But in the life of one man,
Never the same time returns.
– T. S. Eliot, Murder in the Cathedral
The post Monthly Portfolio Report – October 2024 appeared first on The FI Explorer.
Yesterday, I listened to Rachel Reeves’ Budget speech so you don’t have to. Be particularly grateful, as this was the longest Budget I’ve ever heard, clocking in at almost 80 minutes. I’ve never known so…
The post A budget hitting employers and the well off appeared first on Much More With Less.
The case of the oversized case – and a win against Ryanair’s sneaky overcharging
On 22nd October 2024 Ryanair passenger Catherine Warrilow flew from Stansted to Seville, having paid in advance for priority boarding, a 10kg cabin bag and an underseat bag. Catherine, 45, from Oxford, knows what she’s doing. She is a travel expert with 15 years experience and is founder of The Plot, a travel brand consultancy.
On arrival at the gate, staff determined that the cabin bag was 2cm too deep. They told her to pay £75, leave the case behind or remove items and remeasure it. She removed some items and added a luggage strap so that the case fit within the Ryanair frame for the height, width and depth.
Despite taking one of the options offered to her by Ryanair staff, the check-in team told her that she still had to pay because of the “potential” size of the case. Although frustrated at the absurdity of the situation, Catherine paid £75 to take the case with her.
She says she begrudgingly paid a further £35 to check the bag in for the return flight to avoid a possible further £75 fee, taking the total to £110.
After her social media post on TikTok describing the situation went viral, the story was covered on the BBC online and on Jeremy Vine on BBC Radio 2. Hundreds of other passengers shared their experiences about the same issue.
@catminimarie Did you listen to the Ryanair baggage charges debate on @BBC Radio 2 today with Jeremy Vine? Have you been given some crazy reason your bag doesn’t comply and fined? #ryainair #baggagefines #jeremyvine #budgetairline #cabinbag #baggageallowance #excessbaggage
I was annoyed by the story and decided to take on the case (pun intended!). She wrote an email for Catherine, who thought it was worth fighting for. This covered the possible breach of consumer Law and Regulations. The result was a refund within 24 hours of sending the email.
I wrote the email for Catherine and sent it to the Ryanair CEO. You can get any CEO email addresses from ceoemail.com The CEO may not personally respond but it does escalate the matter and means you have written evidence.
The email explained the details of the flight, what happened at the airport and the unfair £75 charge because of the “potential” size of the case – that it might expand and that staff said they couldn’t risk having to “kneel on the case to fit it into the overhead locker”.
Embarrassed and confused by the peculiar notion that a case could “expand”, especially when secured by the luggage strap, Catherine asked for an amicable solution, considering the case fit and could not expand.
The email explains that she was given no choice other than to pay or leave the case behind and that this added to the confusion and contradiction.
It went on to explain how Catherine avoided having the same issue (despite having photo evidence that the case fit the rack), by paying a further £35 to check the bag in for the return flight, taking the total to £110 out-of-pocket.
Then we added the legal magic: The email referenced that there was nowhere in Ryanair’s Terms and Conditions to suggest that an expandable case is against any rules. It referred to the likelihood that this event was a breach of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTRs) because the Ts and Cs are misleading. If a consumer makes a decision because of misleading terms, then it is a breach. Catherine may well have chosen to do something else if she had already received the information that staff gave her at the airport. [1]
We mentioned a breach of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA), for good measure, because Ryanair gave Catherine wrong and conflicting information, which means that services were not carried out “with reasonable skill and care”, as the law requires.
In addition to these possible breaches of consumer law, Catherine also watched dozens of other passengers with the same size and style of case board without any problem. This shows that Ryanair demonstrated a lack of consistency and rigour in their rule-keeping. Again, a breach of the CRA.
We attached photo evidence showing the case both expanded – as it was presented at the gate initially – and compressed, with items removed, meeting the 20cm restriction.
We requested a full refund of the £110 and indicated that we would report the matter to the CAA and/or sue through the Small Claims Court if Catherine was not fully satisfied with the response.
Within 24 hours Catherine had her refund. Ryanair said that “Our records confirm our staff were simply following the procedure by checking the size of your bag according to our Terms and Conditions” but that, as a goodwill gesture, it would make a full refund. Catherine was delighted, commenting that it “… goes some way to a full stop for the hundreds of other people incorrectly charged.” She posted another TikTok describing the win and hopes that sharing her success will show others how to complain.
@catminimarie I got a full refund from Ryanair for my potentially oversized cabin bag – just under £110! With help from @BBC Radio 2 and @The Complaining Cow we took on Ryanair for ripping people off and breaking their own terms and conditions and we won. You need the right email address and you need to reference the right terms and legalities. If Ryanair have broken those conditions you could get your money back too. Let’s put an end to Ryanair ripping people off. I’m happy to share exactly what I did with anyone who wants to know and create a huge group of people who’ve had the same experiences. If enough of us fight then we could end these rip off charges. Use ceoemail.com for email addresses and quote Breaches: consumer protection of unfair trading regulations 2008 and CRA 2015. Report to CAA and progress through small claims. #ryainair #baggagecharges #handluggage #cabinbag #ryanaircharges #excessluggage
The Civil Aviation Authority said that very few issues have been raised regarding cabin luggage and that it did not consider it as a major issue. However, Catherine’s TikTok and appearance on Jeremy Vine would indicate otherwise. I encourage consumers to contest these unfair fees. It seems pretty clear that most people do not complain about these fees. But, when challenged using consumer law Ryanair appears to refund. If a consumer were to take them to court it might set a precedent and Ryanair and indeed any other airline would want to avoid that.
Tips for cabin luggage
- When booking your flight, take careful note of the size of cabin luggage and whether it will be enough. Many of the airlines have changed their luggage sizes recently.
- Check the costs of taking on any cabin luggage and compare with other flights, as you may get a cheaper overall price, taking all costs into consideration.
- Download a measuring app. Using the app take pictures of the bags/case that will clearly show the measurements. You can then use these as proof at the airport or in a complaint when you return.
