Somebody unimportant is annoying you? Delete! Instagram feed making you too mad? Delete! Friend refuses to do right by you? Delete! Of course you need to develop communication tactics but some people don’t deserve that time and don’t you waste it on them either. Anything you don’t want in your life, you can get rid of. Remember that. You don’t have to stay suffering.

✨ HOW TO BECOME A WEALTHY MIDDLE AGED MAN✨

PT.1: Overview to the world of money, financial plans, and how to go about managing your money

Welcome lovelies to (what I hope will be) a helpful series on gaining wealth, and becoming financially literate and independent!

This is starting off at basically the complete beginning but will speed up soon so be patient.

*disclaimer: while this advice can generally apply to many it will not apply to all. Everyone is in a different situation and should do their own research before they take what ANYONE says as fact or law. This is also coming from the perspective of a young, biracial, first generation female business student following a hypergamous lifestyle and who does sw so some advice may be specific to my like-minded ladies, but for the most part I just love money and want to help others find joy in their wallets as well. I am also operating in the US so things regarding accounts, stocks,and certain laws will vary by your country.Also, this is just a fun thing I wanted to do because talking about leveling up and learning and growing and money are my favorite past times. None of these picture are mine and I am in no way getting rewarded from you going to these links (though I should look into that), they are just actual sources I use for myself.

So without further ado let’s get started!

✨THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND✨

First things first, before you start gaining wealth you need to make sure all of your chakras are aligned (or at least minimally skewed) and that starts with your mindset.

For many hypergamous/ feminine ladies we already know we must acquire an abundant mindset. This is a mindset that allows for the law of attraction to take effect (if your into that stuff) and helps to get you thinking like the rich. 

Getting this down can be a journey in itself but I highly suggest at least starting it while on the journey to financial literacy if you really want to win in this game.

✨MONEY IS A GAME OF STRATEGY AND PLANNING, NOT LUCK✨

Think of the world of money as a video game. There are many levels, there are many realms, there are things you need to collect on the way, and there are many players. It’s not Pacman or Galactica either, this game requires strategy, planning, and a steady head on sturdy shoulders. Do not hurt yourself by diving head first with no intel on the enemy or the obstacles ahead. Things like getting into the stock market and making passive income are not get rich quick schemes or the lottery. We are in this for the long haul! Keep in mind, that while a game, it is completely serious and that money is power. While it can’t buy happiness, it can put you through school and keep food on the table. The more you have of it the more access to resources, people, and potential you have.

I’m going to try and keep this video game theme going throughout the series to organize all of this info because the worst thing about beginning this journey is how overwhelming and disorganized it can seem,, but hopefully this helps to visualize a reasonable plan and outlook.

Here’s a look at the world of money 

You can think of the chart below as an outline of the realms. Within each are levels/worlds to unlock and learn about…For example, in the realm of Financial Psychology lies the abundance vs scarcity mindset lesson. In Accounts,savings,etc. there is the lesson on savings accounts and how to enter the stock market. A simple way to think of this is you start at Financial Psychology and make your way clockwise. However, each one connects and intertwines in various ways, which we will explore in later posts.

For our journey I am going to skip to the Accounts,Savings,etc. realm and assume you have finished Financial Psychology (if you are living a hypergamous lifestyle/leveling up you probably have this part somewhat down). I do highly recommend looking into the below sources if you like anything about psychology and learning why humans do what we do (coming from a psych minor I think all it is fascinating), or if you just need to catch up:  

http://financialpsychologycenter.com/introduction-to-financial-psychology-blog-series/

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/02/112502.asp

✨FINANCIAL PLANS AND STRATEGIES✨

Financial plans are the reason the rich get richer and the poor stay poor. Even though this seems like something incredibly mundane it makes a huge difference! This is where we all will need to really analyze our own situations and lives to tailor our game plans. Think of it as picking your character and weapons based on their strengths and weaknesses. General laws you should follow to guide you should include:

