Financial Literacy: Control Your Finances With These Tips
<p style=”text-align: left;”><strong>Financial literacy</strong> is as important as learning how to read and write. Being financially literate can be one of the most powerful tools a person can possess. On Saturday December 5th I attended the <a href=”https://abreak4mommy.com/2015/12/on-a-road-to-financial-freedom/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>#PUSHMoneyMatters Empowerment Series</a> hosted by <a href=”http://www.rainbowpush.org/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Rainbow PUSH Coalition &; Citizenship Education Fund</a> sponsored…
<p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Financial literacy</strong> is as important as learning how to read and write. Being financially literate can be one of the most powerful tools a person can possess. On Saturday December 5th I attended the <a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/2015/12/on-a-road-to-financial-freedom/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">#PUSHMoneyMatters Empowerment Series</a> hosted by <a href="http://www.rainbowpush.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rainbow PUSH Coalition &; Citizenship Education Fund</a> sponsored by <a href="http://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/home.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2015/sep/0930-rainbow.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chevrolet</a>; a free event to teach residents of the community about basic money management skills. The Saturday workshop was closure to a three city tour of Detroit, Atlanta, and ending here in Chicago. The series is driven as a national empowerment campaign focused on helping to improve the quality of financial literacy in the community.</p>
<p><img class="aligncenter wp-image-815 size-full" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/speakersI.jpg" alt="literacy literacy" width="406" height="735" /></p>
<p>The event was from 10 a.m. &#8211; 3 p.m. and started with an <a href="http://rainbowpush.org/pages/saturday_morning_forum" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opening forum</a> from Rev Jesse Jackson and Jonathan Jackson. The mood initiated a spark in your engine to want to learn more about financial literacy and the empowerment of knowing how to spend your money wisely. After the opening forum I was ready to learn. My goal for the day was to walk away with knowledge on how to improve my credit, learn how to invest, and get tips on improving my spending habits.<a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Welcomepushmoneymatters.jpg"><br />
</a></p>
<figure id="attachment_817" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-817" style="width: 551px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/RevJesseJackson.jpg"><img class="wp-image-817 size-full" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/RevJesseJackson.jpg" alt="financial literacy" width="551" height="735" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-817" class="wp-caption-text">Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. (founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition)</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_820" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-820" style="width: 225px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/billcheeks.jpg"><img class="wp-image-820 size-medium" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/billcheeks-225x300.jpg" alt="financial literacy" width="225" height="300" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-820" class="wp-caption-text">William &#8220;Bill&#8221; Cheeks</figcaption></figure>
<p>Mr. William &#8220;Bill&#8221; Cheeks and his perfect credit of score 850 began to speak and I was all ears. There was nothing more exciting than seeing a person with perfect <strong>credit</strong> willing to share his knowledge with a room filled with young people for FREE. I hope you have your pen and paper because I am all about sharing, here is what Mr. Cheeks says will help lead you to a better credit score.</p>
<ul>
<li>Pay more than the minimum</li>
<li>Pay in full every month</li>
<li>Say &#8220;No&#8221; to cash advances</li>
<li>Pay on time every time</li>
<li>Stay well within your credit limit ( although it suggest staying at or below 30% Mr. Cheeks only uses about 8% of his credit limit)</li>
<li>Review your monthly statements</li>
<li>Monitor your interest rates</li>
<li>Don&#8217;t close cards that have been on your account for a long time</li>
<li>Monitor your credit report and have errors removed</li>
<li>Never borrow more in student loan debt than your anticipated first year&#8217;s annual salary</li>
<li>A divorce decree does not separate finances (joint accounts-both parties are responsible)</li>
</ul>
<p>His session left me wanting more knowledge, he even offered free credit counseling to 20 people in attendance. Financial literacy was something he focused on, specifically for improving your credit.</p>
<h3><span style="color: #33cccc;">Financial Literacy = Financial Empowerment </span></h3>
<figure id="attachment_823" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-823" style="width: 300px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img class="wp-image-823 size-medium" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Gail-Perry-Mason-300x300.jpg" alt="financial literacy" width="300" height="300" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-823" class="wp-caption-text">Gail Perry- Mason</figcaption></figure>
