The Financially Free Blog

The Financial Gym Team The Financial Gym Team

5 Affordable Father's Day Gifts

Father’s day is around the corner. You know you want to get a gift for the dad in your life, whether biological or not, but don’t want to spend too much. What gifts can you give that show that you care but won’t cost you a pretty penny but also won’t look cheap? We’ve got you covered with these five affordable father’s day gifts.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

What Your FICO Score Is Made Up Of

As an adult, your credit score plays a huge role in your life. It can lead to better interest rates, can help you get approved for an apartment and mean the difference between getting a loan or not. The most common credit score is the FICO credit score. But what actually makes up your FICO credit score? Read on to learn more.

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

Financial Literacy: Paying it Forward

All of us have a financial story that is influenced by our childhood. That story can lead to overspending and mismanaging money — and if we're honest, it's tough to break. Financial Gym client, Rebecca, is working with us to ditch her spending habits after a childhood in poverty and learning how to keep the money she makes. Not only that, she's now paying it forward to others in her community. Read on to learn more. 

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The Financial Gym Team The Financial Gym Team

Understanding Your Employee Benefits

Whether you’re just starting out at a job or have been there a while, there’s one thing that you should know: your employee benefits. Your employee benefits add so much value to your compensation. But if you don’t understand your employee benefits, you might not get the most out of what they offer. Here’s a quick guide to understanding your benefits at work.

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

How I Meal Prep for Less Than $45 a Week

I am an avid home cook that enjoys baking, hosting dinner parties and of course meal prepping.  I have always prepped most of my breakfasts, lunches, post-workout snacks, and dinners so that I could enjoy one too many cocktails on the weekend and brunch with friends.  

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The Financial Gym Team The Financial Gym Team

5 Tips for Debt Management

Do you feel like you’re over your head in debt? You’re not alone. It’s easy to be in denial about how much debt you’re in or feel overwhelmed with the process. While paying off debt isn’t easy, it is possible. Here are five tips for debt management.

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The Financial Gym Team The Financial Gym Team

5 Tips to Getting Your SO On Board with Your Financially Fit Journey

You’ve finally had enough of being broke and overspending and are ready to get financially fit. There’s just one problem. Bae isn’t on board. Let’s be real, getting financially fit requires some changes and when you must do things differently, not everyone in life will be as thrilled about it as you. But your relationship can have a huge impact on your journey so how do you get your SO on board? Here are five tips for getting your significant other on board with your financially fit journey.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

5 Ways to Get the Most Out of A Money Windfall

Whether you’ve just found out Grandma Betty died and left you a sum of money, or you got a huge bonus or miraculously won the lotto, you’re probably wondering one thing: What’s the best way to use your newfound wealth? There are no shortage of ways to spend money but without having a plan, you can easily stick to where you’re at or be more worse off than you were before the windfall.

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Shannon McLay, Founder and CEO Shannon McLay, Founder and CEO

Message from the CEO: Mental Health

In case you didn’t know, May is Mental Health Awareness Month. I think it’s interesting that it falls the month after Financial Literacy Month because there is such a strong connection between the two; and I never truly saw just how much until I experienced it firsthand last year.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

How to Help Your Elderly Parents

Let’s face it, you’re not getting any younger. And neither are your parents. At this point, they’re getting up there and you’re starting to worry about their finances and security. What will happen to them? What do you need to do to make sure they have a plan in place for their finances? It can be tough to think about but taking action now and having a conversation now can help everyone. Here’s how to help your elderly parents to get their finances and care in order.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

The Difference between a Savings and a CD Account

When you’re ready to get fit, you start working out, trying to find the best equipment that gets you the most bang for your buck. What will really get you looking like J. Lo who seems to defy age? Similarly, when it’s time to get financially fit you want to find the right tools to help grow your assets and that starts with saving. There are two different tools that can help you stash your cash: savings accounts and CD accounts. Read on to learn more about these two options and decide what is best for you.

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

What My Quarterly Weigh-In Was Like

Our client Keeley shares about her initial fears for her first quarterly review and what she’s accomplished in her first 3 months as a client at The Gym. She’s upped her emergency fund and also budgets for fun money since we want you to keep living your best life! Great job Keeley!

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

What My Plan Session Was Like

What’s it like to receive your financial plan? FinGym client Ruth Joseph explains how she tackled her plan’s “to-do” list!

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

How an Accountability Buddy Can Transform Your Finances

It’s almost the new year and you’re ready to get your finances in check. You’ve tried before but you tell yourself this time will be different. Sound familiar? Many of us have goals to improve our finances but fall short for a number of reasons. But there’s a secret weapon that can transform the process: getting an accountability partner.

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

What My Financially Naked Session Was Like

I was huffing and puffing on the stationary bike in the workout room of my Southern Utah home where my boyfriend and I live with our two dogs. I looked at the incoming call from New York with some amount of trepidation - "I am struggling to remain physically fit,” I thought to myself, "why am I adding the massive challenge of becoming financially fit to my plate?" The holidays were winding down and I was guilty of overindulging not only on food, but also spending too much on more than one occasion - I connected to the video chat anyway. 

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A Financial Gym Client A Financial Gym Client

What My First Warm-Up Call Was Like

FinGym client Jessica Weeks opens up about how she felt about her WarmUp call and what she has accomplished in the 3 months that she’s been a client of Tai’s.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

Top 5 Things You Need to Know About Filing For a Tax Extension

The tax deadline is approaching and panic is starting to set in. You feel like there’s no way you can get everything together to submit in time, so what can you do? The good news is you can file a tax extension. While that might seem like the easy way out, there are some important things to know first. Here are the top five things you should know and how to file for a tax extension.

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Caitlin Lyttle Caitlin Lyttle

Message from the CEO: Asking for Help

In case you didn’t know, The Financial Gym is my life’s purpose (in addition to being Will’s mom). And I never thought about living a purposeful life until ten years ago when my life coach suggested it would make me a happier human being. In 2009, I was living the opposite of a purposeful life. I was working at a hedge fund, making a six-figure salary; and my only career goal was to make more money and buy a massive home at some point. During my life coaching, one of my “exercises” included reading a book about Happiness; and after finishing it, I knew that I would find my life’s purpose in the pursuit of helping people. I just didn’t know what that would look like.

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