This is it! The first official blog post of Katapult Financial Planning.
I’ve been noodling for a while on what topic I wanted to write about for such a momentous occasion. I could write about what is going on in the market and economy or give an overview of the provisions included in the SECURE Act 2.0 (and I will…later!), but admittedly not many would find that interesting. If you’re going to spend your precious time reading what I have to say, my goal is to use this space to educate you about financial topics relevant to your life and hopefully inspire you to make confident financial decisions. I’d also like to use this space for you to get to know me a little better... the "Kat" behind "Katapult."
Some of you may know that my mom recently passed away, rather unexpectedly, shortly after Thanksgiving. As you might imagine it’s been a rollercoaster of a few months, particularly as I try to get this new adventure off the ground. I have been reflecting a lot about her, our relationship, her life, my life, and all the choices that led me to this moment of entrepreneurship and launching my own financial planning practice. I am sad that she won’t be here to watch me grow, but I know she would be proud of my leap and would be rooting me on from the sidelines if she were still here.
I didn’t grow up wanting to be a financial planner. I took accounting classes in college but never knew that personal financial planning was even a thing. Most of my technical planning knowledge comes from almost two decades of study, attending conferences, reading financial journals, talking with other planners, and working with clients. Like too many individuals, I had no formal financial literacy education in elementary school, high school or college. However, I was incredibly fortunate to have a mom that instilled a few basic financial lessons in my sisters and I during our childhood. My mom saw the importance of making good money decisions, even if (or especially because) we didn’t have a lot of it growing up.
So in honor of my mom, I’d like to dedicate Katapult’s first blog post to her and share with you some of the lessons she taught us:
Protect your credit score
I have a vivid memory from middle school (one of the few I haven’t tried to block out) — I was in the backseat of her car, we were on the way to school, and I remember her emphatically telling my sisters and I, “no matter what, you have to protect your credit score.” She taught us the importance of having good credit, the importance of paying bills on time, and why you should try to pay off your bill in full every month. I’m pretty sure that I was rolling my eyes in the backseat as she lectured us, but now I’m incredibly grateful that she instilled in us such an important lesson at such an early age.
Always have an emergency fund
My parents divorced when I was heading into the third grade. My mom started working from home back before anyone knew what the letters “WFH” stood for, at one point working three different jobs to make sure that my sisters and I had everything we needed. We didn’t have a lot of money to spare but we always had a roof over our heads, food on the table, and medical care when we needed it (having an aunt as a nurse in the local emergency room also helped with this last one). No matter how tight money was, though, my mom always paid close attention to how much cash she had in her checking account. She never called it an “emergency fund,” rather it was her “cushion”. She understood life could be unpredictable, so her cushion provided her with peace of mind, knowing she had some extra cash just in case she needed it.
Invest in Yourself
As a child my mom was a smart and gifted student. In high school she won a scholarship to study in France for a year, she had articles published in her local paper, and as a talented pianist she won countless youth classical music competitions, all before she graduated from Wellesley College. She was a smarty pants who loved to read, a trait I am happy to have inherited from her. When she started working from home she was doing computer data entry on a part-time basis. But over the years she always found ways to take on other projects at her company. She moved up from data entry into writing and marketing, then moved into HR and leadership development training, before finally managing special projects for the company’s executive team before she retired. So much of the success she achieved in her 30 years with the company was a result of constant learning, growing and investing in herself while also supporting, helping and mentoring those around her. She taught us that investing time and energy into personal growth and development, not just in yourself but of those around you, can lead to more opportunities, success, and fulfillment.
Get to Know Uncle Sam
I got my first job in high school as soon as I turned 16, serving coffee and pastries at a local bakery (I had the 5 am shift and anyone that has met me knows I am NOT a morning person). Like everyone else who receives their first paycheck, I was surprised at all the different taxes that were taken out of it. It wasn’t until I received my first W-2, however, that I realized there was more to this tax thing. Since I was old enough to work, my mom said, I was old enough to learn how to file my own taxes. The deal was that I had to read the instruction booklet and at least try to fill out the 1040-EZ before she would offer any help, and since then I have prepared my own taxes. Sure, I still grumble about it and wait to the last minute every year, but I am grateful that she made me learn how to do it on my own because it gave me a better understanding about my personal tax situation. I don’t think everyone needs to (or should) prepare their own tax return (at some point you really might need a professional), but I do think it’s important that everyone have at least a basic understanding of their own personal tax situation.
While I was growing up, I was always in awe of how smart, independent, and confident my mom was. She taught us so much, but I admit that I didn’t have a full appreciation for these lessons in particular until I joined this profession.
Thanks, mom. Love you!