Creative ways to get paid for grownups with Jen Glantz

 

Episode Description: Learn specific ways to tap into your creativity and unique skills to be a financial grownup with Bridesmaid for Hire entrepreneur and author Jen Glantz.

Jen Glantz’s Bio: Jen Glantz is the founder of Bridesmaid for Hire, the world’s first service where strangers can hire a professional bridesmaid. She’s the author of three best-selling books, All My Friends are Engaged, Finally the Bride, and Always a Bridesmaid for Hire, published by Simon and Schuster. She’s also the creator of The Newlywed Card Game and The First Years of Marriage.Jen has appeared on over 500 media outlets as a guest on shows such as The Today Show, Good Morning America, and Inside Edition. Jen eats pizza (almost every day), lived in new cities every single month for two-years, and adores daily adventures in Brooklyn with her dog, Goofy, and her husband, Adam, who she met after going on 14-first-dates in just one month.

 
 

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Full Transcript:


Bobbi Rebell:

The other day I was watching our local news and there was a story that came on about using confetti- yes confetti- to de-stress. And I have to admit it was pretty appealing. By the way it's called the confetti project if you want to look it up. But guess what is the top thing that we stress about. Ok well given that you are listening to this you know the answer. It is money. According to the American Psychological Association, money continues to be the top source of stress for Americans. That’s where Financial Wellness Strategies comes in. We provide educational resources for companies employees to balance financial wealth with mental health. Financial literacy is important but we need to go beyond academics and learn how it all actually fits into our real lives- and what we want to accomplish with our hard earned money. Learn more about how you and your company can invest in peace of mind at FinancialWellnessStrategies.com

 

 

Welcome to the Wellness for financial grownups podcast. I am your host Certified Financial Planner Bobbi Rebell- author of How to be a Financial Grownup and Launching Financial Grownups. 

A big part of being a financial grownup is finding ways to amplify your income. Most of us have day jobs but who doesn’t like a little icing on the income cake right? That’s where this week’s guest comes in. 

But before we get to her- our quote. 

It comes from next week’s guest- how is that for a tease. Liz Elting whose book Dream Big and Win is coming out latest this month. This is something that really is motivating me this fall and I hope it will do the same for you. 

She says in the book quote: “A goal is a dream with a deadline.”

I love that because we all have dreams but without the structure of a deadline it is tough to get things done. So don’t just dream- set some deadlines for yourself. And if you really want to get it done- tell someone. I find when I have an accountability partner it really helps. 

Now to our guest: Jen Glantz is the founder of bridesmaid for hire- she basically took something she was doing for free and monetized it into a business. Genius. She also has written three books and runs a consulting company along with a weekly newsletter I personally read religiously called Monday pick me up and along the way got married and had a baby. She’s busy and we are in for a treat because she not only tells us how she is doing all that- she tells us how we can monetize what we already love doing. And who doesn’t love doing that. Here is the fantastic Jen Glantz.

Jen Glantz, you are a financial grown-up. Welcome to the podcast.

Jen Glantz:

Thank you so much for having me.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

I wanted to have you on. You're the founder of Bridesmaid for Hire, but you are so much more. We're gonna be talking about creative ways to make money as a grownup, but I want to give our listeners a little more context because you do a lot and you have some amazing perspectives basically based on your incredible life experience, which has been quirky and awesome. So tell us a little bit more.

 

Jen Glantz:

So I started off as a writer. I was a copywriter at a tech startup. I was a blogger. I was writing books. And then all of a sudden, I was always a bridesmaid for my friends. And while that was really fun, it was super expensive. And it was a thankless job. What happened was distant friends started asking me to be their bridesmaid. And when that happened, I thought to myself, OK, if I could do this for somebody I hardly know, why not do it for strangers? I posted an ad on Craigslist offering my services to people I didn't know. I got hundreds of responses. And from the past nine years, my friends full-time job has been bridesmaid for hire. People hire me to be their bridesmaid.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

And by the way, so, because people already know I'm fascinated by this, what are the duties of a bridesmaid that are frankly worth paying for? And what advice do you have for the unpaid bridesmaids out there who aren't gonna ask for money, but just so that they know what they're getting into?

 

Jen Glantz:

When you are a bridesmaid, you are doing so much work. Everything from planning a bachelorette party, picking out decorations, sourcing gifts, planning travel, getting your bridesmaid dressed. You are doing so many things. Plus, you are spending quality time listening to the problems that the couple has, helping them out, and so much more. It's a job that really depends on the person getting married and their expectations of you. My biggest piece of advice is transparency. Know upfront what is required of you, both financially and your time, before you ever say yes to being a bridesmaid.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

so much. I never thought about that. You're a therapist, you're a stylist, you're an event planner, you're an organizer. I mean, it's a lot. But you so smartly use that to find that's a creative way to earn money. You're getting paid for something that you were doing that you weren't getting paid for. So on that note, we're going to switch gears. You have some tips for us of ways that people can sort of leverage what they're maybe already doing or would enjoy doing or can do because of their skill set and get paid.

