Episode 60: How to Fix Your Finances in 2022

Acquania Escarne 0:03

You are listening to the Purpose of Money podcast, a podcast where we talk about ways to build wealth and create more freedom in your life today. I am your host Acquania Escarne.

Hey guys, welcome back to the Purpose of Money Podcast. I'm super excited today is my first solo episode of 2022. And this episode, I'm going to share some of the podcast highlights since it's the second anniversary of the podcast. I'm excited that we've reached this milestone, and I'm so thankful for all of you who have been listening. I'm also going to share in this episode, two new courses that I'm exclusively offering on a She Can Work community for women. So without further ado, let's hop into this episode, and get started on these hot topics.

Some of you may remember, on January 22, 2020, I published the first episode of the Purpose of Money podcast, and I talked about how I saved $80,000 for retirement in one year. 2019 was a very good year for my retirement account, I was able to max it out, I took advantage of my jobs, free money, or employer contribution. And I had a huge return in the stock market. That's how I was able to clear $80,000 in one year. And I was excited about this. And the response and feedback I got from this episode, that it inspired me to keep going to keep publishing episodes of the Purpose of Money podcast, and also to share stories from other entrepreneurs. And so today, we're now a two year old podcast on January 22, 2022. We are also known for highlighting female entrepreneurs, creatives and more.

On the show, I've talked about everything from buying a hotel, to how to build your credit, the best selling techniques for entrepreneurs, how to invest in Bitcoin, and so many more cool topics, too many to name. But hopefully, if you haven't been listening from the beginning to go check out some old episodes.

Thank you, everyone for your support for sharing episodes for subscribing, and encouraging others to listen to the Purpose of Money podcast, too. I am overwhelmed at the success of the show. It's been downloaded 14,000 times. It has 60 episodes, including this one. And it's listened to all over the world. In fact, the top five countries are the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and the Philippines. Thanks, guys for listening out there. I really appreciate it.

The next thing I want to talk about is finances for 2022. And some of my goals for this year because everyone knows in the month of January, it's all about new year resolutions, goals and starting out strong. But let me tell you, I'm entering 2022 fearless and ready to go. I'm going to be a little transparent on this solo episode because I want accountability from my listeners, I want to share with you what are my top three priorities for this year.

Number one, I want to save $25,000 I want to have more money in our emergency fund money to just give us options. And just a little bit more security. So I set a goal to save $25,000. I also want to make at least $250,000 in business revenue. And I want to help at least 100 women in the She Can Work community. Now I'm going to make a separate episode about the business revenue goal because last year I had a goal to make my first six figures and I did it. I made over $100,000 last year in my business and that's why I've put an even more aggressive goal before me to make a quarter of a million this year. But I'll make sure to share that in a separate episode. So entrepreneurs can be inspired on the tips and the ways that I've been building my business and boosting my products, engagement and my client base.

But let's talk about this goal to help at least 100 women in the She Can Work community. First of all, when it comes to setting a goal to help people, you have to genuinely feel like that's something you want to do. And I've been at this Personal Finance game to help people from the beginning. But now I'm finally in a position where I feel comfortable sharing a little bit more of the strategic steps that me and my husband took to really get our finances into a point where we're comfortable. We're in a position where we can make more investment decisions. And we're able to do more of the things we want to do with our family. And so let me just backtrack a bit on why I even partnered with She Can Work.

Last year in 2021. I was contacted by She Can Work through social media, and they encouraged me to express interest in potentially teaching on their platform. I applied, I showed up for the interview, and I was just impressed by the organization's founders Tiara Abu and some other members she had on her team and their mission to just really help women level up their finances, and be empowered and inspired to do more.

This has been a God led journey and partnership because that first connection was just so awesome. I knew that there was more that we should do, and could do together. That's why I'm super excited that I pursued this journey to partner with them in 2022. To really teach online courses, both live and on demand. For women who are looking to level up their finances, learn more, especially about building wealth. You might have heard Tiara Abu in Episode 50, where she's talking about her own money story, what inspired her to create the She Can Work community, and how she plans to use this platform to help women with their finances. I have to say, You gotta listen to this episode. If you're not familiar with Tiara, or She Can Work, I'll make sure to drop a link in the show notes. But that is just a part of the reason on why I've decided to add yet another job to my list of things I do.

