In this guest blog post, I’m so excited to have Joslyn share the perspectives as a Hispanic woman and how she relates to her parents regarding money. If you’ve ever encountered differences between how you and your parents view wealth, and wondered how culture plays into that, I hope that this story can be relatable to you.
In June 2015, I graduated from college, started my salaried “grown-up” job, moved in with my significant other, and shopped for a car, all at the same time! Talk about adulthood hitting you right in the face.
When shopping around for my apartment and car, everyone kept asking me, “What’s your budget?” I had no idea, so my answer was always “whatever, I could afford.”
Thankfully, I was the first-born of Hispanic teenage parents who were the BEST at stretching a dollar. My mom built my first ever budget, which planned for me to pay double on my student loan minimum payments, a car note for a reliable vehicle, and that perfect first apartment.
Using this budget, I was able to pay off approximately $83,000 in student and car loans and fund a $15,000 wedding in just 5 years. After sending in my last debt payment, I felt as though no one could tell me anything! I was on top of the world! Finally, my entire take home pay was for me to use at my leisure; however, I didn’t know what to work towards after paying off the debt.
Instagram led me to the wonderful world of personal finance, teaching me about emergency funds, investing, and all the different possibilities of FI/RE. As I consumed this content, I started sharing my learnings with my parents.
My parents were high school graduates when they had me. My dad has been a baker my entire life, showing me the lengths that physical hard work can take you. My mom worked at a series of jobs that ultimately led her to become a manager at a prestigious bank. Her career path speaks volumes to what perseverance and a great work ethic can give you. As I started to learn the fundamentals of saving for retirement, terms such as IRA, index funds, and compound interest were new to me and I believed were a part of my mom’s daily vocabulary.
As I started to learn about other wealth building tools, at all risk levels, from high-yield savings accounts to day trading, I noticed a slight hesitation from my mom. She then started asking me about fees and the risk of putting your money in certain places. I realized that she was afraid for me, thinking that thinking that I wasn’t ready for investing and wealth building, that I needed even more cash security before getting into investing/wealth building. From the perspective of speaking to a first generation Hispanic parent, I completely understood. POC are taught to save their money and budget for their current expenses. Investing and wealth building techniques are foreign concepts. From the perspective of speaking to someone who has managed the administrative transactions of wealthy people and corporations for approximately 20 years, I was shocked. It seemed as if despite the financial success my parents had achieved, they still hadn’t accessed the level at which the wealthy white man manages his money.
This is when I realized how much the wealth gap affects our financial behaviors. While I understood the basics of racial inequality and how it relates to money, I still held onto the idea that hard work can overcome the obstacles set in our path. My parents were the epitome of success in my eyes. They overcame barely living paycheck to paycheck to affording vacations and breaking the glass ceilings in our family’s eyes; yet, they still had the perception that some essential wealth building tools were not for them because they could not take the risk with their hard earned money.
Their doubting beliefs and my newfound financial liberation are the fuel to my obsession of learning about financial independence. After all, my parents sacrificed so much for my brother and I to have everything they didn’t have and more; I cannot let their sacrifices go to waste. It is now my mission to make sure those in my circle are educated and inspired to close the wealth gap and start earning beyond the stereotypical limits.
Joslyn is a Supply Chain Manager by trade and personal finance enthusiast for fun. She recently launched @firemadepossible on Instagram where she shares and creates financial education content. Joslyn hopes to connect with other personal finance enthusiasts and to encourage her family and friends to start their FIRE journey.
Inspired to start working on your wealth-building journey too? Follow me at @savemycents on Instagram and @savemycentsfb on Facebook for relatable and helpful tips.
Or, if eliminating student loans is currently one of your financial goals, the Save My Cents guide 10 Steps to Student Loan Freedom can help with tips on how to pay off student loan debt.