 

Jen Glantz:

You know, we're so held back by our resume. We think just because we have work experience, that's all we can do. But the truth is you can make money doing so many things. There's three things you should start off doing. Number one, think about what people in your life ask you for the most. Maybe people ask you for advice, for organization, for tips, for cooking the meals, whatever it is. Think about what people ask you for and see if there's a surface you can monetize to other people who need that and don't know you. Next, think about skills from your job that you use every now and then, those on a freelance basis, a side hustle basis, and get paid to do that. Let's say you are really good at proofreading emails or you're somebody who comes up with really cool team building events, maybe you can get hired to do that as a consultant. And third, simply think about the things you enjoy and see if you can monetize that. Maybe you're somebody who loves to share your stuff, you could actually get paid to rent anything that you own from your car to your closet for storage space There's so many different opportunities to make money from skills, interests, hobbies, or just things you generally have or enjoy.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

Besides the bridesmaid idea, what has been sort of the most creative thing that you have ever heard of?

 

Jen Glantz:

Oh my goodness, I've heard of people who charge for professional snuggling so they'll snuggle with you. I've heard people who are professional mermaids and get paid to show up and perform as a mermaid. I mean, there are so many people with what we call odd jobs who just found something interesting or unique about them and turned it into a service. And you might think nobody wants it. Before you say that, test it out.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

Okay, let's switch gears. You are a new mom and you have advice for ways to... Well, basically we can learn from a lot of your mistakes, which I can't believe you have that many mistakes, Jen. But for parents, really of all ages, what are some of your money tips for them?

 

Jen Glantz:

You know, I was somebody who most of my 20s, I didn't care about personal finance and I made a lot of mistakes. And now I am addicted to figuring out how to hack my own finances. And I wanted to do the same for my child. The first thing I did was say, you know what? I don't want any gifts for her. I don't want clothes, I don't want toys, I don't want anything. If you wanna give us a gift, give us money. And what I did is I opened up a 529 savings plan for her where that money in there can go towards her college, her schooling, it could also go toward a retirement account later on and more. cash to open up a high yield savings account so that she can earn interest on that money. Through both of those things and other things as well, my goal is that by the time she's 18 she has over six figures in these accounts. I want to set her up for a great future and by doing that I'm saying you know what, no gifts except for money gifts and I plan to also contribute money to these accounts throughout the years as well.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

So then do you have tips for, you're presumably buying all the things that people usually gift to parents. So do you have any tips for that and money saving ways in terms of all the stuff that parents buy and spend money on?

 

Jen Glantz:

Try not to buy stuff because your kids grow out of it very fast. There are so many different groups out there on Facebook, Nextdoor, other communities where people are happy to give away things for free because they grew out of it, they bought too much of it. You can find strollers, bassinets, clothing, and more. See what you can get for free or for resale because you will save so much money that way.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

 I want to finally ask you about your monthly money practices. This is fascinating. Tell us more.

 

Jen Glantz:

I'm somebody that once I turned 30, I said, you know what? I want to make sure that finances are something I focus on a lot. So every single month I do an entire audit of my finances. I go through every single transaction on my credit card. I figure out exactly how much it cost me to live my life that month. And I make sure that it's a couple thousand dollars or a hundred dollars less than the month before. So I try to optimize my saving every month by cutting my spending every month. It's also interesting that my husband and I, we keep mostly our finances pretty separate. saves us a lot of conflict and a lot of just conversations that we don't want to have right now. So I have a budget for myself, I manage my money myself, and I think that's empowering especially as a woman to take control of your money and do these monthly audits. So many people are scared to look at their credit card statements and to figure out how much it costs them to live that month, but once you do that, you can know exactly what you want to change and it doesn't have to be drastic.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

How do you manage when your husband and you maybe disagree about financial priorities, especially with a growing family?

 

Jen Glantz:

So we have one account that is joint, that we use for our joint expenses, rent, things for the baby, but then we have our own account. And by doing that,

 

Bobbi Rebell:

Mm-hmm.

