Wi$eUp – Money Mathwww.wiseupwomen.org 2-1

Chapter 2. Money MathGood, solid fi nancial planning is based on facts – money facts. If fi nancial planning is the roadmap, then money facts are its building blocks. You’ve heard it said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any path will do”! You want to build a clear path to your future. That will involve fact gathering and some money math.

This chapter will help you understand how to gather facts about your fi nances and then analyze these facts. You will be surprised to learn that you are probably bett er off than you thought you were! You will learn how to use three important money tools: 1) Statement of Financial Position (Net Worth Statement), 2) a Notebook Tool for Tracking Your Spending, and 3) a Statement of Income and Expense. Then, you will use the analysis of your money facts as a basis for sett ing fi nancial goals. Finally, you will learn about tools to use in performing helpful fi nancial calculations.

Taking Stock of Net Worth: Your Statement of Financial PositionThe fi rst step in planning your fi nancial future is to know where you currently stand. For this, you will take a “snapshot” of your current fi nancial situation. This means knowing exactly what your assets and liabilities are at a particular moment in time. This information will give you a picture of your net worth or, as it is often called, your Statement of Financial Position. A good time to prepare a Statement of Financial Position is when you have all of your fi nancial records for a particular time period, such as at the end of the calendar quarter or year. An especially good time for preparing or updating a Statement of Financial Position is during the month of January, after end-of-year statements arrive.

To complete this task, you will compile a listing of what you own (assets) and what you owe (liabilities). It really is that simple. Of course, if you do not have your money papers well organized, this step will take you longer.

Real Life, Real Money

I know the facts, all right.

They’re spelled d-e-b-t....

I don’t feel like I’m getting

ahead at all, what with

the money I still owe on

my college loans, new car,

and credit cards. Sure,

I’m saving a little, but I

feel so depressed. I don’t

really know where I stand,

fi nancially speaking.

Steps to Wi$ing Up – Step 2-1. Prepare a Statement of Financial Position

Preparing a Statement of Financial Position is a fairly easy task because it involves transferring information from money papers you have or will be receiving. These papers include items like monthly, quarterly, or annual statements from your bank, retirement fund, mortgage company, etc. It does not involve an analysis of your income or spending, although it does refl ect decisions you have made about spending and saving/investing in the past.

1. Read Real Life, Real Money: Lisa Learns Her Net Worth on the following page.

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2. Look at Lisa’s Statement of Financial Condition on page 2-3 as you study the following terms.

Assets refer to everything that you OWN. They include cash and cash equivalents, invested assets, and use assets. Cash or cash equivalents include checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and the cash value of life insurance. Invested assets include the money you may have invested in the stock market or in mutual funds, and the money in your retirement portfolios, including individual retirement accounts. Use assets include real estate and personal property, automobiles, and other things you may own. When you add up your assets, you may be surprised to discover how much you “own.” Lisa discovered that her assets exceeded $280,000, and her stock market portfolio grew by $1,000!

Liabilities refer to everything that you OWE. It includes credit card balances, college loan balances, car note balances, mortgage balances, and any other type of personal loan you may have. In Lisa’s example, her total liabilities were $163,800.

Net worth is determined by subtracting liabilities from assets. In Lisa’s case, her net worth is $123,700. This net worth fi gure is a snapshot of your current fi nancial situation. It is an image that is captured at a moment in time. It is a good idea to determine net worth on an annual basis. That will give you the best idea of how your net worth changes from year to year. When you apply for a loan, the lender will ask you to provide a current Statement of Financial Position before fi nalizing the loan and may require you to use the form

Real Life, Real Money: Lisa Learns Her Net Worth

Lisa is 31 and a single

mom of Julie, who is

three. Lisa fi nished her

college degree two

years ago, found a job

as an elementary school

teacher, and purchased

a home this year using

$20,000 of the money

she inherited from her

grandparents as a down

payment. She used the

rest of the money for a

down payment on a new

car and invested $4,000

in the stock market. Since

becoming a homeowner,

Lisa has developed

a serious interest in

fi nancial planning.

