Financial Crossroads Rand Spero

Last year I was asked by personal finance writer Jonathan Clements, who founded and edits the blog https://humbledollar.com/, to submit an essay about my own financial journey. The process required considerable personal reflection. His recently published book My Money Journey – How 30 People Found Financial Freedom provides many interesting stories. It inspired me to conduct interviews with other contributors. This is the fifth episode of a series of talks with these writers.
My guest Anika Hedstrom is a certified financial planner who co-founded the advisory firm Uplevel Wealth. Her previous work experience included international and domestic investment trading.  In her essay “Margin for Error” written for the book My Money Journey, Anika shares how she faced unexpected medical and financial challenges with her young family.  This profound experience helped shape her business vision, while she grew her advisory practice.

Last year I was asked by personal finance writer Jonathan Clements, who founded and edits the blog https://humbledollar.com/, to submit an essay about my own financial journey. The process required considerable personal reflection. His recently published book My Money Journey – How 30 People Found Financial Freedom provides many interesting stories. It inspired me to conduct interviews with other contributors.  
This is the fourth episode of a series of talks with these writers. My guest Jiab Wasserman, grew up in Thailand, and received an engineering degree at a top university in her native country. Two years later, she moved to the United States to pursue her MBA degree.  
Overcoming challenges as a frugal, single Mom who worked in a traditional male field,  Jiab became a successful financial services executive.  At the peak of her career, she retired at the relatively early age of 53, to travel and live overseas with her husband.   

Last year I was asked by personal finance writer Jonathan Clements, who founded and edits the blog to submit an essay about my own financial journey. The process required considerable personal reflection. His recently published book My Money Journey – How 30 People Found Financial Freedom provides many interesting stories. It inspired me to conduct interviews with other contributors.
This is the third episode of a series of talks with these writers. My guest Dr. John Lim is a practicing radiologist and financial educator, who is fascinated with behavioral finance. In his essay “A Costly Education”, John tells stories about his own mistakes as an overconfident investor, and the lessons he learned. John’s passion for spreading financial literacy can be seen through his offering classes at the hospital where he works, and at a local university. He is a regular contributor to HumbleDollar, and John has published a book, How to Raise Your Child’s Financial IQ: The Most Important Things.

Last year I was asked by personal finance writer Jonathan Clements, who founded and edits the blog https://humbledollar.com/, to submit an essay about my own financial journey. The process required considerable personal reflection. His recently published book My Money Journey – How 30 People Found Financial Freedom provides many interesting stories. It inspired me to conduct interviews with other contributors.
This is the second episode of a series of talks with these writers.  My guest Don Southward transitioned from the corporate finance and sales world to become a Unitarian minister.  From his early life with gambling addiction, he learned how to heal himself and help others. He was able to integrate his values of charitable giving and effective money management.  In his essay “A Rocky Road” Don shares how he had “enough” far earlier than he ever expected. 
 

Last year I was asked by personal finance writer Jonathan Clements, who founded and edits the blog https://humbledollar.com/, to submit an essay about my own financial journey.
The process required considerable personal reflection. His recently published book My Money Journey – How 30 People Found Financial Freedom provides many interesting stories. It inspired me to conduct interviews with some other contributors.
This is the first episode of a series of talks with these writers. My first guest Dick Quinn rose from a modest background to become a successful compensation and benefits executive. Reading his essay Driven to Succeed, he exudes a determination to be financially independent while having a positive sense of family and self.
Retired since 2010, Dick and his wife have visited 44 countries.  He frequently writes for HumbleDollar and has his own blog https://quinnscommentary.net/. 

My guest Thomas Stumpf is a musical marvel. He is on the faculty of Tufts University and has previously held academic positions at Boston University and the New England Conservatory. Thomas has composed and recorded a wide range of classical pieces, both as a solo performer and as a frequent collaborator with musicians around the world.
But in his forties, Thomas reached a personal crossroad when he decided to move away from an ivory tower college position to engage as a full-time music director for a church with an extraordinary musical tradition. After two decades of engaging that community with inspiring musical leadership, Thomas again faced a crossroad by moving beyond his comfort level to expand his musical reach.