I share my personal story of quitting my job to start my business, Level Up Financial Planning.

While working in a position many would consider a dream position, with a 6-month-old at home, I quit my job. It was the scariest decision I ever made.

In addition to my story, I share a few of the financial steps I took before quitting and a couple of things I wish I had done differently.

• Job hunting
• Leaving your team
• Reducing expenses
• Building a plan
• Importance of spouses support
• Health insurance
• Being smart about side hustles
• Creating content
• Choosing a niche

Leo Yockey is a Software Engineer, Writer, and Speaker from Los Angeles. He runs a digital agency called MangoBass Consulting and is an advocate for underrepresented people in the tech industry.

Leo shares his unique story and perspective as a transgender black man in tech.

• Making a career change
• Self-taught and coding bootcamp resources
• Importance of a mentor
• Real-world example of systemic racism
• Creating multiple streams of income
• Monetizing your expertise
• Unlearning money myths
• Breaking the cycle
• Burning out and tips to navigate it

https://www.leoyockey.com
https://twitter.com/leovolving
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leoyockey/
https://www.mangobassconsulting.com/
https://www.techbychoice.org/

Credit Cards Are Awesome!

Regardless of what you may have heard, credit cards are pretty awesome financial tools. It’s one of the best forms of credit that you can access and use to help you reach your financial goals.

Unfortunately, credit cards can also be one of the biggest culprits of financial chaos. 

Credit cards are a tool. They are not evil, though you’re open to criticize credit card companies and other financial institutions.

• Maybe not an expert level, but being able to maximize the benefits of credit cards and limit the potential downside takes a strong understanding of your finances.
  • Downside: spending more than you should
  • Paying interest (as high as 25%!)
  • Can weaken your credit score
  • Relationship tension
• The amazing benefits when you do know where your money is going and have financial control are very generous:
  • Sign Up Awards
  • Cashback & Travel Miles
  • No payment for a month
  • Build a strong credit score
  • Never pay a cent!
• Tips:
  • Annual fee may make sense if you spend a certain amount. 
    • Do the math to see if your expected spending would benefit from the additional boost
  • Calculate the best sign up award based on your NORMAL spending
  • Never spend more than you need for REWARDS still a percentage.
  • Automatically pay in full every month. 
    • Don’t try to do this manually.
  • In case you have a few different cards or accounts, use something like Mint or my clients have a Wealth Management portal to see everything in one spot.
  • Can optimize for spending categories (dining out, entertainment bonus points)
  • Can optimize for rewards (travel, cashback)
  • If you’re not ready, don’t try. Like I mentioned you have to have good habits of understanding where your money is actually going in order to maximize your credit card benefits and not have things backfire on you.
    • Supposed to be helpful, but if it’s going to be stressful don’t bother.
  • Review credit cards with annual fees regularly. If you have multiple credit cards with fees that may take away from the benefits.
    • We run everything through one.
  • Don’t pay the minimum!
  • Carrying a large balance owed relative to the credit line can hurt your credit score

Will Johnson is a self-taught developer who broke into tech using Twitter. As you can imagine, his path to break into tech wasn't easy. He used a lot of different ways to learn and work towards his goals of becoming a developer so that he could create a comfortable life for his family.

Here are the topics we cover in Will's interview

• Will's path as a self-taught developer
• Repeating courses to solidify knowledge
• The struggle of having no experience (being destroyed by lost opportunities)
• Knowing where to focus your energy
• Understanding what language is in demand in your area
• How he built his network both online and offline
• Using social media to break into tech 

Break Into Tech With Twitter E-BOOK

https://anchor.fm/infinite-loop

https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamjohnson85/

https://tinyletter.com/willjohnsonio

https://twitter.com/willjohnsonio

If college planning is important to you, then you want to listen to this episode to understand how a 529 plan may be a solution to help you maximize your college savings.

• 529 Tax benefits
• 529 Rules  
• Impact on financial aid
• Alternative Savings Strategies
• What if my child doesn’t go to college?
• What if my child receives a full ride?

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Valerie is the Executive Director at Tech By Choice and a Senior Software Engineer at Mastery Logistics. She holds a BS in Psychology & Art. Valerie is passionate about creating secure human-centered digital experiences. As a successful self-taught developer, Valerie started Tech By Choice to give back to the community that helped her succeed.

Valerie shares her journey into tech from being a Psychology major to becoming a senior software engineer and the founder of Tech By Choice.

We cover the following topics in her interview:

• Choosing tech over her psychology & art degree
• Tech is more than just coding
• What is the "black tax"
• How she discovered the importance of managing her money
• Helping others enter and Level Up in tech
• Being kinder to ourselves

https://www.techbychoice.org/
https://twitter.com/DigitalBlkHippy
https://twitter.com/TechByChoiceOrg
https://www.facebook.com/TechByChoiceOrg/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/tech-by-choice-org/about/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIGG1X---Ky9UVSKyciad9Q
https://www.instagram.com/techbychoiceorg/
Fee-Only Financial Planner

I'm excited today to be talking about how financial independence is in your control. 

One of the biggest factors in whether you will be successful in reaching financial independence is first believing that you can achieve this goal.

• How to increase your financial confidence
• How your incomes impact your ability to reach financial independence
• Understand that everyone has their unique financial challenges
• Creating your own opportunities for success
• Remember everyone starts with a different financial background
• Importance of investing
• Wants vs. needs

Fee Only Financial Planner

Danny Thompson is a passionate software engineer who is on a personal mission to help people find their path into tech.

This episode is packed with great information and action items on how to stand out as you seek to land that first or next developer position.

Here are just a few of the pieces of wisdom Danny provides in this episode.

• PHD Not Required
• Free CodeCamp
• Benefits of Meetups & Finding and Building Community
• The Worst Possible Thing to Say to Aspiring Developers
• Showing Passion to Land a Tech Job
• Motivation Vs. Drive
• Creating Time for Your Dreams
• Writing Your Goals Where You Can See Them Every Day
• Being Clear with Your Vision 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannythompson901/

https://anchor.fm/commityourcode

https://twitter.com/DThompsonDev

https://www.youtube.com/DThompsonDev

Fee-Only Financial Planner

Most people work with their financial planners for the rest of their lives due to the unique relationship that is formed by trusting each other to tackle important life goals. With that in mind, it is important to make sure you have a planner that is going to be a good fit for you. The variation in choices and fits are as unique as the options of bread that you can choose at most supermarkets. To help you determine the right fit with a potential planner, here are the top ten questions to ask your financial planner.

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How to Choose the Right Advisor

Should you refinance your mortgage loan?

This has been one of the most popular questions I've helped my clients tackle over the last few months. When weighing the pros and cons of refinancing your mortgage, you should consider the following:

• How Long Do You Plan To Stay
• How Much Will It Cost
• When Do You Breakeven
• Should You Do A Cash-Out Refinance
• Alternatives To A 30-Year Mortgage

Fee-Only Financial Planner