Building Financial Skills & A Dance Routine At Age 70!
Margie's journey to becoming fiscally fit 'n' fabulous.
A few weeks back my friend Margie casually shared that she was rebalancing her mutual fund portfolio.
“Really? Wow! So am I, “I said with glee – the kind when I discover that a friend and I are synching periods 😊
We exchanged notes. I realized then, that both Margie and I had undertaken a significant amount of preparation so that we could – in that moment on that day – be in a position to effortlessly discuss our mutual fund assets.
My own financial skilling journey began in 2018, when I found myself in debt, and living pay check to pay check. I had lost confidence in my ability to be financially stable, even though I earned well.
I was curious to know what got Margie on this path the year she tuned 70.
An iconic career
Margie and I met through financial skilling community Women on Wealth (WOW). She resides in Vadodara with her spouse, and they have two grown-up children who live overseas.
Through our conversations, I discovered that Margie is a multi-talented creator with a wealth of experience.
Through her career, she has worked with iconic brands like Amar Chitra Katha, Tinkle and The Times of India.
She has worked with iconic people - Charles Correa in Vistara, celeb chef Sanjeev Kapoor, and Ela Bhatt, founder of SEWA (and OG of women’s community-building!).
Margie has researched and written for iconic TV series like Surabhi, Khana Khazana, Musafir Hoon Yaaron, Yatra, and Gurukul (80s/90s kids will know these!).
She’s also Visiting Faculty at NID Ahmedabad, NIFT Gandhinagar, and Faculty of Journalism, MS University, Baroda, where she gets students to unlock their creativity and imagination.
Today, Margie writes a Substack where we get to discover many gems from her eclectic life.
Money conversations
As Margie opened up on her relationship with money, I discovered that she has always worked freelance. In 1992, during her 7-year stint as a consultant with the Times of India, Margie pioneered a wildly successful children’s feature page, which quickly grew from one to four broadsheet pages.
“The Saturday circulation, with my Wee Wonder feature, was greater than the Sunday paper. It helped the branch to get into a profit zone. Over time, I was able to demand and get a pretty penny, as I was bringing it out on my own, on a turnkey basis, “she shares.
She achieved all this and more while working from home in a non-digital economy.
Margie recalls feeling flush with cash in those days. This status earned her the epithet “MFM”, short for “Money From Mummy” (a play on ATM, a relatively new concept back then)!
But despite earning significantly, Margie’s engagement with money was curious. Through the years, she has a developed a somewhat guilt-ridden, inconsistent relationship with money.
Here are some clues to my hypothesis.
Girl Math Moments
“I was happy to spend whatever I earned on the household and family in those halcyon days. I enjoyed having money. But besides books, I don’t think I bought anything for myself. I bought subscription for Time magazine and National Geographic as a sort of reward. I still have some of those copies!” she recalls.
During phases when she was not pursuing professional work, Margie confesses that she was unable to, effortlessly, spend money on herself. “My husband tried an experiment. He gave me INR 1,000 to spend only on myself by the end of the day. I couldn’t. I failed!” she shares.
Experiencing feelings of guilt when spending on oneself, seems a common thread among women. These feelings have found expression in the self-deprecating, TikTok trend “Girl Math”, where women use creative ways to justify spending on themselves.
Recently Margie mentioned to me that every year on her birthday, she spends on something special for herself. Unknowingly, she has resorted to Girl Math to justify a much-deserved treat.
Money confessions
In their younger days, Margie and her spouse earned hard, and spent hard. “My husband took care of money, earning, spending, planning, investing in both our names, “she shares.
Margie ran the household, and was good with the day-to-day money management.
Yet, she wanted to “feel” secure, on her own terms. Security in this context is a mix of psychological and physical safety that manifests through smart choices.
The year she turned 70, a couple of things happened, which set her on a new path. A chance meeting with Kaveri, a team member of WOW, nudged Margie to explore financial skilling.
“Frankly, I don’t look at my age very seriously, except when filling out a form. But I realized that 70 is a landmark. These are years gifted to me, and I should use them well. So, what can I do differently from here on? I thought of things I had not ever paid attention to - Wealth and Health. I had tried to invest in the market once. As the market dipped, I made a huge hue and cry, blaming everyone involved. I felt cheated and decided never to invest, ever. The landmark birthday made me rethink my attitude,” she shares.
She began to watch WOW’s Instalive sessions, which offered actional guidance. The sessions on mutual funds (MFs), in particular, piqued her curiosity.
Margie made notes and grew her knowledge, and her learnings were soon put to the test.
“My PPF matured after several renewals, and I wanted to make sure I do not fritter it away. So, I asked my banker to give me a list of 200 MFs to pick from, sharing that I was a low-risk investor. I checked, shortlisted and picked five to six of them, “shares Margie.
