TONIGHT
E-mail a friendMichelle Singletary
airdate February 16, 2004
Michelle Singletary is a personal finance expert whose Washington Post column, 'The Color of Money," is syndicated in more than 140 newspapers. She's a regular contributor on Howard University's radio program, Insight, and hosts a half-hour reality show, Singletary Says, on the new TV One network. In '04, she published her first book, 7 Money Mantras for a Richer Life and recently released her second, Your Money and Your Man. Singletary earned a master's degree in business from Johns Hopkins University.
Michelle Singletary
Tavis: Tonight we begin a series called 'The Road to Wealth.' Periodically on this program we'll bring you a variety of experts who specialize in personal finance, in hopes of putting you on a path towards better financial health. It is never too early or, for that matter, even with me, too late to start paying more attention to your money. Joining us tonight is Michelle Singletary. She dispenses financial advice in her syndicated Washington Post column 'The Color of Money,' and is a contributor to NPR's 'Day to Day.' Her new book is called '7 Money Mantras for a Richer Life: How to Live Well with the Money that You Have.' Michelle, nice to see you.
Michelle Singletary: Yes, thank you.
Tavis: We're grinning already because before we come on the air, I was asking you, 'So, how do you pronounce this M word?'
Michelle: Well, you know, in the hood it's man-tra. Man-tra in the hood, but mahn-tra.
Tavis: Your publisher said mahn-tra. So we'll call it '7 Money Mantras' to make your publisher happy.
Michelle: That's right.
Tavis: I was fascinated when I got the book because you had a big mama, I had a big mama. Big mamas are always those grandmotherly types, always dispensing good information. And I was so tickled to see that so many of the money mantras that you learned you got from your grandmama, your big mama.
Michelle: That's right. She was the best financial planner I ever had. This woman was raising 5 grandchildren, a husband who had a drinking problem whose paycheck always didn't come home, and yet every paycheck, she was able to put money away. And this woman retired with money in the bank and her little pension. And it was unbelievable how she was able to save money under those conditions. And I wanted to write this book to say if my grandmother can do it, if big mama can do it, and she was making a lot less than you, you can do it, too.
Tavis: I'm fascinated by that, as I said a moment ago, because my mother, I know who's watching right now, relates to this story because her mother, my big mama, worked, saved the money, took care of the kids. My grandfather, her husband was an alcoholic, drank too much, spent all of his money. So I was just fascinated when I saw the book about the similarities in our lives. And your grandmother, your big mama, taught you these money mantras, not the least of which, one of my favorites is 'If it's on your ass, it's not an asset.'
Michelle: That's right. 'If it's on your ass, it's not an asset,' and I wanted that first one to be there so to smack you upside the head because so many of us are spending so much of our money, acquiring assets that don't appreciate in value. I mean, we want to have the nice clothes and the nice cars and things like that. But at the end of the day, those are not the things that are gonna help send your kids to college. Those are not gonna be the kinds of things that's gonna have money in the bank, to pay those bills when times get tough or you have that trifling husband or those relatives calling you for money.
You know, you need to have that safety net, and that one came from my grandmother. She did not care if you were teased, if you had the sneakers that you bought from the supermarket because she knew she had bills to pay, and that's how I live my life, even today. You know, you work for someplace like the Washington Post-- 'Well, you should have a better car.' No, I can't. No, I don't, you know, I want to have money in the bank, and that's all I'm trying to tell people. There's so many books that tell you how to be a millionaire, how to do this. Most of us, the fact of the matter is, are not gonna be a millionaire, so how can you live better with the money you have? And most of us can, if we just cut back, and if we stop worrying about the kind of stuff that we have on our ass.
Tavis: Oh, Michelle, that's so easy. I mean, it's easy to say that, but you know, you got kids. We live in a society where they tell your kids that image is everything. Everybody wants to have the floss and the ice and the bling bling. We want to wear the stuff with the labels on it, so it's easy for you to say that, but we live in a conscious society about labels now more than ever.
Michelle: Yeah, but you know what? You're the parent, and you know when those bills come in, that you're not gonna have the money to pay for that bling bling.
Tavis: But you don't want your kids hatin' you 'cause, 'Mommy, I don't want to wear this.'
Michelle: Where they gonna live? Where they gonna live? They don't have check writin' privileges on your checking account. They can't use your credit card, you know. And you know what that feeling's like when those credit card bills come in and you can't pay it. You know when your car breaks down and you gotta sweat some other relative to get that money to pay that bill.
And all I'm saying is you know what? Those kids will appreciate you more when you have money to send them to college, when you have money to help them for a down payment on their first home, or help pay for their wedding, and yeah, I have 3 kids. My oldest is 8 and does she whine? Yes, she does. We get into the store and you know how they like to kirk out and be rollin' in the floor and acting up. I walk right over. I say security will bring her right on out, you know? You know? Because I know what's gonna be important, and you know, I run this household and listen, I don't go crazy.
At Christmas time, I tell folks, especially if you got young kids, you know the toy bin that you have, you know, half them toys those kids don't never play with. At Christmas time take the top layer off, wrap up the kids toys underneath, put 'em under the Christmas tree, they'll never know the difference.
Tavis: You know you wrong for that, you know you wrong for that, and you know you wrong, also. You got 3...
Michelle: I swear--Tell me if I did not do it? I sure did.
Tavis: And you wrong, and you know you wrong.
Michelle: What does a 3-year-old know?
Tavis: You also wrong because speakin' of 3, you got 3 kids, I said earlier, and you got a lot of nerve--I cracked up at this. You breast fed--talk about bein' a penny pincher--you said, well, go ahead and say it.
