Manisha’s Financial Literacy eClasses

One of my dreams is to help increase women’s voices and life choices through financial education.  For those of you on a tight budget, I recommend signing up to the right to receive my free blog and going to your local library to check out the two personal finance books I coauthored.  If you have an extra $39 to invest in your financial future, I encourage you to participate in the very first eClass I’m putting out called “Money Rules… For Women” (a title meant literally & figuratively!).

Why financial education? Because as little as 10 hours of financial literacy training can transform a life.  When I look back at my own life – and the key financial decisions that enabled me at age 40 to devote myself full time to my true passion of helping women get money smart – it boils down to less than 10 hours of financial education. I want you to have that same information too.  So this initiative, which like all movements will grow over time, is starting off with its first offering: a fun, interactive personal finance course (“Money Rules… For Women”) offered in conjunction with Sympoz.com.  For less than the price of a dress you will receive a financial education and information that can literally transform your financial life. Click HERE for more information on this fun, unique personal finance course.  Over time additional personal finance classes and offerings will be added.

So, What’s In It For You?

“I was very skeptical about this course – figured it would be like taking medicine. Boy was I wrong. Because it’s so interactive and you can watch classes in 10 or 15 minute chunks at a time, I really found myself looking forward to learning more.  Manisha makes learning about personal finance fun (yes, I really said fun!).  And unlike a lot of the free resources on the web, this course covers the key subjects in one easy format so you don’t have jump around to get your money questions answered.  Taking this class is like taking a financial multi-vitamin.  If I’d known how great it would make me feel, I’d have done it  much sooner.“- Marla Press, Houston TX

Additional Resources

And at all times, I’ll maintain a list here of some of the most useful websites & books that I believe can help you move forward on your path to financial nirvana.

Useful Websites

• SmartAboutMoney.org, NEFE.org,  CNNmoney.com, MoneyCentral.MSN.com, Bankrate.com & MyMoney.gov provide timely articles and information about general personal finance, financial security, and financial literacy.
• DailyWorth.com and LearnVest.com are two great sites focused specifically on helping women increase their financial literacy and financial security.
• RetirementRevised provides a wealth of information to as you plan for (and enjoy!) your golden years.
• SavingForCollege.com As the name suggests, if you are trying to figure out how best to help fund your children’s education, this is the website for you. For better or worse, these days you’ve got to give yourself a financial education to fund your child’s education. And if you want to help your teens and college-aged kids learn more about money and achieve financial security, checkout this innovative site, FoolProofMe.com.
• Dinkytown.com provides calculators for everything from estimating your taxes to seeing how long it will take to pay off your credit cards so you can achieve financial security.
• Vanguard, Fidelity, and Charles Schwab are three large, established mutual fund firms and brokerage houses.
• Napfa.org and GarrettPlanningNetwork.com can help in finding fee-based financial advisors in your town.

Recommended Books

Personal Finance Classics

• Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Rubin. Have you ever found yourself asking, “Is this all there is?” If so, this book is for you. Your Money or Your Life is the seminal book on how to think about the trade-off between earning money and having time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. When it comes to increasing your financial literacy and your financial security, this book is the gold standard.
• The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. Straight-talking advice from the famed TV and radio host. Dave takes a no holds barred approach to explaining how to have a balanced relationship with your money. Dave also oversees an amazing in-person personal finance curriculum through his nationwide “Financial Peace” University. He a true trailblazer when it comes to financial education. Millions have increased their financial literacy and financial security thanks to his work.
• Pay It Down! by Jean Chatzky. No-nonsense advice from a personal finance veteran on how to dig yourself out of debt. If you are struggling under the burden of credit card or other debt, this gem of a book will show you how, on as little as $10 a day, you truly can “pay it down.”  It’s just like your own private personal finance class on debt management. Reading this wonderful book is an investment in your financial education you won’t regret.

Books on Investing

• The Little Book of Common Sense Investing by John Bogle. Vanguard founder and highly acclaimed industry statesman John Bogle points out that when it comes to investing, common sense isn’t so common. If you are interested in why index funds are so powerful, this book is for you. Bogle is the grandfather of indexing, and reading this book is like taking a personal finance course from him… personally! It’s a great financial education.
• The Random Walk Guide to Investing by Burton G. Malkiel. Legendary Princeton professor Burton Malkiel boils down years of academic research and education into a highly readable primer on the basics of investing. Reading this book is like taking a personal finance course focused on investing.  If in you read just one book on investing, let this be it.
• Stocks for the Long Run by Jeremy J. Siegel. Highly lauded Wharton professor Jeremy Siegel explains in this classic work why stocks really are the best place to invest if your time horizon is longer than five or ten years. If the thought of investing in stocks gives you the willies, this book is the antidote. Personal finance education made fun. It’s an easy read, and so empowering it might even make you want to take a personal finance class afterward.

The Sociology of Money

• The Feminine Mistake by Leslie Bennetts.  This book should be required reading for all women. Veteran Vanity Fair writer Leslie Bennetts presents an exceptionally powerful case for women making sure to take their finances into consideration when making all major life decisions relating to career and family.  Much to my surprise, this gem of a book was greeted with outrage by younger women when it first came out… while older woman were mentally high five-ing Bennetts having seen in their own lives the incredible wisdom in her words.  I simply can not recommend this educational and eye-opening book strongly enough. To me, it’s the modern version of Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own.
• Ask For It by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever.  The premise of this book is powerful and straightforward: “Women don’t ask for what they want and need in the workplace and end up suffering financially, earning less than their male counterparts who are more likely to bargain successfully for higher salaries and timely raises.” This book is the antidote. It’s a financial education you won’t want to miss. Read it and learn how to ask for what you’re worth.
• The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley & William Danko. Think the average millionaire wears custom made suits and drives the latest model sports car? Think again. Stanley & Danko blow the lid off commonly held misperceptions about the wealthy with this bestselling book. It’s a fascinating commentary on many things – not the least of which is the state of financial literacy and financial education in America today.

Other Resources

• Convert A Book , a firm run by Chris Padilla. As a published author, a lot of people ask me for advice on getting a new book to market… and fast. My top recommendation? Speak with Chris at Convert A Book, LLC. Whether you are looking to have your work available on an e-reader such as the Kindle, have your words for sale as a PDF formatted eBook, and/or need help letting the world know your masterpiece is ready to help them, Chriswill help you achieve that. I know – from firsthand experience. He took my first, self-published book and in no time flat had it converted into both a Kindle edition and a PDF styled eBook.