Most of you who follow me know, I'm a mom, and entrepreneur, I sell life insurance. I invest in real estate. And now I'm a virtual instructor for She Can Work a school for women, where our mission is to educate and empower millennial women to meet their financial goals. Through legacy focus, wealth building and management. Our school is open now for students to take online virtual classes and to register for our live classes. And for the month of January, we even have it set up so you can join for just $1. So when I hear women tell me, I want to work on my finances in 2022. I'm like you have no excuse, you can join right now for just $1. And you can start taking classes today. I'm teaching a live course that's going to teach you how to invest in real estate with life insurance.

I've been asked several times how did I purchase properties using cash and life insurance? How did I start to build my real estate empire that went from zero to 34 million. And so I finally put all of this knowledge together in a course where you can learn from me live. Interestingly enough, I didn't start out knowing this stuff, or even realizing the power of life insurance. It's started out with me reading a book that talks about how wealthy families leverage permanent life insurance to build wealth, using it as a tool to create a bank for the family. And then them using that cash to start businesses, to buy homes, and even to pay for things that the family wanted to invest in together. So I decided with my family at the time, it was just me and my husband that we should be doing this too. So our financial advisor told us about the power of life insurance. And we saved in in a couple of years starting before we got married. And then after a few years, we had enough money, like over $40,000 to be able to leverage that money into three different opportunities.

So in 2016, my husband and I had just been back from living overseas for about a year. We were in the process of building our own home but closing in a few months. My mother in law was in the process of looking for a more permanent place to live because she'd been renting and she knew she wanted to retire soon. And then I had a goal to invest in rental properties so we can make more cash flow. So my husband and I agreed to utilize some of the money we had in life insurance to buy three properties in one year. I know crazy, right? But it was the beginning of our journey to really leverage life insurance and real estate to build wealth. And I'm so glad we did it. Truth is, life insurance is not what you think it is. It's a guaranteed way to leave a legacy. But it's also evolved tremendously since the days of your parents and my parents, and our great grandparents. And it's useful in more ways than one. That's why in my life course I'm teaching you how to leverage life insurance to leave a legacy and to build wealth.

I'm sharing my own experience on how I use $40,000 to really start a real estate empire. Over the six weeks of my course, I'm going to discuss the power of life insurance, how to use it, the value that comes with using cash value to build wealth, how to invest in real estate with life insurance, and even how to use life insurance to supplement your retirement income. Each week, we're going to go deeper into the different strategies I've used in my own life, and for my clients, while using life insurance throughout the process.

For example, in week one, we're going to go over the history behind life insurance, and how to set wealth building goals, because you have to know where you're going. And you have to know where we've come from. But because I really want the students in my class to know what they're doing, and to know more about the topic, not just one type of life insurance.

We're also going to in the second week, discuss the different types of life insurance that exists, learn about them, and try to figure out what's the best form of life insurance for them. Because everyone doesn't need the same type of insurance. And every type of insurance is not suited for each person's budget. That's why we're going to take time to learn about how to determine the best type of life insurance for you. And understanding that what you need should be based on what you're trying to do. What are your legacy building goals? What is your lifestyle? And most importantly, what is your budget.

In week three, we're going to talk about how to calculate how much life insurance you need. Because a lot of people ask me this all the time, I make this much money, I want to leave this much money, how much insurance do I actually need. I'm going to help you figure out where you stand financially through a financial analysis. And together we're going to use this data to calculate your insurance needs. And we'll take turns in the class figuring out others to making a little fun, kind of like a group exercise. But I do think it's really important to take time to know where you are in your financial journey. So you can set a plan on where to go next.

In week four, I'm going to teach how to really maximize the costs and benefits of life insurance, and what pitfalls to avoid. I'm also going to show the different stages and strategies that you can use and how to leverage it. This is a little more complex, but it's the detail that people have always been asking for.

In week five, we're gonna get into what I actually did, the creative ways that I use life insurance to invest in real estate. Now some of my clients are leveraging it for their other goals, which include starting a business, investing in properties, setting their children up for millionaire status, and putting money aside for the future.

And last in week six, we're gonna wrap up with how to apply all these strategies to your life, if you should give you some resources, tools and tips, and even some insight to what it's like to work with a life insurance producer. So you know what the experience should be like, if you decide to move forward or make any changes.

