Spreadsheet: Cost of Car Ownership Calculator

Some of the episodes in my new podcast series Teaching You to Fisch (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube) include spreadsheets I've created to illustrate particular topics. Some of them are modifications of spreadsheets I've used before and some are newly created. Because not everyone is going to choose to watch/listen to the podcasts (they are really … Continue reading Spreadsheet: Cost of Car Ownership Calculator →

Spreadsheet: Growth of Savings Calculator

The “Driving to a Cheaper Gas Station” Problem

A topic that sometimes comes up in my financial literacy class, as well as other financial discussions, is people who will drive across town to a gas station with cheaper gas prices. I want to be clear, if you have multiple gas stations on your regular route and one has lower prices, then you should … Continue reading The “Driving to a Cheaper Gas Station” Problem →

Salary Schedule Lanes: Your Million Dollar (or two or three) Decision

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 →

Spend Now or Spend (More) Later

In my financial literacy class for teachers we spend a lot of time discussing the balance between spending money now and saving in order to spend money in the future. And I want to be perfectly clear, this is an important balance to achieve. Some folks (myself included) may delay gratification too much, always saving … Continue reading Spend Now or Spend (More) Later →

“The Future is Never Guaranteed!” Yes. And?

There's a response (or variation thereof) that comes up in almost every section of my financial literacy class for educators. At some point (and often several points) in class discussions, participants will respond with some form of, "The Future is Never Guaranteed!" (And, yes, the exclamation point is generally included.) It always comes up in … Continue reading “The Future is Never Guaranteed!” Yes. And? →