When she obtained her

mortgage, she had to

prepare a Statement of

Financial Position. She has

decided she will keep her

Statement up-to-date on

an annual basis. That way

she can see how her net

worth changes over time.

supplied by the lending institution.

Notice on Lisa’s Statement of Financial Position that the fi nal fi gure in the right-hand column is called Total Liabilities and Net Worth. This fi gure is identical to Total Assets and is obtained by adding together net worth and total liabilities.

3. Prepare your own Statement of Financial Position using the blank form on page 2-4. Modify the form to account for your various types of assets and liabilities. Put a date on the statement. Remember that a good time to prepare this statement is in January, after end-of-year statements arrive. But you can also prepare the statement at any point in time. Sometimes, the fi nancial statements you use to develop your net worth statement will show diff erent dates. That’s all right. Just note the dates next to the asset or liability you have listed on the form. When you estimate your use assets (cars, homes, personal property, etc.), use your best estimate of “fair market value.” In other words, what price would you get if you were to sell the asset today? Keep in mind that homes and real estate usually (but not always) appreciate (increase) in value, while automobiles and some personal property (think computers, large screen televisions, refrigerators) depreciate (decrease) in value over time.

4. Analyze your Statement of Financial Position. Is your net worth positive or negative? Are you “worth” more or less than you thought? Are there circumstances beyond your control that have infl uenced your net worth? Some factors such as a general decline of real estate values in your area or an increase in your debt because you have recently purchased a new car will infl uence your Statement of Financial Position. Is there

Wi$eUp – Money Mathwww.wiseupwomen.org 2-3

anything you can do to increase your assets and decrease your liabilities, or is your situation the result of larger economic forces? Complete these statements:

What surprised me most about my Statement of Financial Position is:

__________________________________________________________________________________________

I can increase my assets over the next year by:

__________________________________________________________________________________________

I can decrease my liabilities over the next year by:

__________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Make a fi le folder to archive your Statement of Financial Position. You can add the latest copy each time you update your net worth. Over time, these “snapshots” will help you see the changing nature of your fi nancial position. And someday, your grandchildren may even chuckle at this part of their “family history.”

6. (Optional Step.) If you use some type of computerized accounting system, take the time to enter your asset and liability data into the program. Doing so will allow you to automate the preparation of a Statement of Financial Position through the “reports” function of your accounting package.

ASSETS (at Fair Market Value)

Cash/Cash Equivalents

Checking Accounts $1,100

Savings Accounts $3,600

Money Market Account $1,800

Life Insurance Cash Value

Total Cash/Cash Equivalents $6,500

Invested Assets

Stock Portfolio $5,000

Limited Partnership

IRAs $3,000

Pension Plans $5,000

Total Invested Assets $13,000

Use Assets

Residence $165,000

Cars $28,000

Personal Property $75,000

Other Real Estate

Total Use Assests $268,000

TOTAL ASSETS $287,500

Example – Statement of Financial Position – Lisa As of December 31, 2009

LIABILITIES & NET WORTH

Liabilities

Credit Card Balances $2,800

Auto Note Balance $16,000

Mortgage Note Balance $145,000

Total Liabilities $163,800

Net Worth $123,700

TOTAL LIABILITIES & NET WORTH $287,500

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My Statement of Financial Position

As of: ____________________________________ (date)

ASSETS (at Fair Market Value)

Cash/Cash Equivalents

Checking Accounts

Savings Accounts

Money Market Account

Life Insurance Cash Value

Total Cash/Cash Equivalents $

Invested Assets

Stock Portfolio

Limited Partnership

IRAs

Pension Plans

Total Invested Assets $

Use Assets

Residence

Cars

Personal Property

Other Real Estate

Total Use Assets $

TOTAL ASSETS $

LIABILITIES & NET WORTH

Liabilities

Credit Card Balances

Auto Note Balance

Mortgage Note Balance

Total Liabilities $

NET WORTH $

TOTAL LIABILITIES & NET WORTH

$

Wi$eUp – Money Mathwww.wiseupwomen.org 2-5

Taking Stock: Where the Money GoesKnowing your net worth is important, but knowing your net worth alone is not enough. You should also know where your money goes on an annual, monthly, and daily basis. Some people keep very close records and know where every penny goes. Other people rely on their monthly bank statements to give them an idea of where their

money has gone. There are several methods to track spending. Over time, you will develop methods that suit your style comfortably without feeling overburdened by the task.

