Financially Naked

On this episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, Gina and Juan, two Certified Financial Trainers, are here to talk about how to budget for the winter holidays! It's October, and it's never too early to prepare for the festive season.

From making a list, checking it twice, and budgeting for everything else that comes along with the holidays, you can plan ahead. Trainers at The Gym coach clients through this every year! Gina and Juan are here to share all the tips and tricks they know to make the process as stress-free as possible so you can enjoy the most wonderful time of the year without going into debt.

For more details check out our show notes here!

If you want to work with a Certified Financial Trainer to help navigate your finances, schedule a free warm-up call today! If you have any ideas or questions for the show, send an email to [email protected].

• 5 Ways to Plan Your Holiday Budget Now
• How to Plan Financially for the Holiday Season Now

Juan Valeriano, Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer

Gina Funaro, Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer

On this episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, our host is Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer, Randi DeGraw, based in New Jersey. She is joined by one of her clients, Eileen, to sit down and talk about one of their favorite topics, teaching kids about good financial habits early on. Both Randi and Eileen have children. Eileen’s son, Sebastian, is nine years old and Randi has two kids. Harper who is four years old and JJ, who is six. Today, they discuss how and when to get started, books to read with your kids, and different tools you can use to get them excited about financial literacy.

Podcast Notes

• Children learn the most about money by observing their parents, especially if other discussions aren’t being had.
• Have intentional conversations and let them watch you.
• Eileen talks about her family dynamic growing up. One parent had a gambling addiction and the other had a spending addiction. She learned how to rack up credit card debt and ended up filing bankruptcy. After her divorce, she only had $347 to her name and had to figure out how to manage money quickly.
• This is a huge motivating factor in teaching her own son. She wants him to build a great relationship and habits with money, even before he starts working. The goal is to teach valuable lessons and set him up for success in adulthood.
• Money is a vital part of how we operate in the world. Teaching kids early isn’t about them being obsessed with money, just how to have a healthy relationship with it.

WHERE TO GET STARTED

• Start the conversation with money in general. Kids start learning about money in kindergarten or first grade, and you can build on what they learned with real coins at home.
• Get them involved and excited. Eileen and Sebastian built a money bank from a DIY Home Depot kit. There was wood, nails, and paint. He was so excited to build it. He also has a wallet to keep his cash organized.
• Read books about money together, there are great ones for kids.
• Teach them the concepts and allow them to make age appropriate decisions. The supermarket and dollar store are great places to start with young children.
• Sebastian got excited about money around age 8, though the smaller conversations started earlier.
• Letting kids spend their own money is one of the best learning tools.
• Make money a fun and enjoyable topic

ALLOWANCE

• When Sebastian was young, the allowance started at $1 per week. We’d go to the dollar store and he was able to use the money he saved to buy what he wanted.
• A real allowance started at age 8 for Sebastian and it is a mix of cash and debit. Each Thursday is payday and they go over the spreadsheet together so he can see where the money goes.
• Eileen uses the app Greenlight and there are many great features!
• There are weekly chores for the base allowance, but opportunity to make extra cash doing extra chores such as vacuuming the car or helping rake leaves.

WHAT EILEEN & SEBASTIAN FOCUS ON

• They talk about savings goals: giving, sharing, and spending are all savings goals on the Greenlight card.
• When it comes time to take money out and spend it, Sebastian will look at the price and say, ‘That’s too expensive! I’m not buying that.’ He gets it!
• Compounding interest! They talk about investing and she opened a Fidelity account for Sebastian. Right now, she deposits $25 a month and will contribute until he starts working. Starting early is the key.
• The importance of not always trying to keep up with the Joneses
• He is 9 right now and he is currently saving for a car. The goal of this is to show him how these little steps over time make a huge difference.
• He sits with her when she updates her portfolio and they dive into investing then.

FUN STORIES

• Eileen jokes that Sebastian tells stories about being in school and knowing all the answers to the money questions. The teachers are always surprised!
• They did an Instagram live together where he asked to be interviewed. He loved it and wants to be partners in teaching others personal finance with his mom.

FINAL THOUGHTS

• Starting this proc...

On this episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, our host is Joy Liu, Head of Trainer Academy. Joining her today are two new team members of The Financial Gym, Erika Moromisato and Juan Valeriano. Erika and Juan are both Level 2 Certified Financial Trainers and Joy is interviewing them today so we can hear their stories and get to know them better.