- Remember that handles and wheels must fit inside the sizer.
Purchase and download a template for getting back those fees!
Charges unfairly applied for airline hand luggage
Advice regarding booking and complaining about holidays and flights
How best to book and complain about holidays/flights/travel links to various articles regarding saving money and your rights when booking and taking holidays.
Further help with complaining
20 Tips for effective complaining
101 Habits of an Effective Complainer provides you with more tips.
Purchase and download templates to gain redress swiftly.
The post Securing a refund for beleaguered Ryanair passenger who was overcharged appeared first on The Complaining Cow – Consumer Rights, Complaints and Customer Service Expert.
Though opinions vary on individual stocks vs. index funds, my own investments reflect a blend of both, from dividend and growth stocks to index funds, ETFs, and managed mutual funds. My uncle gave me one share of Chevron for my 20th birthday in 1995, and I built an individual stock portfolio from there. A retirement…
The post Individual Stocks vs. Index Funds – Why I Own Both appeared first on Retire Before Dad.
Tackling debt can feel like a mountain of stress but the right books can provide the knowledge and confidence to conquer it. Books on debt management cover everything from understanding personal finances to building sustainable strategies. If you’re looking for an easy way to grasp the essentials, z-lib makes learning about finance easy and accessible, bringing invaluable financial lessons within reach at any time.
Photo by Alice Pasqual on Unsplash
Why Books Are a Powerful Tool for Debt Recovery
Books go beyond simple advice as they can become a trusted companion on your financial journey. A well-written financial guide doesn’t just inform but transforms your perspective on money management. By diving into pages filled with real-life examples and straightforward techniques, readers experience empowerment as they navigate towards financial stability.
Many books teach practical debt relief techniques, from creating budgets to boosting income streams. These texts cover everything from minimizing expenses to rethinking financial behaviors, giving you tools that build a stable path forward. Engaging with books offers readers a step-by-step approach where they find practical examples and motivational tips. This unique perspective helps you see your finances through a clear lens and find lasting solutions.
Key Books That Can Make a Difference
Here’s a look at some essential reads for managing and clearing debt. These books are tailored to give readers insights and methods that inspire financial growth:
- “Total Money Makeover” by Dave Ramsey: This guide focuses on tackling debt with a no-nonsense approach offering baby steps that make each goal achievable.
- “Your Money or Your Life” by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin: By transforming views on money this book helps readers connect daily choices with financial independence.
- “The Barefoot Investor” by Scott Pape: A practical yet entertaining book this offers simple steps that are easy to follow and surprisingly powerful.
- “Debt-Free Forever” by Gail Vaz-Oxlade: Designed to guide readers through every phase of debt elimination this book shows how to break free of debt cycles.
- “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” by Ramit Sethi: Known for a casual yet actionable tone this book makes finance approachable by teaching simple yet effective strategies.
These choices aim to blend actionable advice with inspiration, offering readers a well-rounded toolkit for managing debt. Books that combine practical strategies and an encouraging tone serve as invaluable allies on this path. Incorporating Z lib into this process can ease the access to numerous resources on budgeting, money management, and financial independence, bringing wisdom from various authors directly to your device.
Setting Goals and Building Better Habits
A big part of overcoming debt is about mindset as well as methods. When you work toward debt-free goals, it becomes essential to identify which patterns led to debt in the first place. With a fresh mindset and determined focus, readers can begin to build more sustainable financial habits. As you read, you’ll likely find suggestions on how to improve income sources and make the most of what you already have.
These books give readers methods to develop habits that prevent future debt. By structuring finances effectively, they build a lifestyle based on savings and wise spending. Each chapter serves as a practical resource that helps users analyze their spending, enabling them to recognize patterns and make more intentional choices.
The post The Best Books for Learning How to Get Out of Debt appeared first on The Mini Millionaire.
Whether it’s your extended family, close friends, or anyone else you call family, talking about money and holiday plans can sometimes feel like navigating a minefield. With the holidays just around the corner, this is the perfect time to embrace stress-free money conversations and iron out those expectations.
Today I’m sharing some practical tips to help you approach these conversations with ease—no confrontation or awkwardness necessary! So, if you’re ready to take the tension out of the season and make the most of your family time, this one’s for you. Let’s get started.
Links for This Episode
- Check out these DIY Resources and Templates
- Download your FREE Holiday Budget Worksheet
- Grab your Financial Fix Up Planner
Podcast Episode Recommendations
- #31: So You Can’t Afford Christmas This Year, Now What?
- #30: How to Create and Stick to a Holiday Budget
- #17: 9 Things to Consider When It’s Your Chance to Host
- #1: The Truth About What Financial Freedom Actually Means to Me
Grab Your Financial Fix Up Planner Today
Here’s the deal: in order to achieve your long-term financial goals, you have to have a budget that works for you and your family. That means, getting super clear on your income, expenses, and total debt payoff amounts, so you can make any necessary changes and begin to see progress. That’s exactly what the Financial Fix Up Planner is designed to help you do. With step-by-step instructions to set up your budget, monthly challenges to keep you on your toes, menu planning resources, and space to reflect on your goals, you’ll have everything you need to pursue your dream of financial freedom. Sound like something you need? You can grab your copy today at lemonblessings.com/planner and take back control of your family finances. Once again that’s lemonblessings.com/planner for your copy of the Financial Fix Up Planner.
How to Have Stress-Free Money Conversations with Extended Family
Well hey there and welcome to another episode of the Financial Fix Up Podcast. I’m your host, Sarah Brumley, and today we’re diving into having financial conversations with family, whether that’s your immediate family or extended family or it could even be friends that you call family. And while these conversations may be necessary all year round, I think it’s especially important around the holidays when expectations around gifting, gatherings, and even travel come up.
So, today I want to give you a few tips for having those types of conversations in a non-confrontational and stress-free way so that you can truly enjoy the holiday season without worrying that you’re going to disappoint someone in the process.