Before you can engage in good fi nancial planning for the future, you have to assess where your money is going today and every day. Keep in mind that how you spend money can vary each day. The ways you spend your money include cash or

debit card, check, and credit card. Some people also have electronic accounts, such as Pay Pal, but such accounts are normally associated with a primary checking account. Why is it important to write down every amount that is spent, even the smallest cash sums? Because it is the only sure-fi re way of knowing what you have done with your money. You cannot make successful fi nancial plans for the future without knowing your spending history.

1. Get a small notebook, and make three columns that refl ect how you spend your money: cash, check or debit card, and credit card. Carry this notebook with you, and make it a habit to jot down what and how you spent your money. Do it as it happens – before you forget. Your spending notebook can look like this:

There is one way to save time with this task. If you are consistent and regular in entering into your checkbook register every check, every debit card purchase, and every ATM cash withdrawal that you make, you will only have to enter your cash and credit card purchases into your notebook. Keeping your checkbook register current is an important step in money management because it avoids expensive overdraft charges and psychologically helps by keeping you aware of your current balance.

2. Here’s an example from just a few days from Lisa’s notebook. Lisa has chosen to write down everything in this notebook for a two-month period to understand how she really spends her money.

Steps to Wi$ing Up – Step 2-2. A Notebook Tool for Tracking Your Spending

My Spending Notebook

Date What Cash Check or Debit Card Credit Card

A Notebook Tool for Tracking Your Spending – Lisa’s Example

Date What Cash Check or Debit Credit Card

Feb 2 coff ee - latt e $4.38

Feb 3 #1501 utility bill $156.23

Feb 3 AmEx - new shoes $120.50

Feb 3 groceries (debit) $34.89

Feb 4 planter (eBay/PayPal) $16.34

Feb 6 #1502 mortgage payment $1,372.00

Feb 6 coke at school $1.00

Feb 7 AmEx - nails $18.00

Feb 8 #1502 day care bill $200.00

Feb 8 ATM cash withdrawal for weekend entertainment

$62.00

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3. Use the chart below to decide right now when you will begin the process of tracking your spending and how long you will continue it. Keeping track of your spending over a two to three-month period will give you a good idea of how you are spending your money. Lisa tracked her spending for two months, starting February 1st. When she told her friend Susanna how well the system was working for her, Susanna decided she should do it, too. But because Susanna had rarely kept track of her spending, she decided she would gain a bett er understanding of her spending if she tracked it for three months.

Taking Stock: Do You Like What You See?Tracking your spending has no meaning unless you analyze the data you have recorded. You can make your analysis as general or as specifi c as you wish at this point. The important thing is to do something with the information. In our case study example about Lisa, you saw only a few days’ expenses from Lisa’s notebook. Lisa discovered some interesting things about herself and her spending habits during the two-month period that she kept records in her notebook – and she didn’t like everything she saw. Here were some of her discoveries.

Household maintenance costs were higher then she thought they would be. During this period, she had several unanticipated expenses for her new house.

Personal care costs were twice as high as she expected. Having her nails done is important to her, but she had not realized how much money was going for manicures.

Clothing costs were a surprise to Lisa. She only bought clothes with

a credit card, never with a check. Lisa realized that by using her credit card to buy clothes, she was allowing herself to live beyond an aff ordable amount for clothing; her credit card allowed her to buy what she wanted, not what she could really aff ord. As she checked her closet, she discovered new articles of clothing that she had forgott en about and didn’t even like. She thought she was “saving money” by gett ing them on sale.

Debt repayment costs took a lot of Lisa’s income each month. In another chapter of Wi$eUp, you’ll learn some important credit guidelines.

Costs for her child were aff ordable for Lisa, thanks to the fact that Julie’s father made regular child-support payments to Lisa.