Living below your means (I recommend immediately taking +40% off of your checks/allowances and putting a certain percentage of that in savings and a certain percentage in investments. I know it’s not as glamorous as spending 5k on a handbag whenever you want but my general rule is if I can’t afford to buy something 3x over I can’t afford it)

Always do your own research (never just blindly follow any youtuber/tumblr user’s advice, including this post, please fact check and verify everything you read with at least one other source )

If you have the means to hire a professional advisor or get a financial mentor/friend, I recommend it-Someone who will always be looking to help you and has experiencing dealing with all of the lingo everyday is invaluable when looking for advice or just general how to

Check out more tips in the link below

https://lifehack-solution.com/financial-planning-tips/

Those of us in hypergamy/sw/leveling up may have more volatile income streams compared to someone with a 9-5 who is pretty certain that their job will be there tomorrow or at least get a 2 week notice. Because of this things like how much we keep for emergency funds and how we go about investing are going to be different because we have to manage a different level of risk. But, for now, as a general template follow these steps:

1. Create a budget-What is your fixed income/reliable income each month? What do you spend on necessities every month? could you be spending less in any category? What are your expenses versus your revenues? Get a solid idea of what your financial life looks like on paper. A generally well regarded budget method is linked below. And remember, we are planning on being millionaires not middle class so do as the rich do.

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/finance/how-to-build-a-budget/

And if you are a SWer check out this website for tips on business/personal goals and advice: https://www.theorganisedescort.com/

2. Set goals-Just like any plan it’s good to have in mind what exactly you are doing all of this for. Do you want to save up 5k in 6 months or be a millionaire by 30? Write them all down and put as much detail and context around them as possible. One technique I like to use to write my goals follows - (What you want to accomplish)(when you want to accomplish it)(how you want to accomplish it)(why you want to accomplish it)(and where you will be/what you will do when you accomplish it)

3.Plan for taxes/manage debt- I don’t have much experience in taxes or in debt management but learning about these topics is one of my personal goals and I plan to do a deep dive into this soon, so once I get comfortable in this topic I’ll make a separate post, but you do need to make sure you account for your taxes and focus on paying off your debt. If you have any loans or notes your second goal should be to pay them off as quickly as possible (first goal is step number 4). The less interest you have to pay the better. I have also attached sources for managing/lowering taxes but look it up and there are millions of articles to read and learn from:

https://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/legal-secrets-to-reducing-your-taxes

https://bettermoneyhabits.bankofamerica.com/en/taxes-income

https://www.smartaboutmoney.org/Topics/Insurance-and-Taxes/Tips-for-Filing-Taxes/What-You-Need-to-Do-Your-Own-Taxes

4.Emergency Fund-This should be everyone’s first goal they want to achieve.How much you budget into this will depend on your lifestyle and job. Generally, the riskier your income stream is or the higher the chance of surprise expenses popping up, the more money you should put up in an emergency fund/savings account that you DO NOT TOUCH UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. This fund should be able to last you at least 3-4 months if you ever lost your job/allowance/broke your leg/whale dumps you/or what have you. Take your budget and times the amount you pay for necessities by however many months you feel suitable (again I recommend 3+ for everyone). That should be your minimum emergency fund goal. Below is a source that takes you through creating one.

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/start-small-save-up/start-saving/an-essential-guide-to-building-an-emergency-fund/

5. Start your retirement fund NOW- look, social security in the US is honestly just a joke at this point and the retirement age increases every year. Do you really want to be 75 and still working? H*LL NO. If you want me to I can make a separate post on this but I’m linking a source which will essentially take you through each step. This is no joke and I do not want to see any of you having to labor into your 70s so please start now!