Do trust me, though. It’s hard to make everyone happy, so you may just disappoint someone. The key is making sure that you do your best to prevent that ahead of time, and that’s where this type of conversation comes in. Because communication about expectations can make all of the difference. Okay?
Step #1: Set Up a Meeting
So, step one in this process is to set up a meeting or conversation time with your family. This is a conversation that happens AHEAD of the holiday, okay – you aren’t waiting until the day or week of – that only creates additional stress. Instead, pick a time and date that works for everyone and either get together at a neutral location or jump on a FaceTime call or something along those lines.
My family prefers the FaceTime option because we all live quite a distance from one another and have kids and schedules to maintain, so it’s easy to jump on a call and deal with the background noise while we talk. Of course, it needs to work for you and your family members, so choose an option that works best for everyone involved.
Before the meeting happens, I recommend setting some clear intentions like agreeing on gift budgets or dividing hosting responsibilities or whatever might apply to your situation. That allows each person to come with some idea of what they might contribute or the expectations they have for the holidays or gatherings to come.
Step #2: Be Honest
The second step in this process is to be honest. And that starts – before the meeting – by being honest with yourself. And I talk about this a lot, but you cannot have a conversation with someone else if you don’t truly know where you stand financially, what your goals are, and what your expectations are for the season ahead. So make sure you get that holiday budget in place, that you know where you stand financially, and that you know what you’re capable of offering before you start the conversation.
And if you haven’t had a chance to put your holiday budget into place just yet – you won’t want to wait much longer. You can grab my Holiday Budget Worksheet for FREE by heading to lemonblessings.com/holiday or by following the link in the show notes.
Once you’ve been honest with yourself, though, it’s time to show up for the meeting and be honest with your family. And trust me, talking about a tight budget isn’t always easy, and sometimes it feels awkward to admit that you’d rather not rely on credit cards for gifts. But if you bring it up in a friendly, open way and share a few alternative ideas, there’s a good chance others will understand and be willing to work together to make things easier for everyone.
I LOVE the quote from Mr. Rogers, “Honesty is often very hard. The truth is often painful. But the freedom it can bring is worth the trying.” So knowing that, choose honesty and freedom this season, my friend.
Step #3: Ask Questions and Offer Alternatives
The third step in this process is to ask questions and offer alternatives. The key here is having an open conversation about everyone’s hopes and limits so that you can create a season that feels meaningful to everyone. So, knowing that, I want to offer you some questions you can use to create a friendly and respectful conversation. Just kinda opening the door for everybody’s thoughts to come out.
- Gift Giving: What are everyone’s thoughts on gift-giving this year? Would anyone be interested in setting a budget or doing a white elephant gift exchange instead?
- Gift Limits: How do we feel about setting limits on gifts, such as focusing on just the kids, doing one gift per person, or exchanging names?
- Experiences vs. Gifts: Would anyone be interested in shifting from material gifts to shared experiences, like a family outing or activity together?
- Family Dinners: Are there any specific dishes or traditions that we should definitely include in our holiday meal? Any that we could leave behind?
- Hosting Responsibilities: Who feels comfortable hosting this year? Are there ways we could share the responsibilities or rotate each year?
- Food Contributions: Would it work to have each family member contribute a dish, dessert or other items for our meals together?
- Travel Expectations: What are everyone’s thoughts on traveling this year? Are there any budget or schedule concerns we should consider?
- New Traditions: Are there any new traditions anyone would like to start, especially ones that are less focused on spending and more on time together?
Now, of course, these questions are just a starting point. If there are other items or expectations that need to be addressed, it might be helpful to come up with some non-confrontational questions or alternatives to address those. And I do want to mention that if you are looking for additional money-saving alternatives, I will link to a couple of episodes in the show notes in which I discussed a bunch of different options.
Engage a Stress-Free Money Conversations
So, there you have it, my mini-guide to helping you facilitate a stress-free money conversation with your family. I do want to just remind you that the key here is to have an open, respectful conversation. Keep in mind that it’s okay for everyone to have different comfort levels – whether that’s financially, physically, or otherwise – and compromise might be necessary to keep everyone comfortable. If tensions get high (and they sometimes will) it’s also okay to take step back, ask for each person to give it some consideration, and come back to the conversation and a later time.
And, like I said before, if you haven’t had a chance to get your holiday budget up and going, make sure to grab your FREE copy of the Holiday Budget Worksheet by going to lemonblessings.com/holiday.
Whatever you decide, just know that I’m cheering you on! You’ve got this! Have an amazing day and I’ll chat with you again next time!
The post How to Have Stress Free Money Conversations with Family appeared first on Lemon Blessings.
Click here to read the Captain FI Net wealth update for Q2, 2024.
The post Captain FI Net wealth Update Q3 2024 first appeared on Captain FI.
Reading Time: 4 Minutes
“STREWTH I’M GLAD THAT’S OVER”.
I said, as I collapsed onto the couch.
“Daddy!!! Can we GO AGAIN PLEEEEASE”.
Something yelled in my ear.
No-forking-way I thought, as I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead in stress.
You see boys and girls, MrsFrugalSamurai and I (and the rugrats) just came back from a trip to the motherland.
And what a trip it was – if you’ve never gone travelling with kids…
DON’T.
For a couple of weeks there was proper blood, sweat and tears – the whole shebang, sometimes (oftentimes) all within the one day.
This was the first trip back to the motherland for 5 or 6 years, ever since MrsFrugalSamurai and I first got married.
For someone who has gone back religiously since the age of 8 (I have heaps of relos there still) – this trip really opened my eyes.
So excuse the hiatus in writing whilst I was gone, because honestly I. HAVE. NOT. HAD. ANY. TIME.
But as I drag myself out of this sleep-deprived, sanity-deprived, out-of-whack body clock shape – I naturally gravitate towards this blog.
To update you, dear reader, of all the comings and goings of what I learnt in the last fortnight or so.
