Smart Mom, Rich Mom: How to Build Wealth While Raising a Family

by Kimberly Palmer

Overview

Ladies, this collection of stories from moms who have successfully worked full-time, freelance, self-employed, and in other ways, while also raising amazing children and providing financial freedom for their families, has room to add more--your story! Start it today!

Of all life's financial shocks, few compare to the $250,000 price tag--not including college!--of raising a child. How will you pay for it? Many mothers have agonized over that question, letting it fuel their decisions concerning careers, budgets, and families. The only thing they can all agree on is: there are no easy answers. However, there are plenty of rewarding possibilities!

Mining successful moms' experiences to uncover both career advice and strategies for spending and saving anyone can use, Smart Mom, Rich Mom includes stories, checklists, action steps, planning tools, and more to help other moms learn how to:

• Prepare financially for parenthood, as well as adding to your litter
• Balance thrift with generating income and investing wisely
• Find flexibility at work while safeguarding your earning potential
• Save for both college and retirement
• Plan for unexpected events

Smart Mom, Rich Mom explores how women today are navigating the financially challenging career/parenting years. This invaluable resource for moms everywhere chronicles women who have stayed in the game as both moms and businesswomen--full-time, freelance, self-employed, and more--and emerged more prosperous and empowered than before having children.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780814436806
Publisher:	AMACOM
Publication date:	06/09/2016
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	738,795
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Kimberly Palmer, author of The Economy of You: Discover Your Inner Entrepreneur and Recession-Proof Your Life, was the senior money editor at US News & World Report for nine years. She is an adjunct professor at American University, where she teaches a course on mastering social media. She lives with her family, including two children, in the Washington, D.C., area. You can find her at kimberly-palmer.com.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction: Into Motherhood 1

1 Save (and Spend) Like a Mother 11

2 Owning It 31

3 Timing is Everything 51

4 Like a Boss 63

5 Investing Mamas 87

6 Playing Defense 109

7 Stuck in the Middle 131

8 Model Moms 145

9 Back to You 169

10 Returning to the Nest 189

Epilogue: More than Money 199

The Smart Mom, Rich Mom Handbook 205

Notes 229

Index 239

About the Author 246

Editorial Reviews

★ 06/13/2016
There's a desperately needed dose of practical feminism in Palmer's (The Economy of You) excellent book, which targets middle-class women in their childbearing years, an often neglected audience for financial advice. Without insulting her readers' intelligence, Palmer pitches her advice at a basic level for women who may not have had previous guidance in developing financial-management skills. Her approach is creative and lifelong, advising readers who take time off to care for young children or aging parents to lobby for the flexible work hours and tasks they need, become entrepreneurs, or maintain their skills and contacts through freelance gigs, volunteering, or blogging. Beyond offering the same advice to women that men have been getting for decades, Palmer takes a family-oriented approach that includes ideas such as planning to have babies during more flexible periods of employment and choosing gender-neutral baby clothing for easier reuse. She urges modeling good money habits for daughters as well as sons and includes a dozen detailed "talking points" for building financial literacy with one's kids. This invaluable resource does much more than fill a niche; it bridges a huge gap. Agent: Melissa Sarver White, Folio Literary Management. (June)

Publishers Weekly

..".overflowing with hard-core advice on investing, career management, goal setting and retirement...addresses the unique financial concerns of almost all moms, whether they're working at home, outside the home or both." --Better Investing

"Even if the reader believed that financial savviness was out of her reach, this book will give her confidence to take a proactive approach to managing money immediately." --Portland Book Review

..".empowers these women with stories, advice, and most of all recommendations on how to take charge of your money, no matter where you are in your life." --Small Business Trends

..".no-nonsense, funny personal finance guide for moms offers wisdom for women in every life stage." --Financial Finesse

..".offers a wealth of interesting stories, great research and practical tips for women, especially moms, on how to take control of their financial future." --Richer Life Lab

..".practical, insightful, thoughtful...unreservedly recommended reading for any mother (or father!) wanting to plan effectively for their family's financial future." --Midwest Book Review

"Excellent book...This invaluable resource does much more than fill a niche; it bridges a huge gap." --Publishers Weekly

"For every woman who has struggled with the concept of investing or groaned at the thought of retirement funds and college tuition." --Foreword Reviews

"Her general points -- for example, that the spending and saving habits we develop in our 20s have a significant impact on our financial future -- are solid. And she is occasionally very witty." --The New York Times

"Kimberly Palmer is a mom on a mission...she views attention to a family's finances as vital as that yearly checkup for kids." --U.S. News and World Report

"No doubt about it: there's a lot to take away from reading Smart Mom, Rich Mom...packed with useable, reliable information and good advice." --Terri Schlichenmeyer, nationally syndicated columnist

"Not only are Palmer's tips insightful and relatable, but she also provides clear, actionable steps...to help you become the financially savvy, and independent woman you want to be." --Wise Bread

From the Publisher