Lisa decided to include a “could have lived without it” category in her analysis of spending because she was not certain how much of the money she was spending

ended in regret. Some of the purchases in this category included the purchase of DVDs, items bought on sale, a few of the items she bought on eBay, and about three too many magazine subscriptions. Lisa liked using a “could have lived without it” category when she analyzed her data. It helped her to recognize that thinking before spending could put her fi nancially ahead.

Money Tracking Goals

Lisa Susanna My Starting/Ending

Starting Date: February 1st February 1st

Ending Date: March 31st April 30th

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As you analyze your own data, create categories that make sense for your life. And pay special att ention to the categories of spending over which you have control. Sometimes when we feel the most strapped for money, it is only because we have not curbed spending in the areas over which we have the most control.

1. Write down the spending categories you think you will use when you analyze the entries in your spending notebook. Here are some ideas to get you started: work-related spending, children’s expenses, personal care, household expenses, food, eating out, entertainment, transportation/car, and “could have lived without it.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

2. As you transfer information from your Spending Notebook to a Spending Analysis Sheet, make a check mark in your Spending Notebook after transferring each entry.

3. Summarize your spending for the two or three-month period in which you tracked your spending.

Were you able to account for all of your money? ________________________

Based on your analysis, what steps do you plan to take to modify what you spend and how you spend it (cash/check/debit/credit)?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Steps to Wi$ing Up – Step 2-3. Analyze Your Spending: Do You Like What You See?

Taking Stock: Where the Money Went Statement of Income and ExpenseHopefully, you have decided to take action by recording how you spend your money for the next two to three months. Later, you will use this information for sett ing fi nancial goals for the future and for managing the money that fl ows into your life.

There will be times in your life when you are asked to prepare a Statement of Income and Expense. This statement is sometimes known as a cash fl ow statement. A lender will likely require you to prepare a

Statement of Income and Expense before qualifying you for a loan. Preparing this statement is easy if you have records of how your money was spent. You already know some of this information because you use some of it when you prepare your annual income tax returns. If you use a computerized system for tracking your income and expenses, the program will produce a Statement of Income and Expense for you automatically. In this section, you will learn how to create this statement manually.

1. Read Real Life, Real Money: Cheryl and Rick’s Statement of Income and Expense.

Steps to Wi$ing Up – Step 2-4. Prepare a Statement of Income and Expense

Real Life, Real Money: Cheryl and Rick’s Statement of Income and Expense

Cheryl and Rick have been married just over a year. Cheryl asked Rick to help her analyze their

income and expenditures, and to develop a Statement of Income and Expense for the past

year. They were both committed to “fi nancial harmony” in their marriage and had tried to do a

good job keeping records during the year. Because they had developed a good fi ling system,

it wasn’t very hard for them to pull out the money facts they needed to prepare the Statement

of Income and Expense: payroll statements, monthly bank statements, quarterly earnings

reports, annual mortgage statement, and their monthly expenses summaries.

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2. Look at Cheryl and Rick’s Statement of Income and Expense on page 2-9 as you refer to the following discussion.

It is time specifi c. It summarizes income received and expenses paid for a full, 12-month year. Cheryl and Rick’s statement is for the 2009 calendar year.

It has a fl exible format. You may fi nd other Statements of Income and Expense that look diff erent from this one, but they serve the same fundamental purpose.

Expenses are categorized as either fi xed or variable.

Fixed expenses include savings and investments, retirement contributions, taxes, mortgage or rent, debt payments, and insurance.

Variable expenses include food, transportation, clothing, education, medical, utilities, and all other expenses. You may make this form as detailed or as general as you wish.

Cheryl and Rick used only a few categories in making up their statement. One thing they noticed was that the category “All Other” was quite large. They plan to “fi ne-tune” this category because they want to see how $12,642 was actually spent.

It accommodates dual-earning couples or single persons. Notice that the form has three columns, which are labeled “Cheryl,” “Rick,” and “Total – Both Spouses.” If you are not married, you will be able to eliminate two of the columns on the form. If you are married, use the self, spouse, and total columns as needed. It will be easier for you to track income by earner but harder to separate expenses by earner. Separating expenses is not necessary, unless you and your spouse have a clear division of fi nancial responsibility in paying for certain items in your household budget and you wish for your Statement of Income and Expense to refl ect this divided fi nancial responsibility.

