About
Welcome to BankerGirl. I am a former banker living and working in the Midwest. For nearly ten years I have been preaching to my friends about the importance of reigning in unsecured debt, coaching clients on how to improve their FICO scores, and explaining to business owners why they should care about liquidity ratios. I still work in the financial services sector, now as a strategist. I have been a featured speaker at personal cash management seminars and I teach a couple of financal management classes at a local college.
My deep, dark secret is that I am a financial hypocrite. To date, I haven’t put my money where my mouth is.
At all.
I have a mortgage that I can barely afford, tons of consumer debt, over $60k in student loans, and a ridiculously high car payment. I blame myself for the mess I am in, and this blog is intended to be a public record of how I (hopefully) claw my way out of the personal financial hell of my own making. I don’t expect any sympathy from readers; I just hope that my hypocrisy doesn’t chase anyone away. The moral of my story is that bankers and other financial advisors are human and are not exempt from making catestrophic financial mistakes.
Please join me in what is sure to be a challenging journey to financial independence. Along the way, I will dish up advice, include a few (anonymous) client anecdotes, and link you to financial resources that I have found helpful. I’ll happily answer reader questions (although I am going to keep some details of my personal life private to protect the guilty).
Questions? I encourage you to leave a comment here or send me an email at HeidiatBankerGirldotcom
Vital Stats
Age: 31
Education: BA, Communications; MBA, Finance & Marketing
Marital Status: Engaged to be married, Oct 2008
Children: none (but some say that I treat my dog like a child)
Professional Experience: teller, personal banker, retail annuity specialist, commercial lender, relationship manager, product manager, portfolio manager, marketing strategist
Teaching Experience: Operations management, service marketing management, personal financial management, corporate financial management, strategic planning, business management
Other
In my “free time” I enjoy traveling, watching football, riding my retro-ish bicycle, reading, hanging out with my partner, and playing with our dog. I also sit on four local non-profit boards and multiple committees.
February 11th, 2008 at 12:51 am
I followed a link from your recent comment at Get Rich Slow here. Nice blog. I wanted simply to say that it’s interesting to me to hear directly from someone in banking how so many people are avoiding preparing for retirement. I recently found a report by the US GAO that indicated this also. See: http://www.richmoneymillion.com/2007/12/most-people-dont-save-for-retirement.html
As a banker, do you ever suggest to customers to think about retirement? Or is that off-limits? I anticipate trouble ahead when SS runs out and when everyone’s broke. Isn’t it in the best interest for financial institutions to try to affect this future?
February 15th, 2008 at 10:09 am
I’m in a similar position! I’m 33, single, and have worked in finance most of my adult life, and while I’ve made some good decisions, more have been bad ones. I’m on track to change all this now! I’m adding my journey bit-by-bit to my blog as well.
I’d love to have you check it out if you get a chance!http://blog.thewriterbee.com
Oh, AND I’m resolved to lose weight this year as well that has somehow creeped on over the past year. Of course I don’t have a wedding as a goal right now as you are…all I want is to fit back into my the clothes in my closet!
March 11th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
I really like your site! I too fell for the lure of student loans for graduate school and now have even more of them than you do. Reading blogs like yours helps me stay centered as I mend my spend-a-holic ways, pay down credit card debt, and get onto the road to financial solvency.
I’m in my early 30s and getting married in July. I actually think the wedding helped spark my financial awakening. Seeing what passed for “normal wedding expenses” vs. my real-life budget was quite a shock. We’re doing an outdoor wedding at a nearby park with all-local food and farmers’ market flowers.
You can see why I’m loving your blog! We seem to have a lot in common. Good luck as you progress. I’ll be rooting for you!
Cheers,
Amy