Financial Education for Colorado Educators (and those they love). Absolutely Free.
Note: This post is going to assume a lot of privilege. It's not going to address the very real issues of income inequality and systemic disadvantage, as those are a bit beyond my wheelhouse (although I do have pretty strong opinions about policy changes we should make that could at least help address those issues). … Continue reading The Extraordinary Opportunity of Starting Early (and Privilege)
Nobody really likes it when the markets are down, especially when they are down significantly in a short period of time and the expectations are that it might (although nobody knows) continue to decline a fair amount more. People who are invested in the market look at their accounts and see how much they've lost, … Continue reading Some (Possible) Upsides of a Down Market
Just a little over 3 years ago I wrote a post encouraging folks to purchase service credit in their pension system if they were eligible and could afford to do it. While the entire post is worth reading for the full context, I wanted to pull out this quote, The second reason I think purchasing … Continue reading Time to Buy! Buy! Buy! (Service Credit, 2025 Edition)
I've written about inflation several times previously (here, here, here, and here), but it's a topic I keep returning to because I feel like it's a concept that many people still don't really understand. And, unfortunately, that often means they reach invalid conclusions, which can lead to poor financial decisions and/or lead people to just … Continue reading Inflation (again)
Many school districts have a salary schedule for teachers where your pay increases based on a combination of the number of years you have taught in the district ("steps") and the educational level you attain ("lanes"). While steps are automatic (well, except for the occasional bad budget year where steps are frozen), lanes are dependent … Continue reading Salary Schedule Lanes: Your Million Dollar (or two or three) Decision
In the financial literacy class I teach for educators we frequently talk about the concept of "paying yourself first." Think of "yourself" (or your future self, if you prefer) as an expense that you have to budget for and, just like you set aside money for the mortgage and the electric bill, set aside money … Continue reading Invest Half Your Raises
Fisch Financial 