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/051613/how-start-saving-retirement.asp

6.INVEST- Here comes the fun part! Now that you have an understanding of your money and all of the back work is done and settled, now is the time to generate wealth by giving it away lol. Investing includes stocks, bonds, ETFs, index funds, art, real estate, start ups,crypto, if you’re into coin collecting or have a stamp collection. There are lots of ways in which to invest, but to put it simply, it is where you put X amount of money in and hope that more than X amount of money returns. It is also a form of passive income which is money that requires little to no effort to gain. For example, if someone invested $1000 in Am*zon in 1997 it would now be worth over 1.5mil today and all they did was give away their money because they believed that Am*zon would do good in the future.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/31/if-you-put-1000-dollars-in-amazon-in-1997-heres-how-much-youd-have-now.html

✨IN CLOSING ✨

Drink up lads we are on the way to financial freedom and millions!

Seriously though, I know a lot of this was very elementary but I wanted to make sure we started this off on the right foot. I would have hated it if someone with 15k in student loans decided to put 5k into stocks instead of paying their debts. This was just a brief overview of all of the basics which you should have down and I recommend looking through each of the sources. People of wealth have these things ingrained in them as soon as they escape the womb, money is their first language which is why it seems so easy for them. Those of us not born wealthy are learning from scratch. We have to catch up and make ourselves fluent before we can really blend in. 

VOCAB TO KNOW/RESEARCH:

Hypergamy

Abundant mindset

Financial Psychology

Financial Planning

Risk

Budget

Fixed income

Expenses

Revenues

Taxes

Debt Management

Emergency Fund

Retirement Fund

Social Security

Investments

Stocks

Bonds

ETFs

Index Funds

Real Estate

Cryptocurrency

Passive Income

In part 2 we will get into the different types of investments (stocks, real estate, crypto…) and how you should manage your savings and funds to maximize your benefits! Let me know any specific questions related to types of investments or accounts you guys have so I can integrate them in. ALSO, if in these posts I ever give bad advice,F something up, or am just generally ignorant PLEASE call me out! Remember that just like you I am a young woman figuring everything out and while I am confident when talking about money I am by no means a genius (only in spurts) so any chance to learn I appreciate. I hope you all learned something new today and as always…

With Love,

O

MAGICAL HAIR MASK

ALL HAIR TYPES

This is a magical & economic hair treatment to moisturize, strengthen, smooth, reduce frizz and excess fat in the hair. You will notice results instantly!

If you have curly hair this will help hydrate and keep frizz under control your curls will look more defined after one use. If you have straight hair it will help keep your hair sleek & shiny longer.

I recommend the use of this hair mask at least once a week to maintain you hair at its best! Beautiful strong hair doesn’t come from doing a mask whenever you feel like it. Discipline is key!

INGREDIENTS

3 cups of water

3 tablespoons of cornstarch

2 tablespoons of a conditioner of your choice

2-3 tablespoons of olive oil

OPTIONAL: you can add a teaspoon of any other hair oil you may use perhaps Argan oil or flaxseed oil.

NO COCONUT OIL 

INSTRUCTIONS

Add the 3 cups of water and 3 tablespoons of cornstarch into a pot, cook on low heat and stir until it has thickened up the mixture will look cloudy.

Remove from the heat and add your conditioner stirring it thoroughly, proceed to adding the olive oil and stirring it all together. Place the magical mask into a heat safe container then refrigerate it to let it cool down and thicken up a bit more.

Once you mask is cool to the touch you can divide your dry hair into 3-4 section so you can evenly apply the hydrating mask onto you hair. You should be able to untangle your hair with your fingers while applying the product. If not it is okay to use a brush to detangle.

Wrap your hair up and cover it (this could be with a shower cap or even a plastic bag). You want to leave the mask on for at least 30min depending on your hair type & how dry it is you can leave it on for 45min to 1 hour tops!

Get in the shower and wash your hair as you normally would. You can shampoo before you rinse you hair, then continue with your favorite conditioner. It will instantly feel smooth to the touch.