Without further ado… here’s the list:
Don’t Travel With Kids
Or rather, make sure you get all your travelling done before kids.
We didn’t really have a choice as my grandma (the last surviving elder) was well into her 90s. So the primary purpose of this trip was for her great-grandkids to come and see her in person.
Family is everything in our household – which meant that we had to lug up 6 storeys of stairs in a Soviet-era apartment block every single day if only to have a family dinner.
I can’t complain too much of course, however if I had a choice, I would not be bringing a 1 yo and 3yo with me halfway around the world to see “sights”.
I think MiniFrugalSamurai said it best when I tried to show him the majesty of Tiananmen Square – “Daddy, my stegosaurus is not working”.
And the plane rides…“shudders”.
There is a special place in Heaven waiting for those parents who have survived plane rides with children.
I think the best advice I can give if you must travel with kids, is to have no expectations, don’t expect to see that attraction, don’t expect to enjoy that restaurant, don’t expect to come back to your hotel room happy, leave that word back home.
China’s Demographic Timebomb Is Real
Speaking of kids, China really has a kid problem, or rather, a lack of kids problem.
You know that cognitive bias when you notice something more when you yourself is aware of it more? Like when you have 2 mad, screaming, let-me-run-and-touch-it-all-you-stupid-man toddlers and you try to see if there are other toddlers around?
Well, everywhere we went (and we went to a LOT of places), one thing stood out in particular, there was barely any child under the age of 5 on the streets.
In fact, because MrsFrugalSamurai and I were pushing along 2 prams – we were often stopped and asked about our children, how old they were, what they are like, who is holding what dinosaur.
Indeed at some attractions, MiniFrugalSamurai and BabyFrugalSamurai usually attracted more attention than the attraction itself.
Many a time, a member of the older generation would come up to me and give me a big thumbs up sign for having fathered two kids.
I felt quite proud of myself.
Just doing my duty sir (gives a crisp salute).
Although it is somewhat worrying for the country, when most people are above the age of 50 and retired.
*This is because there is not enough younger people supporting the older people, increasing government costs and decreasing economic productivity. Increased longevity and decreased birth rates is a sign of this demographic “timebomb”.
The Economy Is Very Sluggish
In the past, whenever I have gone back – I had always felt this electric buzz in the air, with people coming and going and bustling in a dickens of a hurry everywhere. Money is to be made and I want to make it yesterday DAMN IT.
Not this time.
No, this time I really felt that everything was at a much slower pace.
From the attitude of the waiters at restaurants “Sir, you don’t need to order that much food”.
To the Uber (DiDi) drivers in their cars “After you guys, I’m heading home for a nap”.
To even the staff at many of the attractions “Yes, the park closes in 10 minutes, but I’m closing this ride a bit earlier”.
I think there is some truth to the reports about a slowdown in the Chinese economy, despite what the local media may say – certainly from my limited observations, people generally want to enjoy life more, take a step back to smell the roses and (young people especially) not work as hard.
There appears to be a general despondency in the Chinese working youth.
A personal anecdote was a discussion I had with one of my cousins, who used to subscribe to the 996 working system, was insanely successful in her career and who had started a family since I last saw her – her whole attitude and outlook on life and work had changed (perhaps it was having children) but nay, she advised that all her colleagues felt the same (she is the only one in her age group on her floor of 50 staff who has kids).
The main reasons she attributes to the cost of living, lack of career opportunities, depressed economic environment and ever since COVID (China had some shocking lockdown laws), an attitude to enjoy life more.
Not so dissimilar to the West I spose.
General Cleanliness
One sector of the economy who are thriving it seems, are the cleaners.
In the old days, I remember I used to always look down each time I stepped onto the street, if only to avoid the spit and rubbish and discarded cigarette butts.
Oh the spit and discarded cigarette butts were still there, albeit much less.
But honestly, there was minimal if any other rubbish lying around.
This is because each council hires armies of cleaners to clean the streets, parks, public toilets and other amenities.
The same is true in shopping centres and at tourist attractions.
Even MiniFrugalSamurai, himself a connoisseur of toilets was impressed.
“Daddy, these toilets are so clean, can we use them again?”
High praise indeed.
A lot of it is also attributable to public awareness and an uplift in attitude to cleanliness, a few times we saw people picking up other strangers’ rubbish to put them in the bin – inconceivable but a couple of years ago!
Change. It’s Everywhere
Finally, I have to say that China as a whole, has changed enormously.
Everything is new(er) and/or newly renovated.
From the old homes and streets to the apps on your mobile phone.
So few elements of the “old” China remain that for the very first time, I felt a foreigner, an outsider entering the country.
It’s become a true cashless society with some innovations which we Aussies would love – how about being able to have your food already cooked before you arrive at the restaurant? Or knowing exactly how many seconds are left at a traffic stop red light?
I barely recognize my old home, my old streets and furthermore, my old country.
And that’s why this trip was so important – to introduce our kids to their culture, to their ancestral home.
We’ll go back again of course.
But give me a break first please.
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P.S. Every post is the personal opinion of yours truly, please seek your own personal financial advice regarding your own personal circumstances.
The post 5 Thoughts From Our China Trip appeared first on The Frugal Samurai.
On 25 October 2024, Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT) released the results for 2H2024 and FY2024 that ended on 30 September 2024. The presentation slides contain a lot of insightful information, and they can be found on FCT’s official website. The Usual Healthy Metrics From FCT FCT reported strong portfolio performance that reflected healthy leasing demand, […]
The post Frasers Centrepoint Trust 2H FY2024 Full-Year Update (Oct 2023 To Sep 2024) appeared first on Turtle Investor.
Today we have a very special interview for Bitch Nation. Recently I sat down with the inimitable (and individual!) Kara Perez, author of the upcoming book Green Money: How to Reduce Waste, Build Wealth, and Create a Better Future for All.
Now, I don’t say this lightly, but… this book is giving me hope.
