Ana Gonzalez Ribeiro is a longtime advocate for financial education. She entered the field more than 10 years ago as a personal financial writer, writing for popular publications and websites such as Mint.com and Yahoo Finance. Fast forward to today, Ana is an Accredited Financial Counselor® with the same “why”. When she’s not writing articles, translating books, or providing financial counseling, she’s teaching classes and workshops on personal finance through local libraries and non-profit organizations. Ana is a great example of a professional raising her voice to eliminate financial illiteracy.
AFCPE: What inspired you to do this work?
Ana: I started writing about personal financial topics in 2007 and found that people were really interested in learning about how to better manage their money in a smart and efficient way. When I got the opportunity to teach about this topic, I fell in love with the process of educating and interacting with students. I found joy in teaching and helping others learn more about personal finances.
AFCPE: You recently obtained your AFC®. Congratulations! What does it mean to you to hold the AFC®designation? How do you plan to utilize it?
Ana: Thank you! I was so nervous when I took the exam. I’ve been wanting to get this designation for a long time because I know how respected it is. I plan to use it to reflect my professionalism towards teaching people about money and counseling them one-on-one.
AFCPE: That sounds like a great plan to us! As someone really active on social media, we have a Twitter challenge for you. In 280 characters or less, describe what financial wellness means to you.
Ana: Financial wellness means having peace of mind that when there is an emergency, you will have the funds to meet this emergency. It means having resources to fund all basic living necessities, save for the future, and treat yourself without struggling.
AFCPE: Nicely done! What’s next for you? What has you most excited?
Ana: Now that I passed my AFC exam, I am most excited about being part of the AFCPE community, meeting new people and hopefully establishing new projects. I’m also excited about being able to help new clients with one-on-one counseling and helping them establish a strong financial foundation for them and their family through my business, Rise Up Financial Coaching.
I enjoy teaching classes and workshops covering topics on debt and credit education, investment and tax basics, money management, retirement and estate planning and budgeting. I’m also developing a class on the psychology of money. I’m also developing new and updated articles on a variety of money topics for my website Ace the Journey.
Ana Answers the Friday 5
- My Why: I do this type of work because it brings me joy to help others in this manner. I love teaching and counseling and helping educate others on financial topics in both English and Spanish!
- My Favorite Quote: Success is something you attract by the person you become.” – Jim Roth
- My Hero(es): My parents inspire me to be better every day. My husband gives me support. My son shines the light towards my future.
- My Favorite Personal Finance Resource: The Nolo.com is a great financial resource.
- My Best Advice:
- For someone starting the journey to financial wellness: Build an emergency fund. Eliminate costly credit card debt and budget your money. Increase your money awareness, know where your hard-earned money is going, that way you can start creating solid financial goals and saving for them.
- For a new professional entering this field: If you have a passion for helping people and educating them about money matters, this is the right designation for you. It fits me perfectly and I am really happy to have found AFCPE.
You can follow Ana and here work here:
Twitter: @AcetheJourney
Website: www.acethejourney.com
Website (Financial Counseling): www.riseupfinancialcoaching.com/
Website: www.anagonzalezribeiro.com
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