 

Jen Glantz:

we're able to say, okay, we can make our own decisions about what we wanna spend now. And in terms of retirement and future savings, we have the same values when it comes to money in terms of how we save and what our overall goals are, but we're not nitpicking exactly what the other person is spending on. So I think if you have the same overarching, high-level goals with your partner, that's a great place to start.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

One thing we talk about, Jen, as financial grownups is the different life stages and how our perspective changes with respect to money. So you've written three books. The first two were kind of about always being a bridesmaid and then you had one where you were finally the bride and now you're the mom. Tell us how your perspective on money has changed as your life has gone through these different milestone events.

 

Jen Glantz:

The first time it really changed was when I got laid off from my full-time job in 2015 and decided to become an entrepreneur. And it was during that time where I said, not only do you have to understand your cash flow, but also the cash flow of your business. And my goal was to never work for somebody else full-time. So what I did was I started to figure out, OK, how am I going to track my spending, my savings every month? And also, I am so big on passive income. That has been something that has benefited me through all different stages of life. First as an entrepreneur. Now as somebody who has a child. passive income streams allow me to make income while I sleep and there's simple ways to do that. Money in a CD, a high-deal savings account, figuring out a part of your business that you can make into a passive income source rather than requiring you to show up and do it. So that's really helped me through all stages be able to live a good life with my family and not work all of the time.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

It's so important to have that perspective, especially as we evolve, because it is hard to keep up. And you want to be able to have more time, especially when you get married and you have kids, and you maybe want to have more time away from the hustle and bustle. Although everyone does different things. And on that note, you talked about your business and passive income. Tell us more about your business and how people can learn more about you and be in touch.

 

Jen Glantz:

Absolutely, you can find me at bridesmaidforhire.com, jenglance.com. I have a Monday newsletter called Monday Pick Me Up and I'd love to say hello.

 

Bobbi Rebell:

And by the way, I am a big fan of Monday Pick Me Up. I do read it every Monday, and it really does give me a pick me up. I really LOVE it, and you have the cutest picture on it. So that's my tease. So everyone has to subscribe so that they can see the awesome picture on the newsletter.

Jen Glantz:

Thank you for having me. Yay!

 

Bobbi Rebell:

We all want to live our best financial grownup lives and one way to do that is to know that the people we care about are also in a good place when it comes to their money. That might mean our kids, our grandkids and yes- even our friends. But how. Its’ awkward. You see them struggling- pretending to know more than they do- or making bad money decisions but don’t know what to say- and even if you say something supportive- then what? That’s why I wrote Launching Financial Grownups. In Launching Financial Grownups I share the tools and strategies so you know what to say to take the pressure off and give those you love the confidence they need. It's about giving those we care about the right amount of help, at the right time- so they can not only learn what they need to know about being financial grownups- but also be confident they can do it- and that you will be there to cheer them on. Pick up a copy of Launching Financial Grownups - I promise you will be so happy you did.

So your extra credit assignment is to ask the 5 people you interact with most outside of your immediate family, if there is something they think of you as the go-to person to do that thing. Just like Jen saw that with her bridesmaid duties, so many entrepreneurs have done that with everything from connecting like-minded friends for networking events to starting to sell simple baked goods that everyone could not get enough of at parties. I’m working on that too so if you have ideas for me- bring them on. DM me on instagram at bobbirebell1 and you can also connect with me by being on my substack newsletter- bobbirebell.substack.com. I’m in awe and so grateful to see the growth over there and love sharing my more personal stories to that community. Please join me if you have not already. Bobbirebell.substack.com. I’m going to make a big announcement there by the way- hopefully very soon. 

And please go to my website financial wellness strategies- I hope to soon have my new Fall 2023 programs on there so I can help more members of this community be financial grownups. 

Big thanks to my wonderful and very grownup guest Jen Glantz- who is so amazing helping us be financial grownups and invest in peace of mind.

 

Wellness for Financial Grownups is a production of BRK Media. Editing and production by Steve Stewart, guest coordination, social media support, and show notes by Alliee Borbon. Artwork by Chelsea Perez. You can find the podcast show notes, which include links to resources mentioned in the show, as well as show transcripts by going to my website, bobbirebell.com. 

To get even more out of this podcast, make sure you are also on our newsletter list to get more free content to live your best financial lives. There is a link in the show notes but you can also sign up at bobbirebell.com or at financialwellnessstrategies.com. And be a friend- share the podcast with your friends by taking a screenshot and sharing it on social media. Make sure to tag me on instagram at bobbirebell1. And while your there- follow me- and if you DM me that you listen to the podcast I will follow you back. You can also leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Reading each one means the world to me. You can also support our merch shop, grownupgear.com by picking up fun gifts for your grownup friends and treating yourself as well. And finally my grownup friends, don’t forget to invest in peace of mind. Thanks everyone. 

 
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