#moneypositive

Dear Friends, Clients, and Colleagues,

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had happy holidays. 2017 was quite a year right? 2018 is full of possibilities and excitement! To mark the beginning of the year there are a few Money Positive announcements to share.

Residency at This Will Take Time

For the month of January I am in Point Arena, California on a Residency at This Will Take Time. Normally, This Will Take Time host artists, but I am doing a Planner-in-Residence. Point Arena is a town of 400 in Northern California. In partnership with This Will Take Time and the Redwood Forest Foundation I will be helping as many people as possible with their finance and planting redwood trees in suitable habitats. The longterm goal is to get the entire community’s finances in order while also working on nurturing the local natural environment. Keep an eye on my social media accounts to stay updated on the project and see pictures of this beautiful place.

B Corporation

   Money Positive is now the first and only financial planning company in the state of Texas to be certified as a B Corporation, or B Corp. This means that Money Positive has a “triple bottom-line” as a business to be environmentally and socially responsible. Money Positive was founded to show that investing is not just about stock portfolios, you invest in the environment when you plant a tree, and in the community by helping those in need. I am very proud to have passed the rigorous process to get certified and look forward to all the good we will do together.

Clients in 2018

   This little financial planning company has grown to helping over 50 people in 40 client households. The trust you place in me and the time being part of your life is a great privilege. In 2018 I will be focused on making Money Positive even better for you and making sure you are on the path you want. Behind the scenes I am working with partners to design a better Money Positive. And starting now I will be implementing a monthly check-in with everyone. Money Positive is here for you!

Thank you,

Lewis   P.S. Check out my updated website money-positive.com with art by Gabrielle Genevieve

Dear Friends and Clients, Wow there is a lot going on right now. I want to check in on everyone and share some Money Positive news.

Storms

Hurricane Harvey recently hit Texas and much of the gulf coast. Now Irma has hit the Caribbean and is heading towards Florida. There was a large earthquake in southern Mexico. And wildfires on the west coast. Thankfully everyone I’ve checked in with so far has been safe with no major home damage. Please let me know how you and your loved ones are doing if I haven’t heard from you yet! Money Positive is here to help, now and anytime there is a big life event.

Bookkeeping

I am super into bookkeeping right now and am encouraging everyone who runs a business or organization to consider having their books done by qualified professionals. You don't really know what is happening in your organization without proper books. Clients, if you haven’t already heard from me about this yet, you will soon! Having clear channels between trusted advisors helps us give better advice. I have been working with Key Figures here in Austin to do my bookkeeping. They recently became the first bookkeeping shop organized as a Cooperative in Texas! Congrats y’all! Let’s keep helping people build sustainable businesses.

Equifax

Many of you have been asking what to do following the data breach at the credit reporting agency, Equifax. We should treat as a reminder to protect our data and privacy, rather than a reason to panic.

Keep an eye on your bank accounts for suspicious activity and alert your banks if you do.

Check your credit reports to make sure no one has used your identity to open your fraudulent account.

Consider placing a “freeze” on your credit reports to prevent new accounts from being opened. Record your PIN numbers for when you need to reactivate your credit reports. Clients, you can create a document with your PIN numbers and save it in the client document vault for later retrieval.

For more information check out these detailed instructions from the FTC.

Radical Networks- NYC

Speaking of the internet and privacy. Radical Networks, a conference and arts festival, is coming up on October 19-22. If you are in the NYC area I encourage you to check it out! Money Positive is a continuing backer of this community. Tickets are available through their kickstarter page.

Money Positive at Capital Factory

Dear clients and friends,

I hope you are well and enjoying the holiday season! I have a few things I wanted to share with you before the end of the year.

Health Insurance

Many workplaces are in their benefits open enrollment period. Also, private insurance through healthcare.gov is in open enrollment through December 15. After the deadlines, generally you can only change your health insurance policy if you have a qualifying life event. Insurance helps you minimize risk. In other words it is there to make sure you can only fall so far. Health insurance in particular is a vital part of your financial success. If you have questions, please get in touch. If your expenses change, let me know so we can update your plan!

A Little Housekeeping

You can now reach the client portal, Advizr, through this direct link: https://moneypositive.advizr.com/ Save it to your bookmarks and phone's home screen.

Money More-Positive

Many of you have reached out to express your personal goals of helping others and being a positive force in the world. A driving philosophy at Money Positive is recognizing that everything we invest in, not just our stocks, has a compounding effect. Recognizing that, we can choose to invest in ourselves, families, and community. In 2016, Money Positive has planted 40 redwood trees--in honor of clients and their families--in partnership with the Redwood Forest Foundation. I also participated in several free personal finance seminars and roundtables for local artists. And to celebrate the holidays, Money Positive made a donation in honor of clients to Refugee Services of Austin, where I have volunteered to teach financial literacy in the new year. If you can, I encourage you to consider investing in causes close to your heart by making a financial donation (from your discretionary account, of course) or by volunteering time. If you know any groups who would be interested in a seminar or roundtable on personal finance, I am happy to help. Let me know if you have a group in mind who would like to arrange something or if you have other suggestions for improving Money Positive.

Thank You!

Money Positive is sponsoring two scholarships for the “Get Your Money! Salary Negotiation Webinar” being held by our friends at recruitHER. Sign up for their mailing list to be considered.

Get Your Money! How to Negotiate for More + Keep your Boss Happy, Too

Women are constantly told to negotiate for more. But how???*

How much should you ask for?

What exact words work best?

Do you have to reveal your salary history?

What else can you negotiate besides salary?

...And how can you negotiate forcefully without creating a bunch of resentment with your new boss?

recruitHER wants to empower you to own your worth and get the compensation you deserve!

*Everyone is welcome! The webinar will include information specific to the role that gender plays in successful negotiations, but the strategies are effective for everyone.

Wednesday, May 18th 2016 

12:30pm 1:30pm (12:30-1:30pm Central Timezone)