Michelle: I breast fed all 3 of my kids 'cause the milk was free. Yes, I did. Now, there was nutritional value to it, but on the other hand, I saved money. You know, it's about attitude. It's about attitude.
I'm not someone who came from money tryin' to tell you how to make money. I'm someone who came from a low-income family, mother just makin' it by, and yet, my grandmother, I can't keep emphasizing this, every payday, she paid herself first. She took her top off first, so that she would have money when she needed it, and that's what I'm trying to tell people, and you know what? You can resist those urges for that stuff because I'm telling you, I don't worry about money.
My husband and I don't worry about money. It's not like we have a whole lot of money, but we have the money for the things that we value, and that's what I'm saying, just what do you value? Do you want to send your kids to college? Do you want to retire when you 55 or do you want to work till you 85 and you at McDonald's talking about 'Do you want a shake with them fries?' Not me. I'm gonna be in Florida.
Tavis: Speaking of what do you value, one of the 7 money mantras is, the question, 'Is it a need or is it a want?'
Michelle: That's right. Is it a need or is it a want? Every single time you go shopping, ask yourself is this a need or is this a want? If you ask that key question, you will put back half the stuff that you buy. I talk to myself when I go shopping. If you see me shopping, you'd think I'm a crazy woman, 'cause I'm like, 'You don't need that. You got 10 pair of shoes already. You don't need that,' you know? 'You look good. You got a husband. You got 3 kids. Ain't nobody lookin' at you no more. Put that back,' you know?
Some of the things--cars, you know, particularly for our community, cars is a big thing, you know, and think about all the money we waste on cars. Leasing cars, which is a knucklehead idea anyway. I'm not even gonna get into that, but, you know, all the money that we waste. And really, when we get down to the end of the road, the things that we really want--the down payment on that house, to have financial security, you know--I tell people, I drive a beat-up used van. I have 3 kids and a husband, and guys, they yell at me sometimes, and they may have a squeegee in their hands.
Tavis: Hey, Michelle. Hey, Michelle.
Michelle: But that's OK. I'm driving in that car that's paid for. I'm just telling people, you know, that's not what matters at the end of the day. That is not what's gonna matter, and if that's what matters to you, then you gonna be broke.
Tavis: Yeah. 'Priorities lead to prosperity.'
Michelle: That's right. It's a key mantra. Priorities lead to prosperity. That's all I'm talking about. What are the things that you value in your life? Do you want to have a secure retirement? Do you want--and I keep repeating these because that's what are the things people say. When we do surveys, those are the top things that people say. They want to send their kids to school. They want to retire. They're tired of working. You know, they want to have enough money in the bank so when the bill collectors call, they don't have to get Caller ID to hide from 'em. You know, and if those are the priorities in your life, then you have to set--you have to drown out all these things to buy, buy, buy. Priorities lead to prosperity. And at the end of the day, that's what really matters. Are you living the life that you want, or are you working yourself to death to live in that house that you can't live in 'cause you're working all the time?
Tavis: With all due respect, the problem with a book like this is what you're really asking people to do is to sacrifice. To make sacrifices and to make choices, but those choices oftentimes mean sacrifices. And people aren't prepared to do that, it seems to me, and what works with these infomercials about how to be a millionaire and how to be rich is nobody uses the word sacrifice in those infomercials.
Michelle: But you know here's the thing. Sacrifice for a greater good. I'm not telling you to live the life of a pauper. I live a nice life. I have cars. I have clothes. I just don't have a closet full of stuff. My kids, they have 2 pairs of shoes. They only got one pair of feet. I mean, and they're little people. You know, they grow out of this stuff. You know, you spend all your money on clothes they in for 2 hot seconds. You know, and that's all I'm saying. So they can still look good on a budget.
Tavis: What do you say to folk who are asking, Michelle, why drive around in an old beat-up van? Why only have 2 pairs of shoes, a half a closet full of clothes? What are you saving the money for? You gonna die at some point. Why not spend it and enjoy--why not enjoy yourself?
Michelle: Yeah, but here's the fact of life. Most of us is gonna live. I don't know where you live, but--are there a lot of dead bodies on the road? 'Cause the fact of the matter is we gonna live. The average age is 85 for women, and about 82 for men. So, you gonna need some money in your old age. And I'm just saying do some of the things you like. If you like a nice car, OK, fine. But you can't have all the clothes, too. You can't have the bling bling house. You can't have it all. And listen, even millionaires can't have it all. How do you go broke with $200 million? You spent too much on--
Tavis: You spent more than you bring in. Exactly.
Michelle: That's right. Look at all the wealthy people that we see in the news who have gone broke because of their overspending. If they can go broke, you can, too. All I'm just saying is priorities lead to prosperity. Decide what's important, really what's important in your life, and spend your money on that.
Tavis: In 10 seconds, one of the last principles and there are 7. You only covered 3 or 4 because you gotta sell this book. Don't want to give all 7 away to the people. 'Keep it simple.'
Michelle: That's right. Keep it simple. Keep your life simple. Lots of people in our community and across the board, across America, are getting scammed because of sophisticated investment schemes. And I'm saying if you don't understand it, don't put your money in it.
Tavis: 'Money Mantras for a Richer Life: How to Live Well with the Money you Have.' Michelle, nice to see you.
Michelle: Thank you.
Tavis: We gotta do this again.
Michelle: Yes, I'd love to.
Tavis: All right, that's our show for tonight. As always you can catch me on the radio on NPR, and I'll see you back here next time on PBS. Until then, good night from Los Angeles, and keep the faith.
Back to February 16, 2004