Quotes by Michelle Singletary - Page 2

The key to making sure your credit stays good is paying the bill on time. If you are paying the balance off even if there is something on the card in recent purchases, you are good.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Balance
Cards
Keys
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I use a "Debt Dash" approach to paying off debt. I recommend people focus on paying off the debt with the lowest balance first. So if the primary has less debt you would focus on that.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Balance
Focus
People
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I understand why many are still poor or struggling to make just a middle-income lifestyle. I'm a fiscal conservative, but I also have compassion for people who make financial mistakes.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Compassion
Mistake
Struggle
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I'm keenly aware of how important it is to set a good example. You may not think that your kids are paying attention to you, especially with something like money, but they probably are.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Kids
Important
Thinking
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The schools can't cover all the values that go along with how you handle your money. For example, a financial literacy class might not teach me to hate debt the way my grandmother, Big Mama did.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Grandmother
Hate
School
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The number of those 19 to 25 with private insurance increased from 51 to 55.8 percent, and the percentage of uninsured fell from 33.9 percent in 2010 to 28.8 percent during the first half of 2011.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Firsts
Half
Numbers
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My writing is definitely influenced by and speaks to African-Americans because that is who I am. I'm black. I'm a black woman. I'm a black mother, wife, churchgoer, etc. I am the legacy of slavery.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Mother
Who I Am
Writing
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It's why this election was HORRIBLE. It was either Hilary is the devil and Trump a saint. Or Trump the devil and Hilary a saint. Can't we all have a decent, civil conversation without throwing "shade?"
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Devil
Election
Saint
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I'm not a fan of debt consolidation. In my experience, many people "clear" credit cards and other debt to get the one payment and never change what they need to change to prevent getting into debt again.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Fans
Needs
People
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I will just say, no matter where you buy the car, do your homework. When I purchase a car I come in with a folder an inch thick. In fact, one time the auto sales person asked if he could copy my research!
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Car
Homework
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So many people joke that life with me - a professed lifelong penny pincher - must be tough. But [my husband] is a great money manager. And he helps me let go of my fear of spending while still being frugal.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Husband
Letting Go
People
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You are rich if you have enough to meet your most basic needs. You are rich if you have access to clean water, food, shelter, love, a roof over your head.You have to count your blessings to see that you are richer than you think.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Blessing
Roof Over Your Head
Thinking
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I also admire my pastor, John K. Jenkins Sr. (First Baptist Church of Glenarden). My pastor taught me the importance of tithing and giving back, that it has to be at the top of my budget. And he is one of the most generous folks I know.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Baptists
Church
Giving
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Don't let people scare you from a career that may not net you a six figure salary. If you want to be a teacher, teach. But knowing that your salary may only reach a certain level, do all that you can to become the best money manager you can be.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Teacher
Careers
Knowing
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I've found that when you can quickly knock out debt you get motivated because you see progress. Then you attack the other debt so fast that even if it's at a higher interest rate, you don't end up paying much more because you've gotten rid of it.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Debt
Motivated
Progress
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My grandmother was extremely smart when it came to money, but she also worried a lot about not having enough. So it's with her in mind that I aim to explain complicated financial things so the folks like her won't be afraid to make certain money moves.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Grandmother
Moving
Smart
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There are some dark days when I do receive some racist mail or emails. But overall the response to me has been very positive. Readers relate to me not just as an African-American, but as an American trying to make sense of her personal finance, just like them.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
African American
Dark
Trying
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A smart couple with a healthy financial relationship is always talking about money and how they're handling it. If there's a medical emergency or a job loss, talk about it. If there's a windfall, talk about it. Your financial situation is a constantly changing thing.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Jobs
Couple
Smart
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You know me and I have a pension. It provides some comfort but only some. It's still not enough to live off completely but it sure will help. But I'll say this. I try to forget about it and save like a maniac because I want the assurance of having other pots of money.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Comfort
Helping
Trying
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My rule is when in doubt hire a professional. You could do it just this year and then you have direction to resume doing it yourself after the consultation. What you don't want is to do it wrong and be hit by a huge tax bill. Remember the old saying, "Don't be pennywise and pound foolish."
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Doubt
Foolish
Remember
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My kids have to maintain good grades. They have to be involved in activities. They have to report to me how thing are going. I watch for any activity that would steer them wrong - drinking, drugs, etc. So their skin in the game is knowing the money won't be there if they don't do their part.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Kids
Drinking
Games
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If we aren't careful, our children will come down with 'affluenza,' a disease that causes them to confuse wants and needs. We need to teach our children what my grandmother taught me: Think twice about spending money you don't have on things you don't need to impress people you don't like anyway.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Money
Children
Grandmother
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There are other ways to motivate students than requiring them to take on debt or work long hours taking away from their studies. For example, we don't allow our kids to work during the school hours their freshman year. After that, they can work a little but not so much that it hurts their education.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Kids
Hurt
School
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Remember life insurance is intended as income replacement to help dependents and or/spouse pay for things that your income would have covered. When you get to the point that you're dependents (Your kids mostly) aren't dependent on your income, you could reduce the amount of life insurance you are carrying.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Kids
Income
Pay
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My experience may be different than theirs, readers can identify with trying to save for retirement or their own kid's college fund. In truth, the name of the column, "The Color of Money," has less to do with my race than the fact that the color of money is green and it's green we all need to live a good life.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Kids
Good Life
Retirement
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Not all Trump supporters are bigots. They believe he had something to offer. I may disagree. You may disagree but we need to be civil to each other. Use the facts to make your point. I had read that the clothes made by some of the brands use sweatshops. Facts folks not feelings. We all have to live with each other and our choices.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Believe
Choices
Feelings
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I knew I had found my life's passion after writing my first column for The Washington Post. The response was like nothing we had seen in the business section. Everyday people were writing that finally someone was speaking to them in a way that was understandable. I think we were all shocked at how many readers wrote in to say that they too had a Big Mama who taught them about money.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Passion
Thinking
Writing
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My grandmother's grandparents were slaves. My grandmother Big Mama would tell me about the stories she heard as a child growing up in the shadows of a North Carolina plantation. It's only been in my lifetime that blacks have had the right to vote, live in certain areas or hold certain jobs. It is with this black history that I write about the financial challenges African-Americans still have.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Jobs
Children
Growing Up
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To get started, track your expenses for a couple of months. Then you should be able to start filling in your estimated debits and deposits for the next few months. Once you get it rolling for a while, you will be able to see your budget for the upcoming months reflected in the estimated totals. You can even notice year-to-year trends, like bonuses, tax bills, etc. that come up routinely and it will help you budget accordingly.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Couple
Track
Years
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I understand and respect people who say they want to boycott the Trump brand. I also respect your right to buy his products. But what you miss is that no one in public office, Hilary or Trump should use that platform to profit themselves. In Trump's case there are serious concerns about the conflict of interest in his brand and business ownership. Do we really want a president who had products he can push while working for the American people?
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Missing
Office
People
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My Big Mama is my No. 1 financial role model. Much of my advice stems from what she taught me. She never made more than $13,000 a year, yet she paid off her home before she retired. She saved money from every paycheck. She taught me to be skeptical. It makes me cry to think that I'm a nationally syndicated personal finance columnist for one of the world's best newspapers and my core advice comes from my black grandmother who was a nurse's aide with just a high school education.
Michelle Singletary / Columnist
Home
Grandmother
School
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Michelle Singletary Quotes - Page 2

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