Her banker recommended the SIP (Systematic Investment Plan) route (automated monthly investments of a smaller value).
“Another learning from the WOW Insta sessions was to demand what you thought you were worth for your work. When an NGO offered me work on a paid basis, I thought, this is a good chance. If I earn from this, I’ll join the WOW paid program. I got paid promptly and well. So, I joined WOW’s virtual programme, “she recalls.
Back to School
Margie was in the US, when the course kicked off. The time difference made it challenging for her to attend classes. However, WOW’s daily 9 pm community meeting on Zoom, came to the rescue.
“That was a mid-morning slot for me. Those sessions really helped me understand how to personalise and tweak the WOW learning, which is aimed at women who are in their 30s and 40s mostly. Prema (a WOW core team member), with her patience and guidance helped me up my game. I was able to get all my sheets in order and attend regularly. For the first time in my life, I felt comfortable talking about money. Today, I plan, budget, keep track of my net worth, but it doesn’t take up a lot of my mind space,” she shares.
As Margie’s confidence grew, she went on to invest more. Yet, the true test for any first-time investor is when markets dip, and they always do. So, did Margie stay the course? Here’s what happened.
When the stock market fell, considerably, Margie made a promise to herself, that she would not respond impulsively. She stayed invested, and as expected, the market rose again.
“Today, my MFs are doing well. I’m also proud of the fact that I picked them myself, “she shares, adding with humour, “On my 71st birthday, I shared on Facebook how my life had changed. In my youth, it was BFs who were the first to wish me. Now, MFs wish me a happy birthday at the crack of dawn!”
From Competent to Confident
Margie’s new-found self-assuredness comes especially handy when life catapults her into complex decision-making roles.
“During a recent hospitalization, my learnings were helpful while negotiating the billing and cashless insurance. Earlier I would have been totally petrified of signing so many documents and forms. But I was ready and calm through the process. It was surprising for me, “she recalls.
Additionally, Margie has made strides with her premium credit card, which had been sitting in her wallet unused, due to previous bad experiences. “I used it to pay the insurance Co-pay for the hospitalization. This year, I plan to learn how to maximize credit card usage, “she asserts.
Today, Margie is also able to craft beautiful experiences for herself and her spouse. She was recently invited to host a training workshop, which came with a pay check. “I decided to splurge on our trip to Vietnam. We also plan for holidays, and go Dutch for the expenses now, which feels good,” shares Margie, who has also become committed to her physical fitness.
Dancing her way to fitness
As first impressions go, Margie’s signature style stands out – eye-catching handwoven saris worn effortlessly, with jewellery to match. And glowing skin.
“Wearing saris makes you free from size and fitting fears. Around the turn of the century, I was blissfully unaware of my gathering girth! So, I decided to take health as my second foray into terra incognita,” she confesses.
Like me, she does not care for gyms. Her online exploration led her to ‘Dance with Deepti (DWD) video for Seniors’, and she was hooked!
“Earlier, I used to follow a Chinese exercise regimen based on Tai Chi, for flexibility and immunity. I did the two on alternate days. But soon, DWD took over as I tried her videos on YouTube and found I could do the more intensive ones with total enjoyment. The fact that I got connected to Deepti online and met her, made me a total fan, “shares Margie.
Physical and fiscal fitness, to me, go hand-in-hand, as money plays such a big role in this area. Exercising has been transformative for my own journey, and Margie echoes these feelings.
“Dancing everyday has helped reduce anxiety and lower my argumentative tendencies! It also helped me regain my optimism and joie de vivre, “ Margie shares.
The Power of Choice
Margie’s affirmative actions have changed how she perceives herself.
“I liked the person that emerged as an outcome. Even with no fresh money coming in, I have managed to make my money plans to suit myself, revising them for every financial year. My lifelong reputation in the family as an unable-to-spend money, sasta bargain hunter type, hasn’t changed. But now I can laugh with them, while secretly nuzzling my net banked moolah!”
Margie also aspires to get back to working in the media. “I have developed a strong sense of self-worth and no longer want to work for free or for a pittance. So, I’m sure I want to do it only if there’s creative control and a sinful load of money, which I feel I deserve for what I bring to an assignment, “ she asserts.
I can feel the excitement in Margie’s voice and her spirit. I also hear comfort, which echoes money coach Ramit Sethi’s rich life philosophy: “To be comfortable with money, you must be confident, and to be confident you must be competent.”
By taking affirmative action, Margie gifted herself something priceless – the power of choices - which is serving her in her golden years.
Many more facets of Margie emerged for me. A well captured beautifully articulated read, Merril. Bravo, Margie! Here's to the many yet-to-be explored terrain in your creative and personal landscape. Ahoy! Onward sailing...