#83 Competent Personal Finance & Communicating Across Departments

Welcome back!

I hope you enjoyed your Labor Day weekend. Always a bittersweet time.

While the calendar says we’ve still got 20 days left of summer, we know the truth.

But let’s look for the silver lining: with the end of summer comes the opportunity to get back to your routine (or create a better one) to maximize productivity, personal health, and any number of important things that were pushed aside while you were packing for vacations and finding activities during the summer.

Use this seasonal transition to plan good habits and get back to a routine that works for you physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and professionally.

I know one element that’s an absolute must: you, me, Tuesday mornings.

Right here. Growing and learning together.

Let’s get after it.

Back To The Grind With…

Elevating Your Brand 🤝 

• A Did You Know? For Conversational Advantage

• 3 Crucial Skills For Every Cool Communicator Out There

Boosting Your Productivity 📊 

• Hustle Hub: $12K into $6.5 BILLION?!?!

• A September 2 DO To Prepare for the Grind

Fattening The Wallet 💰️ 

• Making Cents of Financial Fitness Reminders

Making Cents 💰️ 

Back to Work Basics - What Is Personal Finance?

Short and Sweet: The term “personal finance” isn’t sexy enough. That’s why I like to say financially fit instead. We covered financial fitness in Making Cents back in the 74th edition but wanted to review as we transition back into our normal routines. To be financially fit, you must remind yourself of the basics of personal finance.

Why It Matters: Because getting a grip on your finances isn’t just about watching your bank account grow—it’s about setting yourself up for the life you want. As the saying goes: live life by design. Being on top of your finances helps with the design.

Breaking Down Personal Finance (With Emoji’s):

• 👔 Budget Like a Boss: Use the 50/30/20 rule to keep your spending in check—50% on needs, 30% on wants, and 20% stashed away for a rainy day. PocketGuard can make this easy for you, but a good o’l spreadsheet works as well.
  

• 💰️ Emergency Fund: Stuff happens. Having a safety net of 3-12 months’ expenses means you won’t sweat the small (or big) surprises that come out of nowhere.
  

• 😎 Debt: Keep It Cool: Not all debt is bad, but keep it manageable. Know when borrowing boosts your life (like a home, for example) and when it just weighs you down (like taking out a personal loan for a want and not a need).
  

• 💡 Smart With Credit: Treat your credit cards like cash. If you can’t pay it off immediately, think twice. Keep that credit score soaring high like OTF…
  

• 📈 Investing Isn’t Just for the Rich: Use your money to make money. Whether it’s stocks, real estate, a high-yield savings account or even a side-hustle, make sure your cash isn’t laying around in a dark corner somewhere.
  

• 🕺 Retirement: The Long Game: Future YOU will thank YOU for saving now. The earlier you start, the less you’ll worry later.
  

• 🚑️ Insure to Ensure: Life’s wacky AF. Insurance keeps you from financial free fall. Health, life, disability—cover the basics. #YouJustNeverKnow

O.T.F
O.F.T: One Final Thought

As you progress in your career or business venture, be cautious and don’t let personal financial success trip you up. Because as you make more, it’s easy to spend more. That’s why developing the right habits now is imperative.

But if you’re going to spend on non-needs every now and then, we encourage you to think about paying it forward.

Whether it’s donations, volunteering, or treating a friend to lunch, it’s good for the soul to help others along the way as you begin to make more money and manage it better.

Hustle Hub 📈 

• YOUR SUCCESS: Here are 8 ways to come up with “successful business concepts that stand the test of time,” courtesy of INC.

• THEIR SUCCESS: Check out how the founders of Reddit started their $6.5 BILLION business with nothing but hard work and $12K.

• YOUR SUCCESS: Anyone who’s purchased a home before knows the process is a HUSTLE. But with mortgage rates falling, conditions are improving - here’s what you need to know if you’re in the market.
  

Cool Communicator 😎 

3 Crucial Communication Skills
For an Evolving Business Environment

This fascinating article from Forbes, pulling data from top research firms, shows a shift in the business world from “rigidly defined job descriptions” toward the utilization of an employee’s diverse skill set, which means more cross-over, coordination, and collaboration within and across departments.

In any business that takes this approach - and it seems like more and more are - communication becomes that much more important.

Here are the 3 skills the article recommends focusing on…

TL;DR Takeaways

1. Clarifying Expectations - the article focuses on leaders here, but it’s important whether you’re the coach, a bit player, or anything in between.The leader must “clearly define and communicate expectations [so that] employees understand their roles better and align their efforts with organizational goals,” and employees must make their skill sets, preferences, and expectations known as well. If you’re being saddled with a task or thrust into a role you’re uncomfortable with, speak up!
   

2. Communicating Across Cultural Barriers - in a diverse workplace, cultural norms can greatly impact communication. “Some cultures may prefer direct communication while others rely on indirect or nuanced expression,” or, “some cultures consider it inappropriate to openly challenge a manager.” This brings us back to #1: clarity is paramount. If you can’t do it in a group setting, taking the time to get to know each team member and what they’re comfortable with could go a long way in preventing miscommunication or “stifling open dialogue” down the road. As we seem to say in this section every other week, KNOW. YOUR. AUDIENCE.
   

3. Influencing Up and Across - this is all about the importance of networking, another core OTF value!
   
   When dealing with superiors — the ability to “distill complex strategies into clear, understandable choice points and goals” is huge. These executives have a ton on their plate - they don’t have time to think about complex issues! Simplify it!

   
   

   

   
   When dealing with peers — “self-awareness is key in understanding the impact we have on those we’re partnered with. Emerging leaders should engage in self-reflection to understand their strengths and weaknesses and make the adjustments needed to foster trust and respect…this is crucial for influencing decisions and driving change.”
   
   This section of the article goes on to emphasize the importance of “cultivating relationships across the organization and leveraging these connections to gather support for initiatives” in order to advance both the company’s goals and your own career.

O.T.F
O.F.T: One Final Thought

In traditional organizations, you still need to be a good communicator. It simply might come easier when everyone in your department is familiar with each other, has similar skill sets and knowledge base, and uses the same terminology.

When brought into projects that involve multiple departments and differing skill sets, you must go the extra mile as a communicator to ensure everything goes smoothly. Be clear, be specific, be open, and maintain those relationships to create more opportunity in the future.

Did You Know? 👀 

• Self-Interest: Are you aware of all the new movies you can now watch on Netflix?
  

• Human Interest: Did you see that drug tested on mice with Alzheimer’s that “restored their ability to learn and remember”?
  

• Artificial Interest: Did you hear about California’s new legislation to ban deepfakes and regulate AI?

2 DO FOR YOU: SEPTEMBER 💡 

1. Consider “75 Hard”

If you don’t know what that is, you can read about it here, but basically it’s a 75-day program focused on three components: exercise, nutrition, and self-help.

I’m beginning 75 Hard on 9/9 and will be documenting the process on my social pages.

LinkedIn: Found Here.

Instagram: Go Here.

Threads: Click Here.

2. Go Get a Massage

Hopefully you got to unwind a little bit over the summer, but if you’re not quite ready to get back to the school-year grind, we recommend treating yourself to a massage. Besides feeling good, massages improve circulation, decrease inflammation, and result in better sleep, among a slew of other benefits.

Before You Go

We hope you enjoyed this week’s edition. Next week, we’ll be back with Major Moves, Search Bar, and much more!

See you then!

You are now On The Fly and In The Know