FEE (Financial Empowerment & Engagement) Sessions

FEE Sessions are events where we discuss different topics determined by the partner and The New Balance. These tend to be very engaging where we get to know the participants to ensure we meet their needs, not just talk at them. Below are some of the topics we can discuss in the sessions:

  1. Budgeting: Budgeting is the foundation of our organization. We work together with the participants to create a budget or Personal Financial Plan in our Money Master file we created that will help you realize your financial goals based on your current income and expenses. In order to do this, we discuss general financial rules to help you understand how your expenses should look compared to your income, but also discuss effective ways to increase the amount of cash you have left over for your savings account and other accounts.

  2. Saving: Many people save, but many of those same people don’t really know how much of their income they should be saving. We can discuss what number should be in the savings account and how much of their check they should putting aside for emergencies. We also talk about the different types of savings accounts you can put your money in and how they work. Additionally, we go into a discussion about 401k and Roth IRA, two of the biggest savings/investment account most people own, and which account may make the most sense for someone’s personal financial situation.

  3. Investing: Investing is probably one of the most popular discussions people want to have with finance professionals. An investment is a current commitment of money or other resources with the expectation of reaping future benefits, usually financial benefit. In this topic, we discuss what investing is, ways to invest, and how investing works. Whether it’s through stocks, money market accounts, or other avenues of investing, we touch on these items to ensure people have a basic understanding of how each works. We also discuss questions you should ask yourself before considering investing

  4. Credit & Loans: Approximately 70% of all households have credit cards. Most of us also have credit scores while 4 in 10 Americans have no idea how it’s calculated. Credit can be a wonderful tool to allow people to achieve their goals, if used properly. Credit can also become very destructive if not carefully watches and controlled. In this discussion, we talk about what credit is, how to use it wisely, how credit cards works, how to improve your credit score, and how different types loans (personal, mortgage, etc.) work. Ultimately, we want you to know how to best leverage credit for your benefit.

  5. Debt: Our attitudes towards debt have fluctuated drastically in the last 50 years. As society has progressed, people grew to see debt as a tool to obtain what they want and need like student loan debt and automobile debt. Debt is a necessity in life for most people since most people cannot afford to pay tuition, cars, or homes completely in cash. However, it’s important to understand what we consider reasonable and unreasonable debt. We discuss the different types of debt, the best way to pay it off, and tips of managing debt throughout your life.

  6. Insurance: Insurance is one of the most underrated life necessities in finance. What most people don’t realize is having life and health insurance is crucial. No one knows when a medical emergency could happen or how one emergency room visit could drastically impact the rest of your life even after you recover. We can discuss the importance of insurance and how medical or life emergencies can truly change the trajectory of your life.

  7. Taxes: For entrepreneurs, contractors, and/or consultants, taxes can be one of the most dreaded discussions to have. We can discuss how to effectively determine how much tax you would owe to the government based on your gross income and also discuss some of the items you should be considering deducting from your tax bill to increase the amount of money you keep to yourself.

  8. Interview & Negotiation Skills: Only 36% of candidates negotiate salary when offered jobs. It’s usually a much higher percentage if you break down the numbers by gender, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Minorities are often taught to take what’s given to them, which doesn’t have to be the case. We can discuss some resume, interview, and negotiation tips to ensure you get what you deserve.

  9. Financial & Life Tips: There are a lot tips that don’t always require money upfront that could help you financially and in life. We can discuss some general money and life tips that could help you make better life and financial decisions.

  10. Much More… Reach out to us to see if there a topic not on here that we discuss with your group.