Green Money “shares a vision of how you can break free from outdated financial advice and live a fulfilling life that values community, sustainability, and financial well-being. Filled with real-world anecdotes, cutting-edge research, and hands-on money exercises, this book equips you with the tools needed to take immediate action towards a brighter, greener future.” Essentially, this is your guide to putting your money where your climate is—making financial choices to support a greener, more environmentally sustainable future.
For those of you squinting skeptically right now, I know what you’re thinking. But this is not another well-meaning finance guru offering individual solutions to systemic problems. Rather, Kara approaches the topic with the spirit of a community organizer and activist. Green Money is about our collective influence as much as it is our individual hopes for the future. It’s as optimistic and creative as it is ready to win this fight.
And I don’t know about you, but I will be putting on my thrifted boots and following this movement (via public transit) all the way!
Let’s get to the interview.
Activist-turned-author Kara Perez
You guys… we love Kara Perez.
We’ve loved her for years, in fact. She was one of our first friends in the personal finance space and over the years it has been an absolute thrill to watch her blossom into… well, this:
I haven’t seen that level of swag since we attended a financial media conference in bathrobes and sunglasses. She is eating.
Kara is the founder of Bravely Go, an award winning international financial education company. There, she teaches us how to make sustainable money choices that benefit us and our world, focusing on money as a tool, not an end goal.
And she has the millennial bona fides we use as a litmus test: she clawed her way up out of debt, student loans, and service industry jobs to eventually attain stability. She’s a Latina who grew up on food stamps, she adores thrift shopping (MY GIRL), and she’s an unrepentant progressive, intersectional feminist.
So I guess what I’m saying is… pay attention to what this woman is doing, ok?
Preorder Green Money today
Green Money by Kara Perez is coming out on November 13th from John Wiley & Sons. That’s just a few short weeks away!
But I’m not going to tell you to wait. In fact… don’t wait. One of the many factors that contributes to a book’s success these days is the number of preorders it receives before its publication date. You can trust me on this one—I used to work in book publishing!
So if you care about the environment and personal finance and the happy marriage between the two, I strongly encourage you to PREORDER your copy of Green Money TODAY. Sure, you can get buy it with one click through Amazon. And you can listen to the audiobook edition on Audible.
OR… you can immediately start practicing what this green money activist is preaching by preordering through Bookshop.org! This awesome organization works to connect readers with indie booksellers around the world. Every purchase made through their site financially supports independent bookstores instead of giant corporations like Amazon that don’t give two shits in a shirt about environmentally sustainable retail practices. Y’know… just in case you care about stuff like that.
Learn way more at Kara’s website, BravelyGo.
More Bitchtastic book reviews
We Bitches love to read. The taxes we pay to fund the public library is, like, 90% of our entertainment budget. Which is why we’re always thrilled when we get the chance to interview an author like Kara or review a fantastic book like Green Money.
Here are more of our Bitchtastic book reviews:
- Yanely Espinal Gets Real About Financial Strategy in New Book Mind Your Money
- Barbara Sloan’s New Book Dares To Suggest Service Industry Professionals Deserve Financial Stability Too
- Bitchtastic Book Review: Tanja Hester on Early Retirement, Privilege, and Her Book, Work Optional
- Bitchtastic Book Review: The Feminist Financial Handbook by Brynne Conroy
- Bitchtastic Book Review: Hand to Mouth by Linda Tirado
- Bitchtastic Book Review: Kurt Vonnegut’s Galapagos and Your Big Brain
- Bitchtastic Book Review: The Financial Diet by Chelsea Fagan
- The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander: A Bitchtastic Book Review
- I Read a Book About Warren Buffett. Here’s What I Learned.
- The Best Personal Finance Books of the Year, According to Our Very Exacting Standards
- New Personal Finance Books for Your Bitch-free Summer Vacation
Got a money book you think we should read? Recommend it in a comment, my lovely little bookworms!
Full interview transcript (click to expand)
Jess 0:07
Hello Bitch Nation. This is Piggy AKA Jess coming to you with an exclusive interview with the one and only Kara Perez of Bravely Go. What makes it exclusive? Nobody knows, but we’re going to talk to her about her upcoming book, Green Money: How to Reduce Waste, Build Wealth, and Create a Better Future for All, which is coming out on November 13th from John Wiley and Sons. And I’m going to ask Kara all about this amazing book. I loved it. She wrote it. Kara, how are you?
Kara 0:38
I’m great, I’m thrilled to be here. Love the name Bitch Nation. Just everything’s a 10 out of 10 right now.
Jess 0:44
Great, love to hear it. Oh my gosh. First things first, you know, this book is about sustainability and using your money to create a better world, a better, a more environmental world. Why you such a tree hugger?
Kara 0:59
You know, great question. Born that way, hashtag born that way. Also #dependent upon the planet for life, as are we all. And I think it makes a lot of sense for all of us to care about where we live and our experience on the planet.
Jess 1:17
Absolutely. Yeah. We are kind of all stuck here together on this rock. So yeah, let’s make it a little cleaner. Let’s make it a little better. Will you—for those in Bitch Nation who don’t follow you and haven’t heard us extolling your virtues before, can you tell us a little bit about your background as a financial expert and how you started Bravely Go?
Kara 1:39
Yes, let’s go on a journey. So the year is 1988, I am born, everyone is excited and then we flash forward about a decade. My single mom is hella broke. She’s saying no to all the things I want to do with my life and I’m like uh, rude. I’m trying to get these name brand cereals. She’s like, if you don’t put that down, I’m going to beat your ass. Like my mom was very like, no. And so I just grew up low income in this single parent household and was very aware of—we don’t have money, that makes life hard. And then I’m the only one of my siblings to have gone to college, had to take out student loans to do so, and then graduated in 2011, which my fellow Millennials and Gen X will remember, it was not technically the Great Recession, but was very much so the aftermath of the Great Recession, right? Like companies had been slashed down to nothing. No one wanted to hire you unless you had a STEM degree and like 35 years of experience. So I remained very low income throughout my 20s, like throughout my whole 20s and still today I’m 36, I’ve never had a full time salaried job. I’m very much so that story of the Millennial who like made the gig economy work because no one would hire me.
