About

MoneyZen for Women:  helping you find financial peace of mind

Welcome, and thank you for visiting this website. I’m Manisha Thakor, personal finance expert, author, and passionate advocate for global women’s economic empowerment.

So what exactly do I do… and how can it help you?

I teach, write, and speak about the basics of personal finance for women (and any men who are interested as well!)

My goal is to find innovative ways to increase women’s voices and life choices through financial education – while also “walking the talk” and earning a healthy living for myself. Specifically, I do this through my BLOG & BOOKS, online personal finance eCLASSES, keynote and corporate  SPEAKING, and my MEDIA appearances.

In my own life, I’ve seen how the consistent application of a few basic personal finance principles has made all the difference in my ability to achieve financial independence and freedom. With fire-in-the-belly passion I believe that for women, earning money, receiving a financial education, and learning how to become financially secure, opens the door to living life fully. It is my deepest hope that as many women as possible will one day feel this financial strength as a result of my wide range of educational offerings.

Many people ask what personal finance topics I specialize in. While I love all things women and money related – if forced to pick I’d say that saving, budgeting, investing, finding a financial advisor, and how to talk money with your honey are my favorite personal finance topics to discuss.   [Click here to download my formal bio.]

What qualifies me to talk about personal finance for women?

So glad you asked! Money is such a personal and important subject. As such, you deserve to know the full scoop about “Professional Manisha” so you can decide if I’m someone you want to listen to. Here’s a summary of my academic, work, and media experience…

ACADEMIC

I earned my MBA from Harvard Business School in 1997, my BA from Wellesley College in 1992, spent my junior year abroad studying Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Oxford University, and am a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder. I currently serve as a Financial Fellow at Wellesley College, where I am in residence once a year guest lecturing about personal finance.

PROFESSIONAL

Prior to devoting myself full time to what I truly believe is my Dharma (or calling) of helping women master their money, I spent 15 years working in the financial services industry. At various points in my corporate career I worked as an analyst, portfolio manager, and client relations executive for institutional money management firms with billions of dollars in assets under management (SG Warburg, Atalanta/Sosnoff Capital Corp, Fayez Sarofim & Co. and Sands Capital Management). At the peak of my corporate career I personally built out and ran a $6 billion separately managed account business.

MEDIA

My financial literacy advocacy work has been featured in national publications such as: The New York Times, The Boston Globe, BusinessWeek, US News & World Report, Glamour, Real Simple, and Women’s Day. My national TV appearances on the subject of women and financial independence include: The Today Show, Dr. Drew’s Lifechangers, The Rachel Ray Show, ABC’s Good Money, CNN’s Your Bottom Line & Weekend Report, CNBC’s Power Lunch & Squawk On The Street, Fox Business News, NBC’s Nightly News, and PBS’s Nightly Business Report. I am also a regular personal finance blogger at Forbes and The Huffington Post, as well as a contributor to the nationally syndicated NPR radio show, “51% – The Women’s Perspective.” For a full listing of my media appearances, check out my MEDIA page.

Ten Things to Know About “Personal Manisha”

  1. Guilty pleasures:  cappuccino, dark chocolate covered marzipan, Law & Order reruns
  2. Nickname for my fabulous husband:  LoveBuggy
  3. Inspirational female icons:  Coco Chanel, Georgia O’Keefe, Katherine Hepburn, Princess Di
  4. In constant battle with:  weight, acne, psoriasis, depression, anxiety, time-management
  5. Favorite historical authors:  Virginia Woolf & Edith Wharton
  6. Dream job:  Global feminist financial guru
  7. Favorite fast food:  Shipley’s glazed cake do-nuts
  8. Home base:  Santa Fe, NM (“The City Different!”)
  9. Common misspellings of Manisha:  Minisha, Menesha, Maniska, Miniska, Minasha
  10. Common misspellings of Thakor:  Thacker, Thackor, Thakar, Takor, Talkor, Thakur