One category in which it makes sense for couples to include separate totals is retirement savings. This category will allow you to identify opportunities to make additional retirement contributions, especially if you are the lower-earning spouse, are not gainfully employed outside of the home, or operate a small business. In the case of Cheryl and Rick, Rick’s contributions towards retirement were two times greater than Cheryl’s. They plan to try to increase Cheryl’s contributions in the future.

3. Complete a Statement of Income and Expense for yourself or for your total household/family situation using the blank form provided on page 2-10. Prepare the statement for the last year in which you have complete records of income and expenses. You can simplify the task if you go back to that year’s tax records for some of the information, but be sure you check your W-2 statements to determine your total salary for the year. Your tax return may show a lower taxable income than you actually earned if you saved money for retirement at work and could exclude your tax-deferred earnings from your gross income. Create income and expenses categories that make sense for your particular situation.

A Statement of Income and

Expense is time-specifi c. It is a statement that

summarizes income received

and expenses paid for a full, 12-month year.

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Statement of Income and Expense – Cheryl and Rick’s Samplefor the Year Ending December 31, 2009

INCOME Cheryl Rick Total – Both Spouses

Gross Salary/Wages $34,000 $52,000 $86,000

Dividend Income $650 $650

Interest Income $42 $50 $92

Other Income $800 $800

TOTAL INCOME $87,542

EXPENSES – FIXED

Savings/Investments $1,000 $1,000 $2,000

Retirement $3,000 $6,000 $9,000

Income Taxes $16,800

Property Taxes $2,500

Mortgage/Rent $12,500

Insurance $3,000

TOTAL FIXED EXPENSES $45,800

EXPENSES – VARIABLE

Food $10,000

Transportation $8,000

Clothing/Personal $3,000

Education $800

Medical/Dental $1,500

Utilities $3,600

Vacation $2,200

Child Care

All Other $12,642

TOTAL VARIABLE EXPENSES $41,742

TOTAL EXPENSES: FIXED + VARIABLE $87,542

4. Study your completed Statement of Income and Expense. Were there:

any surprises? ____________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

any future changes you want to make in your saving and spending patt erns? _____________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Wi$eUp – Money Math www.wiseupwomen.org2-10

Statement of Income and Expensefor the Calendar Year Ending:

INCOME Self Spouse Total − Both Spouses

Gross Salary/Wages

Dividend Income

Interest Income

Other Income

TOTAL INCOME

EXPENSES FIXED

Savings/Investments

Retirement

Income Taxes

Property Taxes

Mortgage/Rent

Insurance

TOTAL FIXED EXPENSES

EXPENSES VARIABLE

Food

Transportation

Clothing/Personal

Education

Medical/Dental

Utilities

Vacation

All Other

TOTAL VARIABLE EXPENSES

TOTAL EXPENSES: FIXED + VARIABLE

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Setting Financial GoalsMost of us carry around mental images of the life we would like to be living. Whether we achieve the life we want depends on many factors, but the most important element for our “dream fulfi llment” is creating concrete fi nancial goals and a process for achieving them. There is a big diff erence between a dream and an actual fi nancial goal. Dreams have a “some day” quality about them. But fi nancial goals can be our action plans and roadmaps for achieving our dreams if we narrow them down and do the money math.

As you have worked through this chapter of the Wi$eUp Handbook, you have undoubtedly thought about your life goals and how they relate to money. Now is the time to specify those goals and turn them into fi nancial action items.

Good fi nancial planning and money management always begin with goal sett ing. Goals give direction and purpose to the way money is spent. Goals provide us with motivation and encouragement in working towards what is most important. For the greatest personal satisfaction, our fi nancial goals should refl ect our values – our deep-rooted beliefs about what matt ers most to us.

Financial goals may be short-term, intermediate-range, or long-range.