And so when I was 25, I had my quarter life crisis like right on time, very prompt, where I was just like, oh my gosh, my student loans are ruining my life. I’m making 15k a year, 16k a year as a waitress in Austin, TX. I have to pay all my bills, like I am getting no family help. If I don’t figure out money, which has been hard my whole life, the rest of my life is going to look like this. Like there’s no way out except through. So I started getting very into personal finance and started blogging about paying off my student loans while on a very low income. And I kind of cobbled together 5 different part time jobs so that I could try and increase my income, which I did successfully from you know, $15,000 a year to $30,000 a year. Gross. Pre taxes. But I was like, I’m living large. And I blogged about it and I paid off the remainder of my student loan. So I had paid off about $30,000 in student loans and interest total in the 3 1/2 years after graduation. And then I was like, great, now I’m at zero. I’m not in the red anymore, but I still don’t have any money. So I kind of turned that attention into saving and investing and started holding events around women and money in Austin, TX because I was so into it and I loved talking about it. And things just kind of snowballed, you know, got on social media, got my own LLC, and I’m just very passionate about teaching people the language of money. And now with the book, helping people make that connection between the world we live in, the challenges of the world we live in, and how their money is a tool to not only improve their own financial lives, but the financial systems that we all live in.
Jess 4:46
Yeah, I mean, you were basically forged in the fires of adversity, which we love. Anyone who talks to us, they’re like, well, you know, my parents paid for college, so I didn’t have student loans. We’re like, whoa, whoa, that’s nice. But we we can’t do anything with you. That’s—you are not—
Kara 5:00
Cut the mic. Cut the mic.
Jess 5:01
Cut the mic. You are not speaking to our target demographic. There you were, you know, living this life that is, I’ve heard from so many of our fellow Millennials and Gen Zers, Zoomers, if you will, and sadly, Gen Alpha, which I hear is the kids these days, they’re the little ones, you know, they’re not having it much better. So like your position as this person who has like fought tooth and nail and never forgot your values as an environmentalist and as a Latina in your community, like you are the person that so many people should be looking up to, which is why I’m so excited about your book for one thing.
Kara 5:39
Oh my gosh, thank you!
Jess 5:40
I know, I know I’m just blowing all the smoke up your ass. Well, so let’s talk about how you held true to those environmentalist values and your activism while you were building this personal finance empire and teaching others ’cause I mean really like you do it all.
Kara 6:00
Yeah. So you bring up a good point of, in our world, right, like we live in this very complex and often times compromising world. And there’s a lot of people who want to live a certain way but can’t, right? Like a lot of people are like, oh, I’d love to like move to the woods, you know, and like live on a commune. But I can’t because I gotta like, pay off my debt and I have to save for retirement and I need to have a job, right, like these are—
Jess 6:26
And I have people depending on me, yeah.
Kara 6:27
I have people depending on me, right? Or like, I can’t actually move to the woods because I have a chronic illness. I need to be near a doctor, near a hospital. Or a lot of people who are like, oh, I’d love to be a full time stay at home parent, you know. There are these financial constraints. In my case, I started bumping up against the challenges of being an environmentalist in a single use world, right? And in a world built on fossil fuels. And I was just like, yo, you know what’s crazy is that fossil fuels are ruining the planet. And also I’m hyper dependent on them. Like I gas up my car. I have to use electricity to, like, heat the house, you know, oil is in everything, oil is in plastic, plastic is everywhere. What’s happening? And that was just like a tension that I think many people feel right of I want to do this. But because of the systems, I have to do that, right, or I feel boxed in. And I had been grappling with that for a long time, just, you know, throughout college and my early adulthood of I wanna do this, but I have to do that. And then I found this subreddit called Fuck Nestle.
Jess 7:36
Yes! I love a good subreddit and I already see where this is going because spoiler alert, I’ve read your book. But fuck Nestle indeed. Go on.
Kara 7:46
And okay, and yes, I also love a good subreddit. There’s a subreddit for everything that you want. And I just stumbled across this one and it’s just a bunch of people who hate Nestle and specifically they boycott Nestle. Like they won’t buy Nestle products. And they always have these infographics of like, here’s the companies that Nestle owns. Just a reminder, you know, it’s not just the chocolate or it’s not just the water, it’s all these things. And then also they just have detailed posts of like the crimes of Nestle. You can’t go to that subreddit and leave being like, I’m a Nestle fan. You’re like, we must burn them to the ground.
Jess 8:18
Yeah, I know. It’s like I have discovered the evil empire.
Kara 8:22
Exactly, but that was the first time that it kind of like light bulb moment for me of oh my gosh, here are people who are using their economic power as individuals to put it to a company, like to put the screws to this company and I love it. And they’re not only spreading the word, but they are taking their dollars out of Nestle. And that just opened this door for me of oh my gosh, how can I withhold my money from companies I don’t like? How can I put my money into companies I do like? And being the money nerd that I am, it started with personal spending, but quickly expanded into my investments.
Which bank do I use? Like, how can I find institutions that align with my values so that I can use my money as a tool for a better world? And so I share all of that in kind of a lot of detail. People are like, girl, we get it. But I think often when people are trying to make their money more environmentally friendly, or when people are just trying to shift into a values based way of living, money often feels like an obstacle. And I really want to invite people to think of money as a tool instead of as like a wall they have to get through. It’s the ladder to get you over the wall, right? Or it’s the hammer to help you knock down that wall.
Jess 9:38
Yeah, hell yeah. Great metaphor. Well, so let’s talk a little bit more about people looking at money as an impediment in the way of their environmental activism or, you know, values and activism of any stripe. Because, you know, I’ve heard people be like, oh well, I would love to eat all organic food, but Whole Foods is more like whole paycheck. Or, you know, I would love to shop for ethically sourced clothing and whatever, but they’re so much more expensive. Tell me about in your book and in your message in general, like how do you address those concerns?