• Joy starts by asking Juan and Erika how they found The Financial Gym and what led them to apply for this job?
• Erika’s parents immigrated from Peru and her mom taught her to save her money, but there wasn’t much guidance beyond that. When she got to college, she realized she had to support herself completely. She had a part-time job and her boss gave her some advice and tips, which was the start of her interest in personal finance. She applied for the position over a year ago and learned about the CFT school. She was part of the first cohort, but was then hired to be an employee of The Gym.
• Juan was also raised in an immigrant household. Growing up, he witnessed his family make fear-based decisions with money. As he got older, Juan liked seeing money go into his account, but struggled to spend it. He never developed debt, but didn’t feel confident about what to do with the money he’d saved. He graduated in 2020 with a BFA in acting, but the industry was dormant at the time because of the Covid. He used this time to learn something that scared him, personal finance. Within five months, he’d read seven different personal finance books and wanted to share this knowledge with other artists who are scared of money. When he searched to see if someone was doing this work, he found The Financial Gym.
• Joy asks Juan and Erika to tell us about what hobbies, skills, and interests make them unique as people and Financial Trainers.
• Erika got married in the middle of a pandemic, and she owns a condo with her wife that they are renting to friends while living in Queens with her in-laws. Personal finance is interesting to her because she loves all types of self-improvement. One of her dream goals one day is to build a tiny home.
• Juan lives with his long-term girlfriend, and Thickems, their cat. They’ve been living in LA since March, but before that, he lived in New York, Florida, and went to school in Dallas. Juan loves gaming, sports, and art in all of its forms.
• Joy asks Juan and Erika to share their best financial decisions and a learning opportunity they’ve experienced.
• Erika shares that her biggest learning opportunity is when a ten-year relationship ended overnight. She did not have an emergency fund and had been depending on this partner for certain financial needs. Since then, she’s been great at risk management and planning for emergencies. Last year, there was a family emergency and she needed to take a same-day flight home. Having the emergency fund allowed her to book the ticket without feeling financially stressed.
• Juan talks about how investing in himself through books transformed his mentality toward money. The two most impactful books he read were, The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel and I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi. Juan’s biggest hindrance is that he considers himself a perfectionist which can lead to inaction. He now focuses on progress over perfection.
• The Financial Gym meets clients where they are, and serves anyone who comes through the door. Joy asks the new Trainers who they’re most excited to serve in this role.
• Erika wants to be a financial hype woman for anyone who needs it. She loves to encourage people to follow their potential and loves working with people who are early on in their careers.
• Juan is excited to serve artists who are just starting out, fresh out of college, or those coming from a fear-based mentality. He also wants to work with first-generation Americans and folks from immigrant families.
• If you want to work with Juan or Erika, schedule a free warm-up call today. Let the associate know you heard the podcast episode and would like to request one of these folks!

Meet Joy Liu, Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer & Head of Trainer Academy

Meet Erika Moromisato, Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer Meet Juan Valeriano, Level 2 Certified Financial Trainer

Welcome to another episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, where we break down the complexities of personal finance to empower you on your journey to financial wellness. Today's host is Rachel Adaline, HR Manager at The Financial Gym, and she is joined by Alicia Lazarto, COO at The Gym.

At The Financial Gym, we understand employees expect more than just a paycheck in their overall compensation package. That's why one of our many services is providing financial literacy resources to employees through their employers.

In this episode, Alicia and Rachel will explore how The Financial Gym can support your employees. From comprehensive financial planning to educational courses and webinars, we'll dive into how these benefits can positively impact employee well-being and productivity.

For more details check out our show notes here!

If you want to work with a Certified Financial Trainer to help navigate your finances, schedule a free warm-up call today! If you have any ideas or questions for the show, send an email to [email protected].

• https://financialgym.com/corporatepartnerships
• Email [email protected]

Meet Alicia Lazarto, COO at The Financial Gym

Meet Rachel Adaline, HR Manager at The Financial Gym

On this episode of Financially Naked: Stories from The Financial Gym, our hosts are Kadri and Juan, two Certified Financial Trainers at The Financial Gym. January is traditionally a time when people set new goals and intentions for the year, and being better with money is one that's usually at the top of the list. That's why today's episode is all about financial fitness! What is financial fitness? How do you figure out if you are financially fit? Kadri and Juan discuss how you can discover where you are on the financial fitness scale, make a plan, and measure progress along the way.

For more details check out our show notes here!

If you want to work with a Certified Financial Trainer to help navigate your finances, schedule a free warm-up call today! If you have any ideas or questions for the show, send an email to [email protected].

• BFF HYSA Accounts
• BFF Building Credit
• Building Credit with Juan and Garrett