Jessica PingJanuary Book Of The Month!
*Disclosure: There are affiliate links in the following article, meaning that, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using the links, I will receive a small commission.
You Are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth
Background:
If you’re a close friend of mine, you’ve probably heard me say this at one time or another…
“Money freaks me out.”
Whenever the topic of money comes up, this is my automatic response. It’s practically a reflex.
Here are some examples of times I’ve used this phrase:
- When I was planning my wedding and a vendor shared their fee
- When my husband (boyfriend at the time) wanted me to plan a trip to see him during my school break
- When I had to decide to buy a domain name for my blog or just use a free website builder
- When my friends ask me to go out and I am worried about the cost of dinner/drinks
- When, after 6 months, a new book I’d been dying to read released and my library hadn’t bought a copy
I was raised in a small, conservative town. The subject of money was hardly ever discussed and if on the off chance it did come up, it was talked about negatively.
Essentially, the world I grew up in taught me three things about money:
- It was fleeting
- There wasn’t enough of it
- There was only a handful of ways you could get it
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College and $$$
In May 2019, I graduated from the University of Notre Dame. While I love my Alma Mater for all of the amazing opportunities and friendships it bestowed upon me, it added to my confusion about money.
The range of wealth amongst my peers was staggering.
It wasn’t abnormal to hear about last-minute private jet getaways on a Monday morning, particularly during football season. If you weren’t traveling during one of our school breaks, who even were you? And don’t even get me started on the average bar tab for a Friday night.
Meanwhile, you had some students who couldn’t even afford a season pass for home football games or who had to pass up internship opportunities because they were unable to acquire proper funding.
This disparity left me feeling anxious and confused.
Ableism, Sexism, and $$$
Finally, on top of my personal experiences with money outlined above, I am also a disabled, young woman. As much as I wish my sex and ability level didn’t affect the way I think about money, it 100% does.
It is a proven fact that women earn less money than men (Payscale). It is also a proven fact that people with disabilities are more likely to be poor (World Report on Disability).
I have shouldered both of these facts for years and they have left a deep imprint on my self-worth, both financially and otherwise. In my first job after graduation, I was ridiculously timid. Even after I completed my internship and moved into a longer-term position, I still found it difficult to SPEAK.
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My imposter syndrome never disappeared. I always felt like the young girl who took up more space in the meeting room than everyone else.
It’s important to note here that my colleagues/supervisors were AMAZING and were in no way the reason for these feelings. The way I felt about myself was completely internalized and the result systemic ableism.
To put it simply, even though I had a degree and previous internship experience, I constantly felt like I had to prove my worth to everyone around me.
One day in particular stands out to me from this job. I was due to have surgery in November and needed to visit a doctor for a consult a couple of months beforehand to get checked out. After completing the internship portion of the position, I disclosed the date of this upcoming appointment and asked for it off before accepting the extension they had offered. In the end, it was agreed that I could take the day as a paid day off.
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When I began my new role, I was introduced to my new supervisor. It became clear very quickly that I would be needing to readdress the previous agreement.
I WAS TERRIFIED. The idea of asking for a paid day off so early on, even though it was already agreed upon, felt outrageous. WHO DID I THINK I WAS????
After shedding many tears in preparation and rehearsing what I was going to say like 50 times an hour, I finally approached my supervisor. She said, “sure, that’s no problem,” and the fog cleared and the sun came out and I realized I, once again, made a big deal out of nothing.
When the world is constantly questioning your worth and pitting you against “normal” people, it can feel like anything you have to offer is second best.
I have been writing the occasional freelance article since 2019, but thanks to the pandemic, I have been in search of more freelance opportunities. It’s not been easy and more often than not, I am the one who gets in my own way. Even after connecting with a new potential client, I second guess my rates.
“Should I really be charging that for this? I have only done it three other times!”
“Is my creative voice really worth __x__ amount?”
“I’m just starting out, it’s not fair to the client.”
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It took me until November to realize that I had been “just starting out” for 12 months and even though I had had at least one client a month, I was barely making enough to pay off HALF of my student loan payment. It was ridiculous.
So, I impulsively bought You Are A Badass At Making Money by Jen Sincero and continued to not read it until January 1st, 2021. In my defense, I had just undergone a transatlantic move, but still, I was only hurting myself.
My Money Mindset Was Non-Existent Before Reading You Are A Badass At Making Money
I started to read this book slowly, and quickly realized that I wanted to make it my January book of the month for 2 reasons:
- I think talking about the ways in which my disability has impacted the way I view money is important to the wider conversation of ableism and disability.
- Everyone deserves to feel empowered to make the money they deserve after the hellish year we have all been put through.
I have said this about all the self-help books I have reviewed, including Jen Sincero’s previous book, You Are A Badass. But, this book will only be impactful for you if you’re ready to make some serious changes in your life. Both your mindset and your ACTIONS will need a serious glow-up if you expect this book to affect your monthly bank statement.
That said, one thing that really impressed me about this book was the journal prompts. At the end of each chapter, Sincero included a handful of reflection questions to help you assess your feelings and start to manifest/plan out your future. Even the laziest reader on the planet could get something out of these questions. If nothing else, they get you really thinking about your relationship with money and how you can improve it.
Sincero is a great storyteller.
There were a few times that I got so invested in the anecdotes that I forgot I was reading a book about growing my finances. But, that said, she always tied it back into the conversation at hand perfectly. You wouldn’t think that an owl collection or a pair of troublesome goats could relate to making more cash, but it can, trust me.
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Also, Sincero’s voice is incredibly relatable. Even though I am younger than Sincero was in the majority of her stories, I still can empathize and understand the events she described. I may never have attended an entrepreneur-based conference, but I have attended networking events. Are they the exact same? No. But did I feel like everyone around me was much more confident and successful I was? Yup.
When you read a book like this that is committed to changing your mindset about a certain area of your life, you need to feel seen, not judged. Not once in Sincero’s persuasion did I feel like a lazy bum nor did I feel like I was a failure. Instead, I felt guided and motivated to improve my personal situation.
So, Did You Are A Badass At Making Money Work? Are You Making More Money?
I have a complicated but truthful answer for you: I don’t know.
As I said in the section above, once I chose to make You Are A Badass At Making Money my January book of the month, I had to speed read my way through it. I would love to sit down with this and take it apart slowly and really soak in all of the inspirational goodness. I also want to block out some time to go through the questions at the end of each chapter and really evaluate my next steps.
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That said, even in my quick read, I was able to take in a lot of information. Since completing this You Are A Badass At Making Money last week, I have booked a new client and I have had an interview for a full-time job. Will the client turn into a loyal customer? Will I land the job? I don’t know yet. But, these are two things I didn’t have before, so it’s a step in the right direction, I’d say!
So, Jess, Should I Read You Are A Badass At Making Money by Jen Sincero?
I personally think anyone who is out of high school should read this book. If nothing else, it is a great reminder that you deserve to INVEST IN YOURSELF.
Do I think this book fixed all of my weird feelings about money? No.
Do I think that my internalized ableism/sexism has disappeared thanks to this book? No.
Do I think that I now am more aware of my quirks about money and will be more capable to working through them in the future? Hell yeah!
It will take some time, but I am excited to start believing in myself again!
Want to improve your money mindset?
Buy You Are A Badass At Making Money:
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