Kara 10:13
There is this nefarious reputation that sustainability has that it’s like for the elites, it’s not for the regular people and it’s way more expensive and it’s not true. It’s just not true. Poor people, low income people, live way more sustainably than wealthy people. People with money live largely unsustainably. Think about the fact, like Kim Kardashian—I love to throw the Kardashians under the bus here—but she has like Italian marble floors in her house. And if like, they need to be cleaned by this dude that she flies in from Italy. Kim Kardashian lives in LA. Like she—
Jess 10:50
That’s ridiculous.
Kara 10:51
Exactly. And like, that’s the ability of money, right? The ability of money is to have excess and not having money means that you cannot have excess. So you are re-wearing clothes year after year, right? You’re like doing your own repairs. So when people are saying oh well, like sustainable clothing is so expensive. No, like handmade, highly skilled artisan clothing, yes, that’s going to be expensive. But if you want sustainable clothes, it’s going to be the dress that you bought five years ago that you still wear. That’s sustainable clothing.
Jess 11:24
Or it’s gonna be the dress that you bought 5 minutes ago at Goodwill that has been through 3 different homes.
Kara 11:28
Goodwill. Exactly.
Jess 11:30
Yeah, I’m so glad you put it that way because it really is, you know, when you are coming from a place of not having a lot of money and resources, you are sort of forced to get creative and really believe in that. Reuse, recycle, repurpose or no? What is it?
Kara 11:52
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
Jess 11:54
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Yeah, there it is. You sort of are kind of forced into like truly living those values, which I think, you know, when you do have extra resources, you can spend less time and energy like worrying about where you’re going to get things. So you might not like take the time to make such conscientious decisions. So I love in your book, you have this great example. You were—you spent some time in Cuba. I would love for you to talk about what that experience taught you about using what is available versus, you know, spending a lot of money on getting something that’s ideal.
Kara 12:31
Man, so Cuba is fascinating and I really want to encourage especially Americans to go because going to Cuba changed me to my core, really and truly. And it’s a fascinating place where because of the US embargo, we don’t trade with Cuba, but we, meaning the United States, we also prevent other companies, countries rather, from trading with Cuba. So Cuba doesn’t have imports, right? Like we here in the United States, we’re like importing things right and left. You know, we got French cheese, we got Canadian bacon, we got all this stuff that’s coming in.
Jess 13:03
And I love both of those things.
Kara 13:05
I mean, delicious. And Cuba doesn’t. So Cuba basically has donations and what’s already on the island. So when you’re there, you start to notice people are using things not only repeatedly, but they’re using things in ways they were never meant to be used. And it is an incredible act of creativity. So when I was there, my host took me out to a rooftop bar, which was amazing. And we are looking out over the ocean and it was like 85°. It was perfect. Drinking a mojito. There’s a lot of rum in Cuba. They make their own rum, so there’s always a lot of rum going around. They call it vitamin R, and I love that. But I’m looking around and I was like, oh my gosh, the lamp covers are blenders. Like instead of having like a normal air quotes, normal lampshade, the entire patio, every single light bulb had a plastic blender over it. Because they don’t have lampshades. Like they don’t have—they can’t just be like, I’m going to run to Target and pick up a bunch of new trendy lampshades. They are under this embargo and they have to use what they have. So the owner of that bar was like, yeah, I found a bunch of blenders and this is what I used, right? And their menus were a bunch of um, I wanna say CDs. But what’s the? What’s the bigger than a CD?
Jess 14:34
Oh the records, the record cases.
Kara 14:36
Thank you. Album covers and newspapers and stuff that they had had for years that were just around. And they’re like, oh well, we’ll just use that as our menu cover instead of like the laminated plastic stuff that we have here because they don’t have laminators at Kinko’s or at like, you know, Staples or whatever it is. And that to me, I don’t want to say like, we should all live like Cubans. We should all pretend we’re under an embargo or anything like that. But I do think that we should look at sustainable living as an exercise in creativity and ask ourselves, what do I already have that works? Because when we—we do here in the United States, live in a culture that is constantly reminding you of how terrible you are, of how lacking you are, and they’re constantly trying to sell you the solution. Hey, you smell bad. You should get deodorant and you should get perfume and you should get this scented shampoo, right? Like, hey, you have bad skin. You need a 15 step skin care routine. Hey, you wanna show people you’re successful? You need a car that costs 50 grand, not a car that costs 20 grand, right? There’s always more and bigger that you can do. And ultimately, that leads us down a road where we can never be fulfilled. And I think you see that with the billionaires who are constantly trying to hoard more money. It’s like you have $100 billion, you won capitalism. Like, why?
Jess 15:56
Those bastards. Yeah like what more do you need?
Kara 15:59
Yeah, like, why do you need more? You know, so instead of trying to fill this hole that capitalism creates that really can’t be filled, I encourage people to ask themselves like, what am I satisfied with? What do I have that already works? What am I good with? And living this more creatively fulfilling and financially stable life.
Jess 16:21
I think that’s really beautiful. And I think, you know, a lot of personal finance gurus say a lot, you know, live intentionally, use your money intentionally, live by your values, spend by your values. But you’re really putting paid to that, you know, your book is all about like saying, okay, if you could buy nothing else except food for the rest of your life, how would you make things work? And I love that aspect of artistry and creativity that you put in it because it really does like, it speaks highly of the practitioners of this way of life.
And I say this, the practitioners of this way of life as if you’re a cult leader, which you’re not. But girl, if you wanted to start one.
Kara 17:03
But maybe!
Jess 17:04
I will sign up! Well, so let’s turn to sort of the other aspect of the book. We’ve talked a little bit about, you know, what people can do in their personal lives to battle this American overconsumption. But I would love to hear more about what you recommend for activism and you know, political purposes in people’s lives. The Nestle boycott was a great example, but what else do you recommend people do?
