Know Your Blogger Series
Money Saved is Money Earned
We started our blog in March of 2018. The primary reason for starting our blog was to share our knowledge and experiences in personal finance. We both believe in protecting the average consumer from the exploitation of today’s marketing techniques. Our mission is to teach people of all ages how financial systems work, and how to take advantage of these systems to save big money.Check out our Q&A with Money Saved is Money Earned here.
Come read about the great personal finance blog, Money Saved is Money Earned.
Each week at Personal Finance Blogs, we publish interviews from amazing bloggers from the personal finance space. This week, we are featuring the blog, Money Saved is Money Earned.
During these weekly features, we are hoping to provide a way for you to interact and learn more about different blogs in the personal finance space.
Below, you can read more about the story behind Money Saved is Money Earned, learn about the author, and learn personal finance tips from Money Saved is Money Earned to help you improve your financial situation.
A big thanks for Money Saved is Money Earned for this interview! Now, we will turn it over to the author for this interview.
During these weekly features, we are hoping to provide a way for you to interact and learn more about different blogs in the personal finance space.
Below, you can read more about the story behind Money Saved is Money Earned, learn about the author, and learn personal finance tips from Money Saved is Money Earned to help you improve your financial situation.
A big thanks for Money Saved is Money Earned for this interview! Now, we will turn it over to the author for this interview.
Tell us about Money Saved is Money Earned
We started our blog in March of 2018. The primary reason for starting our blog was to share our knowledge and experiences in personal finance. We both believe in protecting the average consumer from the exploitation of today’s marketing techniques. Our mission is to teach people of all ages how financial systems work, and how to take advantage of these systems to save big money.
Although we didn’t officially launch until March of 2018, we’d been contemplating the idea of a blog for a few years and we’d prepared for the launch for a few months. Finally, we did it.
The name “Money Saved is Money Earned” was inspired from our own life experience. It is a play on the Benjamin Franklin saying, “a penny saved is a penny earned,” and is something that Sebastian used to say regularly. The more money you make the more you can save is not true unless you spent less and know how to manage your income and expenses. Any little bit you can save goes straight back into your pocket, becoming like money earned.
What makes you and your blog unique?
What makes us unique is that we are co-bloggers at different stages in our life, from different backgrounds, and with different life experiences coming together. We see that most personal finance blogs are geared towards people with more money. The more money you have the easier it is to make more. On the other hand, our blog’s is primary focus is to educate our readers how they can save money by make smart choices in their everyday life. Our goal is to teach personal finance topics so our readers can save more, earn more, and ultimately, live more.
What does “being good with your personal finances” mean to you?
It means being conscious and vigilant about your own financial situation. It also means understanding the basics, living within your means, and being willing to learn and grow. No one knows everything about personal finance, but you must be basically financially literate, and most importantly, your behavior must reflect that literacy. We encourage our readers to spend within their means, whatever that is for each person.
What are some habits you practice to keep your personal finances in order?
Among many, here are a few important ones:
- Have a budget and stick with it.
- Understand the difference between your necessities, needs, and wants.
- Beware of miscellaneous expenses, especially the ones that are not in your budget.
- If you make only a dollar, save a penny and give a penny. Build character.
- Do not fall for a sales pitch unless you are in the market for that item. More importantly, understand how they slice the pie.
What are your three articles people should read to get to know you and your message better on your site?
For someone looking to improve their financial situation, what’s your best advice?
First of all, read the three articles above. Second, educate yourself. There are tons of free resources out there including blogs, books, and podcasts, and others where you can learn about almost any financial topic. Once you know more about finance you can begin to set some goals for yourself. Make sure you go easy on yourself and try not to get discouraged if you don’t progress as quickly as you’d like. Whatever progress you make will mean better finances for yourself, your family, and your future.
In your opinion, what’s better? Focusing on increasing your income, or focusing on decreasing your expenses?
We encourage beginners to focus on decreasing expenses. While it is true that you can only cut so much, and that ultimately you will need to switch to increasing your income, it won’t do you any good to make more if your basics aren’t sound. A large portion of those making over $100k a year live paycheck to paycheck, so more money won’t necessarily help unless you have sound financial practices.
What is your favorite investment class and why?
My (Sebastian) favorite investment is stocks, especially mutual fund. I would recommend reducing the risk factor as you get older where you need redeem some of your investments. If you have the funds, real estate is a solid investment.
My (Tawnya) favorite investment is index funds. I like to index and chill and not have to worry about managing my portfolio or trading.
If you received a $5,000,000 windfall tomorrow, what would you do with the money?
I (Seb) would invest a major part of the 5 million in a real estate in a state where more and more people are moving in. I would definitely invest part of it in the digital market.
I (Tawnya) would first pay off my house and pay some bills for family members. Then, I would put a large chunk into index funds. Finally, I would use some of the money to buy rental properties or invest in real estate in some other fashion.
What’s a non-money related interest you have and what do you love about it?
We believe in having a balance in life. We love playing sports, connecting with the nature, and watching basketball. We also strongly believe in paying it forward. I (Seb) do spend a good amount of time for non-profit organizations. I (Tawnya) also really love reading and travel.
Why do you believe learning about money and caring about personal finance is important?
Unfortunately, no one owns everything they need in their everyday life. We all are dependent on specialized entities for food, housing, utilities, and pretty much everything we need in our life. Without having real money we cannot acquire any of these life’s necessities. So, it is quite clear that everything does revolve around money. Therefore, learning about money and caring about personal finance is not just important, it is essential.
How You Can Contact Money Saved is Money Earned for More Information
You can learn more about Money Saved is Money Earned at https://moneysavedmoneyearned.com/ and follow them on Twitter at @moneysavedblog
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Thank you for reading this interview, and thank you, Money Saved is Money Earned, for providing us with some great personal finance tips!
