Creating A Financial Legacy

God has shown me how to be a better steward over my money and in doing so not only am I prepared for the expected but now I’m working towards being prepared for the unexpected.  For instance, I got a chance (at the VERY last minute) to go on my first cruise EVER– to Cozumel.  For the past 3 years I’ve wanted to try kayaking and travel more.  So this trip was giving me the chance to kill 2 birds with one stone. 

The good news is, I was a little more prepared this time to take a last minute trip.  The last time I attempted this monetary feat was August 2005.  At that time,  I went to Europe and had NO money saved for the last minute adventure.   Of course, I allowed this fact to affect my attitude about enjoy the trip (full heartedly) and also I went with my aunt and we were both 2 black Christian women, who spoke very little (American taught) French and not a bit of french, dutch or SWISS, traispsing around Europe, dazed & confused.  Still it was an awesome experience and I plan to go back to Switzerland and Greece one day.

Anyway, I’ll chat more about that later sometime.  The point is I couldn’t get the full experience without wondering about costs of eating, souvenirs and all that jazz.  The impending financial blow when I got back home overshadowed my thought process.  Just knowing I would have to deal with the consequences of going on an all expense paid trip at the last minute. 

Since then it’s been my personal mission to be READY, so that I can enjoy things in life that I want without worrying about the security of my family and without sacrificing or compromising my dreams in order to have a memorable journey in this crazy thing called life.  I’m building a financial legacy that I can pass on to others. Am I rich? Not yet, but I’m definitely not in the position I was before and my debt is nearly completely paid off, including my car.  YEAH no car note!

Because accounting and finance are electives in most public schools, these elements of acquiring a financial legacy sometimes aren’t taught to children, especially in inter-city and minority communities.  I encourage parents to truly get your kids involved in understanding financial responsibility from an early age and groom them to be better stewards.

How you treat you finances is a reflection of how you treat yourself to some degree. The difference in becoming financially aware and financially intelligent has made an incredible difference in my life. I’m still a work in progress but I’m here to share what I’ve learned. Keep posted for ‘Creating a Spending Plan’ part 1, a multi-part series on the beginning steps to Financial Prosperity.