Kara 17:31
Yeah, so a big push back that those of us in the sustainable space also get frequently is, well, nothing I can do as an individual matters, right? Like it’s a systemic problem. And yeah, it is a systemic problem. But guess what? You’re a part of the system and I’m part of the system. We’re all in it, babes, okay. So that means, as it has meant for forever, that collective power creates change. And so the final chapter of the book really is exploring stories of people who have pushed for environmental protections, environmental regulations, and who have created change on a systemic level. So if that’s something that you are interested in and you’re like, I am ready for the revolution, let’s go. First of all, meet you in the streets. Let’s do this.
Jess 18:20
Let’s do it. Where’s my molotov cocktail?
Kara 18:23
Right. Exactly. Second of all, look to the people that are already doing the work, right. Look to the people who share the same passions as you and the energies that they’re putting out. So a couple of organizations that I love that are nationwide, Citizens Climate Lobby, Strong Towns. There’s a lot of organizations that are doing things like advocating for bike lanes, planting trees, advocating for legislative change, and you can be a part of that. So all you have to do, literally it’s a Google search, you know, just like look up bike lane advocacy, you know, Austin, TX or bike lane advocacy St. Louis, like wherever you are. And I promise you, someone’s already out there doing it. And now it’s just a matter of joining them. So remember that you’ll never do your best work alone and you’ll never do your most impactful work alone. It’s always going to be with other people. And when we think about all of the major social political changes that have happened just in United States history, what was it? It was groups of people, right? The civil rights movement, the suffragette movement. So being a part of the movement that’s already underway is how we as individuals use our time and power for the greater good.
Jess 19:37
Well said. And I wanted to—to anybody who’s kind of like doubting what you just said there. I do want to point out like we can point to one of the major environmental catastrophes of the 90s was the hole in the ozone layer, which is anyone talking about how to stop the hole in the ozone layer anymore? No, they’re not because we stopped the growth of that hole in the ozone layer and we have started to repair the ozone layer. It was climate activists and people just like you and me who made a big stink about it and pressured world governments to put their money and their resources towards fixing the ozone layer. And we can do that again with other climate based and environmental problems that are happening. But we have to put our money where our mouth is. We have to, you know, put butts in seats and feet on streets and use our—no, but we have to, you know, use our time, our resources, and our money to make that change happen. And I think that your book is a great sort of primer for where people can start with that. Speaking of where people can start, where can they find you online, Kara?
Kara 20:48
Oh my gosh, everywhere. I’m very Googleable is what I always tell people. So obviously it is Green Money is the name of the book. So if you type that into Google, it’ll come up on Amazon, Target, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, if you want to support an indie bookstore. And then I—
Jess 21:05
And we do.
Kara 21:06
We always do, right. Actually my publisher, this is a little tea—my publisher got a little upset ‘cause she was like, hey, I see that you keep using the Bookshop link, which is like so great, but we really need you to push the Amazon link because they use Amazon to like base the print run.
Jess 21:25
They do, they do. And I get that as a publishing professional. But here at Bitch Nation where we say if you want to eat the rich, stop feeding Amazon, we’re going to push that Bookshop.org link. We’re going to push Indiebound. We’re even going to push Barnes & Noble or your local bookstore. So in all of your other media interviews, you can push the Amazon link. But here we’re going to say look for Green Money by Kara Perez on Indiebound and Bookshop.org and find her on Bravely Go. Kara, I have one more deeply hard hitting journalistic question for you, and that is if this interview has inspired someone in Bitch Nation to use their money for the forces of environmentalist good, where should they start?
Kara 22:15
I’m gonna give a two-part answer. If you’re like, okay, I’m really just starting at like negative numbers here. I don’t know anything about this. I would encourage you to think about what is an issue that’s near and dear to your heart, because environmentalism and environmental justice encompasses a lot of things. We’re talking about food justice. We’re talking about clean air, clean water. We’re talking about like land back. There’s a lot that goes into that. So find something that’s passionate for you and just start learning more about that and become really fluent in the issues and the people involved in the history of it. And for me, that was recycling. When I first got into environmentalism as an adult, I was really into recycling because I thought recycling was the answer to all our problems. Turns out it’s not, but I wouldn’t know that if I hadn’t started looking into it. So just understand that becoming informed is a huge step forward.
And then once you’re feeling informed and you’re really ready for action, I want to encourage you to try and go one day without a car. If you live in New York, that might be easier, but for pretty much the rest of the United States, it’s hard to go without a car. And that will radicalize you real quick. And will also show you how deeply our world is built for things that are not humans, like the fact that a lot of cities don’t have sidewalks, that they don’t have even just like curb cuts. If there is a sidewalk, there isn’t a curb cut, which is where the curb opens. And it’s that like smooth part that meets the road. Yeah. For wheelchair users, like a lot of sidewalks don’t have that. And it will help you see, oh my gosh, I actually live in a really—I live in a world that’s very hostile to me getting around unless I opt into having a car. And I just think that’s a really good exercise for people to have their minds blown. And so I would say do your research and then try and go one day without a car where you’re not just like staying at home. You’re like, I’m trying to run errands without this car and see how easy or how difficult that is for you.
Jess 24:31
I love that. That’s great advice, and as a noted car hater, I thoroughly endorse it. Attentive members of Bitch Nation will know that I walk almost everywhere and I grumble and complain every time I have to drive, despite living in a major city where I shouldn’t have to. I love my bus pass.
The book, once again, is Green Money: How To Reduce Waste, Build Wealth, and Create a Better Future for All. You can see the gorgeous cover art over Kara’s shoulder. Thank you so much, Kara. Everyone should pre-order her book on Indiebound or bookshop.org or yes, Amazon.com before the book comes out on November 13th. Kara, thank you so much for joining us.
Kara 25:12
Thank you for having me and Bitch Nation, I can just tell that you are all smart and beautiful people. So shout out y’all.
Jess 25:19
It’s true. And they have great taste.
Kara 25:21
I knew it. I just knew, I could feel that.
Jess 25:24
Beautiful. Kara, thank you so much.
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