Welcome to Stay Frosty Finance!

Newsletters - They're everywhere now. Is it a blog post or an email? A website? Um, Yes? All I do know is that I like personal finance and putting my thoughts down on the page. So, here goes nothing. 

I already know what you're thinking: What makes you so qualified?

Some Backstory

At 22, I graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a degree in Personal Finance. After a few months at an insurance company, I decided to leave the cube behind. I invested half of my life savings into a small start-up restaurant and became a partner. (Fun story for a future post!) 

However, my restauranteur gamble didn't play out so well. COVID-19 happened 6 months later and I ended up unemployed. I had just adapted to my significantly smaller paycheck. How was I going to make this work? First, let's rewind the clock a little bit.  

Ever since I graduated school, I created my own budget in a spreadsheet from scratch. I never could get down with an online tool (no problem if that's what you do though!) I tracked every expense down to the penny. I was disciplined. I had lofty goals. Every dollar I spent, I went into my spreadsheet and entered it. I created my own habit that if I bought it, I had to write it down and see the consequences - good or bad. 

Something there changed my whole perspective on personal finance. I used to think my past education was a waste of money. Like I went to school to learn to not go into debt and save money. Common sense will for sure land me a job. 

Reality Hits Hard

But I realized something much bigger since then. Financial literacy is not so common. Heck, there are reports saying how almost 50% of the United States population is financially illiterate. (source) It's not their fault. Our education system is broken. That's where I want to step in. 

There are a lot of people who are financial "middle children". Forgotten about by our financial services industry. People with not enough money to see a financial advisor, yet not strained enough to seek counseling. And there are plenty in all these three categories that are not literate either. Even if you are somewhat understanding - I want to offer you something financially fruitful - for free.

I don't want to be your guru. I don't want to sell you a buzz-word, scam-esque course. There's plenty of personal finance drivel online already that coerces stuff on you. I'm here to offer something pragmatic, real, achievable, and maybe even contrarian at times. I want to give you something thought provoking. Don't take what I say as advice. (Nothing  I say is legally advice, but you get what I mean.) Never be afraid to find out for yourself. 

So - let's catch up with my past self making it work: I saved over $27,000 in 2019-2020 despite my massive pay cut, COVID, and unemployment. Since the start of 2021, I have invested over $110,000 in the market. I firmly believe anyone can achieve results like this too, and I'd like to be your thought provider on how to get there. 

If you read this far and decide to embark on this financial journey together, You've come to the right place! I'm grateful for your readership and happy to guide you. 

Stay Frosty, 

Andrew