Style you hair as you normally would, you can leave it natural & add your regular products just don’t saturate your hair because it will leave your hair greasy.

THANK YOU TO MY COLOMBIAN MOTHER & HER ROOTS FOR THIS TIP!

PRETTYPRIVILEGESS

Stuff Nobody Tells you About Getting An Apartment.

This’ll cover the basics, such as financial expectation, rental history, what to bring for the application process, etc.

Read More

Let’s talk about money & energy!

So many people think you need to work long hours, do more, or over extend yourself to make more money. As women we are paid less for the same job men do and given less venture capital and business loans than male-owned businesses, but expected to compete with them. God forbid we take another route like sugaring or escorting (the only field we can out earn our male counterparts) then we’re looked down upon. The narrative society has created when it comes to women obtaining and keeping wealth is a negative one, and it’s not by accident. It’s why we have unconscious negative beliefs about money that could be holding us back from earning it. With that being said, let’s get into some ways to remove any negative energy and limiting beliefs around money.

Write down every memory you have with money. Every single memory, from a bully taking your lunch money in the 3rd grade to watching your mother get evicted because she didn’t have enough to pay the rent that month. Just get a journal, pen, and write down every memory that comes to mind - no matter how big or small it may seem. You’ll start to notice a pattern with the memories. It could be that people are always TAKING money from you, or that you’re always ASKING people for money, or maybe you just never have ENOUGH. This is the most powerful tool I’ve used to go from being homeless to earning six figures and thats no joke y’all. This tactic brings up sooo many negative experiences I’ve had with money that I forgot even happened.

Once you’ve reconciled with your memories, make a list of the emotions you felt during those memories. It could be feelings of guilt, shame, or pride. But it’s important to identify these emotions because this will help you understand the underlying emotions you carry with you when it comes to money. Go through the list of emotions and memories, and say out loud “I release the feeling of [emotion] when it comes to money. I forgive myself and I forgive money for making me feel this way. These emotions no longer resonate with me.” Say this until you no longer have to. Memories and emotions repeat itself until your fully heal from them. Be prepared to do exercise more than once.

Knowing your beliefs. Now that we know the underlying negative emotions with money & where it came from, let’s get down to the self talk. What do you tell yourself about money? Do you think you can only make money from hard work? Do you think money is too complicated? Are you so scared of taxes that you don’t want to earn a lot of money due to your fear of it being taken away? Determine the negative self talk so you can shift those beliefs.

Affirmations . I swear by affirmations! Yes, they really work. They just require time and consistency. In order to shift those negative beliefs, you need to tell yourself a new story about money. Instead of focusing only on removing the bad beliefs, REPLACE them with positive ones. Affirmations require some realness. Don’t say shit like “money is my friend” if you’d never say that to yourself foreal. Talk about money like you’d talk about a guy you like, “money is perfect for me. Money was meant for me. Abundance and wealth is all mine”. No matter what you tell yourself, make it authentic. If you really want to see results, record your affirmations and listen to them when you first wake up or when you’re going to bed. This is when your subconscious mind is most receptive.

Hypnotherapy. I love a good hypnosis. Hypnotherapy alters the state of the mind and then tells your subconscious mind a series of suggestions and affirmations. I used to have a fear of driving (like you couldn’t pay me to get behind the wheel) until I did hypnotherapy. My practitioner put me in a trance then told my subconscious mind a series of affirmations about driving so that when I woke up I had a new belief. Even after the appointment (which she recorded) I listened to the session every night. Just like affirmations, this takes consistency. And guess what? Ya girl is a licensed driver now! I recommend using a licensed hypnotherapist instead of DIYing this. Your subconscious mind is too precious to just be winging it on yourself.

Just remember that you can change your circumstance at any time! You do not have to settle a life of mediocrity or lack. You have the power within you to change your life at any given time. ✨

Follow me for more money, accounting and finance tips. 🦋