My students will get exclusive access to my never before release financial analysis workbook. I'm also going to have open access to me for the live question and answer sessions. We're going to have accountability and networking within our own student community and Facebook group. I'm going to provide a financial calculator worksheet so you can figure out your finances. And you have the option to get a personalized insurance quote, if you need insurance, or I'll even review what insurance you have, and make sure that it's still the best option for you. Some people believe that when you buy life insurance, you're only going to buy it once. But the truth is sometimes our life changes and we need more insurance. Or maybe we want to change the insurance we have because we want something that has additional benefits that your original policy didn't offer.

These are things that an expert like me can help you figure out so you make sure that your family's covered and protected. In the event that worst happens, I'm also going to give my students a list of books, articles and other resources to help them with their wealth building journey. Plus, if you decide to join the She Can Work community on an annual or monthly tuition plan, you get even more perks. For example, you get access to the entire course library with 20 plus courses. And the good news is new courses are added each month. We also have a dozen instructors who are talking about everything from building business credit, to how to do accounting in your business, personal budgets, life insurance, of course taught by me, and other great skills that you need in your finances to get you and your money on track.

You get access to the catalog of courses we offer, the live courses, and the on demand courses in the library. You'll also get financial tools, templates, and other resources that you can download at any time. And did I mention our Facebook group is gonna be off the hook with accountability partners, I think it's gonna be a lot of fun. So you'll have time to network, you'll have time to hang out outside of class. And you'll be around some really cool women at our special student only virtual events. And I got to tell you, I've been hanging around Tiara Abu for quite some time virtually. And she knows how to throw some awesome online events. So you'll definitely want to make sure you're part of this community so you can experience the fun for yourself.

Join me to learn how to create your own bank and leave a legacy to life insurance. My class on investing with life insurance starts on January 26th, at 7pm. And if you're ready to register, you can definitely check out the purposeofmoney.com/scw that stands for She Can Work. That's the Purposeofmoney.com/scw. I'll also leave a link in the show notes. But registered today, save your seat. But guess what, if you don't need life insurance don't want to learn how to use life insurance to invest in real estate. That's okay. That's not the only class I'm teaching.

I'm also teaching students how to budget and five mistakes to avoid. My budgeting course is an online course that you can watch on demand. And like I said, if you join the She Can Work community today, you can access it for $1. But you can also access the course directly if you want to for $197.

In this course, I cover three different ways to budget because I realized that everyone doesn't like to budget the same way. And some people learn differently and apply the information differently. So for those who prefer to try out different budgets before they stick to one, I've given you options. I want you to have options, I want you to test them out, and I want you to pick one that works for you. You can check out the three ways to budget, you can also check out how I've automated my wealth. tips to help you do it to. I also tell you what bills to prioritize in your budget and which ones you should pay close attention to save yourself money and headaches in the future. I even give tips on how to lower your expenses.

If you're interested, check it out. Go ahead and go to the PurposeofMoney.com/scw and click on the button for all access to She Can Work. And don't forget about the $1 signup fee. If you sign up in the month of January. For the She Can Work community the annual membership is charged once, but it comes out to about 35 bucks a month. But if you want to sign up for the monthly membership, which is totally fine, it comes out to about 59 bucks a month. But if you are financially savvy like me, I take the option to sign up right away the annual memberships you can save money in the long run. If you're nervous about signing up for the year, just spend $1. That's a great way to get in and doesn't cost you too much. But if you know that something you want to do, and you're ready to get your finances in order in 2022, I encourage you to dive right in and get serious.

This is a community that will hold you accountable. You'll learn in the areas that you're need more information, support, or education. And you'll have other women there to help you along the way. I hope you check out the PurposeofMoney.com/scw and I hope to see you in class on January 26. That's it?

Check out some past episodes of the podcast if you're interested in seeing the ones you miss. Feel free to share, like and subscribe. Share this episode with anyone who you think would benefit or would be a good addition to the She Can Work community. And please, wherever you're listening, leave a five star review. As always, I appreciate you. And until next time, keep building generational wealth.

Thank you for listening to the Purpose of Money podcast. For more resources and information, check out my website, the purposeofmoney.com and while you're there, please sign up for our newsletter so you have the latest information on new episodes and blog posts. Until next time, keep creating freedom in your life today.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai