.You Shouldn’t Feel Bad About Spending Money — Here’s How To Avoid the Guilt

Last updated: Oct. 19, 2021 By Gabrielle Olya

You’ve worked hard for your money — so you should enjoy it. In today’s “Financially Savvy Female” column, we’re chatting with Dani Pascarella, CFP, co-founder of the financial wellness platform OneEleven, about how you can avoid feeling guilty when spending money.

Do a Spending Evaluation

“Start by understanding how previous purchases make you feel and why,” Pascarella said. “This is key to building your financial foundation.”

.The Other Form of Self-Care: 4 Steps To Improve Your Financial Wellness

Gabrielle Olya Wed, November 3, 2021,

A recent Ellevest study found that financial stress is actually making women sick. Nearly half of women (49%) say that money stress has affected their mental and emotional health, and nearly 40% have become physically ill due to money stress. That’s why it’s so important to practice financial self-care. To find out how to actually do this, we spoke with Kerry Keihn, financial advisor and director of operations of Earth Equity Advisors. Here’s what she recommends for improving your financial wellness.

The most important thing to know is that you are not alone in your struggle to understand your finances. It has nothing to do with your intelligence — the financial industry has basically crafted its own language to make things more difficult to understand.

.IRS Sends 430,000 Refunds for Unemployment Tax Compensation

Georgina Tzanetos Tue, November 2, 2021

Who Will Receive Roughly $1,189?

In its most recent press release, the Internal Revenue Service announced it sent approximately 430,000 refunds to those who paid taxes on unemployment compensation that is now excluded for the income tax year 2020 under the stimulus relief bill. The new provision, which falls under the American Rescue Plan of 2021, was signed into law in March and excludes the first $10,200 in unemployment compensation per taxpayer in 2020.

This amount is excluded when calculating one’s adjusted gross income — it is not the amount of the refund, the IRS stressed. The exclusion is available to individuals and married couples whose modified adjusted gross income is less than $150,000.

.Got a Fat Inheritance? Here’s What to Do With It.

Patrick Villanova OCT 30, 2021

Receiving an inheritance from a family member can create a large windfall of cash, and with it, new financial opportunities. What you do with the money will depend on the size of the inheritance, your financial situation and level of experience managing investments. But having a defined plan for the inheritance is vital.

A frequently cited study conducted by The Williams Group of San Clemente, California, found that 70% of wealthy families lose their fortune by the second generation and 90% squander it by the third generation. A financial advisor can help you make the most of your inheritance by taking stock of your financial circumstances and creating a plan for the future.

.What to Do When You’re the Executor

Sandra Block, Senior Editor Fri, October 29, 2021,

At some point in your life, there’s a good chance you’ll be tasked with acting as the executor of an estate. The designation is both an honor and an obligation. Depending on the size of the estate and your relationship to the deceased, performing the duties of an executor can feel like a second job, says Patrick O’Brien, cofounder of Executor.org, an online tool designed to help executors manage an estate.

O’Brien launched the tool after he served as executor of his father’s estate. Even though the estate was fairly modest, “I was shocked at how difficult and complicated it was,” he says.

.7 Mistakes People Make When Choosing a Financial Advisor

Smart Asset October 31, 2021

Choosing a financial advisor is a major life decision that can determine your financial trajectory for years to come. A 2020 Northwestern Mutual study found that 71% of U.S. adults admit their financial planning needs improvement. However, only 29% of Americans work with a financial advisor.

The value of working with a financial advisor varies by person and advisors are legally prohibited from promising returns, but research suggests people who work with a financial advisor feel more at ease about their finances and could end up with about 15% more money to spend in retirement.

.7 Situations When You Need a Financial Advisor Most

Matt Wiley MAR 28, 2019

Do you know enough about financial management to take care of all of your investing on your own? Or do you need help from a seasoned expert?

That question comes up for millions of Americans each year.

.15 Things A Personal Finance Expert Suggests Parents Do To Help Their Kids Be Good With Money

Thu, October 28, 2021,

I like to imagine I was raised to be financially intelligent (thanks ma and pa) but now that I have a kid of my own, I was curious what an expert had to say about raising kids to be good with money.

I write about personal finance and money, so you'd hope I have it together — and for the most part, I think I do. I owe my love of saving money and my abhorrence of debt to my parents who set me up with a bank account at birth, had me get a job as soon as it was legal, and made me save up for the dumb plastic toys I thought I just had to have.