Examples of short-term goals are: 1) shifting from using credit to using a debit card, 2) reducing expenditures for a particular category of spending, 3) developing a workable budget, and 4) building an emergency fund or set-aside account.

Examples of intermediate-range goals are: 1) saving for things you want to buy in the near future, 2) saving money for a down payment on a house or a new vehicle, 3) saving for the college education of a child, and 4) becoming debt-free.

Examples of long-range goals are: 1) building a retirement portfolio, 2) saving for a vacation home, and 3) developing an estate plan.

There are seven basic steps involved in sett ing and achieving fi nancial goals.

1. What are your life goals? You can dream here! Which ones cost money? If you need support, share your goals with family and friends so they can encourage and help you. Write and keep these goals in your planner, offi ce, or home where you can see them often.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Through the previous Steps to Wi$ing Up exercises, you may have identifi ed fi nancial goals you would like to work on. List them here as reminders.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Now it’s time to turn your dreams and ideas into fi nancial action steps. Refer to the previous descriptions of possible short-term, intermediate-range, and long-range goals. An example is provided in the table, My Financial Goals, for each category. To remain realistic, identify no more than three goals for each category. That will force you to identify the most important, most valuable goals.

Steps to Wi$ing Up – Step 2-5. Set Your Eye on the Goals

Photographs by the U.S. Census Bureau, Public Information Office (PIO).

Steps to Setting and Achieving Financial Goals

1. Identify the goal, and write it down.

2. Put a price tag on the goal. How much money will be needed to achieve the goal?

3. Set a target date for achieving the goal.

4. Set priorities among your fi nancial goals. It may not be possible to achieve all of them simultaneously.

5. Develop a plan to achieve your goals. This will mean re-examining how you presently spend your money and working the fi nancial goals into your monthly budget/spending plan.

6. Begin to work toward the goal immediately. Procrastination costs money in the long run. If you have a plan in mind for how to accomplish your goal, there is no reason to delay action.

7. Keep records to monitor your progress and success towards accomplishing your goals.

Wi$eUp – Money Math www.wiseupwomen.org2-12

Making Financial CalculationsFiguring costs or making fi nancial projections is easy to do using widely available on-line fi nancial calculators. Many fi nancial websites have embedded a variety of fi nancial calculators to help you answer the “how much” or “what if” questions. The best websites arrange their calculators by category and include a variety of diff erent applications within those categories. Be sure to check your bank, credit union, and brokerage fi rm websites as many fi nancial institutions today provide their customers and

My Financial Goals

My Short-Term Goals: Cost/Price Target Date to Accomplish Priority

new refrigerator $1200 - save $50 per month in two years High #1

My Intermediate-Range Goals Cost/Price Target Date to Accomplish Priority

Become debt-free Pay off $35,000 in debt about $500 $600 extra needs to be paid monthly

2012 High #1

My Long-Term Goals Cost/Price Target Date to Accomplish Priority

Retirement Roth IRA $5000 per year, increasing to allowable limits about $416 per month is needed

every year so I can retire in 2035

High #1

members with on-line tools. Check out the following websites.

MyMoney.Gov, htt p://www.mymoney.gov/category/topic1/calculators.html. This website provides links to fi nancial calculators available at federal agency websites. The calculators include College Planning, Credit Card Repayment Calculator, Group Life Insurance for Federal Employees, Home Buying, Interactive worksheets to help with retirement planning, Investing, Mortgage Comparison Calculator, Savings Bonds – Current and Future Value, Social Security Benefi ts, Tax Withholding, and Thrift Savings Plans for Federal Employees.

Infl ation Calculator, htt p://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl and htt p://www.bls.gov/data/infl ation_calculator.htm. This

calculator makes it easy to fi nd out how the buying power of the dollar has changed over the years. For example, $1.00 in 2009 has the same buying power as 61 cents did in 1990.

Choose to Save Education Program, htt p://www.choosetosave.org and htt p://www.choosetosave.org/calculators/. Calculators from a variety of sources are grouped alphabetically by topic: auto, bond, budget, college, credit card, employee benefi ts, home, insurance – disability, insurance – health, insurance – life, life expectancy, mutual funds, paycheck planning, retiree health, retirement, Roth IRA, savings, Social Security, stock, and tax.