<p>My next session proved to be just as empowering. Gail Perry- Mason took to the mic and offered tips on how to spend your money wisely and how to invest. If you aren&#8217;t signed up for the following sites to save you money while shopping, do so now.</p>
<ol>
<li><a href="http://www.retailmenot.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">retailmenot.com</a> (coupons/ discount codes) (love it)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=i2z8XCPjEGmcgiLTzGByFw%3D%3D&;eeid=26471" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ebates.com</a> (money back for shopping online) (I have a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EnmaiaDrQQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Youtube video </a>on this one</li>
<li><a href="https://www.gofobo.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gofobo.com</a> (free movie passes) (used it many times in the past)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.restaurant.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">restaurants.com</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.thepennyhoarder.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pennyhoarders.com</a> (new for me and I will be checking it out)</li>
</ol>
<p>Mrs. Gail-Mason was amazing. She spoke about how important it is to stop spending and living outside of your means. One of her best pieces of advice was to stop spending your money on products and start buying shares of the companies you love.</p>
<p>The event continued on with an empowerment session from the Senior Manager of Supplier Diversity from General Motors, Mr. Reginald Humphrey. I&#8217;m not trying to keep up with nobody, If your fruit doesn&#8217;t bare that type of juice, squeeze it out and get back to your type of budget, he said. Meaning, if you can&#8217;t afford what others around you have, stop trying to keep up with them and get back to your level of affordability. Financial literacy isn&#8217;t something that is taught in schools it is something we have to seek and teach ourselves and our children.</p>
<figure id="attachment_825" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-825" style="width: 980px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/speakers.jpg"><img class="wp-image-825 size-full" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/speakers.jpg" alt="financial literacy" width="980" height="735" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-825" class="wp-caption-text">From Left William Cheeks, Rev. Tyrone McGowan, Gail Perry-Mason, Reginald Humphrey</figcaption></figure>
<p>I left the event with a plan to get my finances even more on track. I learned a few tips on purchasing stocks and negotiating for the purchase of a car. I hope you can find something to take away and help improve your financial life #FindNewRoads.</p>
<p><a href="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/mefindnewroads.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-826 size-full" src="https://abreak4mommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/mefindnewroads.jpg" alt="financial literacy" width="551" height="735" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">*This is a sponsored post. The views expressed in the post are my own.</p>
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Wow…what a comprehensive review. I didn’t get a chance to attend Gail Perry-Mason’s session but now I feel like I was there. It was so good to meet you.
-Dasha
http://windycitywardrobe.com
Thanks it was nice to see you too. I hope we meet again soon. I really enjoyed the workshops. Mrs. Perry-Mason was amazing.
I am photo obsessed. I must say you captured the best pics I have seen of the event yet. Next time I am bringing my DSLR. LOL! I looooooved Mr. Cheeks’ session. I am so glad you caught Mrs. Perry-Mason’s session. I really wish I would not have missed out. She was delivering gold.
Cia | http://CiaSays.com
Thank you. Yes, she was amazing I recorded it for future reference. So many wonderful websites and tips.
Being knowledgable in finance is very important in today’s world and it is being neglected in schools IMO. Thanks for the great post 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and stopping by. It really needs to be a course taught being in around 5th grade.
I am photo obsessed. I must say you captured the best pics I have seen of the event yet. Next time I am bringing my DSLR. LOL! I looooooved Mr. Cheeks’ session. I am so glad you caught Mrs. Perry-Mason’s session. I really wish I would not have missed out. She was delivering gold.
Cia | http://CiaSays.com
Wow…what a comprehensive review. I didn’t get a chance to attend Gail Perry-Mason’s session but now I feel like I was there. It was so good to meet you.
-Dasha
http://windycitywardrobe.com
Being knowledgable in finance is very important in today’s world and it is being neglected in schools IMO. Thanks for the great post 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and stopping by. It really needs to be a course taught being in around 5th grade.
Thank you. Yes, she was amazing I recorded it for future reference. So many wonderful websites and tips.
Thanks it was nice to see you too. I hope we meet again soon. I really enjoyed the workshops. Mrs. Perry-Mason was amazing.