Ballpark E$timate, htt p://www.choosetosave.org/ballpark/ and htt p://www.choosetosave.

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org/spanish/ballpark/. This widely used online tool tells you how much you need to save to fund a comfortable retirement. The Ballpark E$timate takes complicated issues like projected Social Security benefi ts and earnings assumptions on savings, and turns them into language and mathematics that are easy to understand. A Spanish-language version is also available.

Bankrate.com, htt p://www.bankrate.com/calculators/index-of-calculators.aspx. A large array

of calculators are available within each of the following topic areas: mortgage, home equity, taxes, CDs and investments, auto, debt management, personal fi nance, retirement, insurance, savings, credit cards, and small business.

SmartAboutMoney.org, – National Endowment for Financial Education htt p://www.smartaboutmoney.org/Home/FeaturedResources/Calculators/tabid/424/Default.aspx. Calculators are grouped according to these topics: Daily

Decisions, 401(k) and Your Paycheck, Home and Auto, and Credit and Debt.

Financial Calculators from KJE Computer Solutions, LLC, htt p://www.dinkytown.net/. This site provides more than 350 fi nancial calculators for mortgage, loans, taxes, auto, retirement savings and planning, personal fi nance, credit cards and debt, business, investment, and savings. Make sure to use the calculators for your country as calculators for the U.S., Australia, and Canada are included at this site.

Photographs by the U.S. Census Bureau, Public Information Office

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Are You Wi$er Now? My Action Plan for Chapter 2, Money Math

1. I want to improve my money skills.

Q Yes

Q No

2. My goals for improvement in the areas covered in Chapter 2, Money Math, are:

Q Using all of the money tools/worksheets in the chapter

Q Sett ing realistic fi nancial goals

Q Other _________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________

3. I plan to achieve my goals by (indicate date):

Q Att ending educational programs beginning ________________________________________________

Q Utilizing the Wi$eUp Handbook and completing the Steps to Wi$ing Up exercises and worksheets beginning _____________________________________________________________________________

Q Accessing the recommended websites beginning ___________________________________________

Q Writing up an action plan for myself and monitoring my own progress regularly beginning _____________________________________________________________________________

Q Discussing my plans with my spouse or family (if applicable) by _____________________________

Q Other __________________________________________________________________________________

4. I plan to put these goals into action by (indicate date):

Q Preparing a Statement of Financial Position (Net Worth Statement) by _________________________

Q Tracking what and how I spent money for two to three months beginning _____________________

Q Analyzing my spending based on the two to three month tracking period beginning ____________

Q Preparing a Statement of Income and Expense for the most recent tax year by __________________

Q Putt ing my specifi c fi nancial goals in writing by ____________________________________________

Q Archiving the critical documents I have created in my Financial Center starting ________________

Q Learning how to make fi nancial calculations using on-line fi nancial calculators by _______________

Q Other _________________________________________________________________________________

Wi$eUp – Money Mathwww.wiseupwomen.org 2-15

Wi$eUp On-line Resources for Learning More at http://wiseupwomen.org

The Expert Q&A Archive at htt p://wiseupwomen.org has answers from Wi$eUp’s nationwide network of fi nancial experts who have responded to questions from Wi$eUp participants on many diff erent fi nancial topics. A few of the Q and A’s that relate to this chapter of Wi$eUp include:

Do fi nancial advisors only work with people who only have large amounts of cash?

What fi nancial books would you recommend?

Are there advantages to paying my bills on-line?

How do I go about changing childhood spending habits?

The Wi$eUp Teleconference Archive at htt p://wiseupwomen.org features MP3 fi les and transcripts from Wi$eUp’s bimonthly national teleconferences featuring nationally noted speakers on a variety of fi nancial topics. Some of the teleconferences related to this chapter of Wi$eUp include:

Wi$eUp: Master your Money

What Do I Do Now? Facing Financial Challenges in an Uncertain Economic Environment

Financial Recordkeeping

Wi$eUp – Money Math www.wiseupwomen.org2-16