Carrie Joy Grimes wants you to know you are not going to get rich – or even out of debt – just by practicing "latte celibacy." She decries the online "shame gurus" who promote the financial equivalent of crash diets, and believes "the economy's just become harder and harder for everyone to navigate."
Still, she argues, there are tools and tricks that can help many people save money and secure a slice of the American dream. But you have to know where to find them – and that is where she comes in.
Grimes is the author of The Joy of Money: How to Do More With and Feel Better About Your Money – No Matter How Much You Have, out 19 May. A former union organizer who once struggled with credit card debt and "scraped [her] way into the middle class," says she wrote her book for people who, like her, grew up without money, made mistakes and assumed that meant they were "bad with money." She says putting aside that shame can be a powerful first step to taking control of your finances.
"There's no magic app or program that can fix everything happening with prices and the economy," says Grimes, who in 2020 founded WorkMoney, a nonprofit that offers budgeting tips and information on programs that cut everyday expenses. "But there are some underutilized tools and programs that can keep dollars in our pockets."
Her book offers hard-boiled advice like how to calculate what you will need to retire, a worksheet on whether you should buy vs rent (buying is not for everyone, she emphasizes), and tips on lowering credit card payments. But unlike many personal finance books, hers ends with a call for working people to organize for "an economy that works for us – a stronger, more functional capitalism."
Programs and Tools to Save Money
Grimes emphasizes taking advantage of employer flexible spending accounts for healthcare and childcare, which offer tax benefits and annual "use it or lose it" rules. If your household income is under roughly $80,000 to $90,000, you may also qualify for reduced cost childcare. Start at childcare.gov to find what is available in your state.
Always ask your pharmacist if the drug manufacturer has a discount program, or if a discount card like GoodRx or SingleCare beats your copay cost. If you are eligible, claim your earned income tax credit – a refundable federal tax credit for low- to moderate-income working individuals and families. The average credit is nearly $3,000, and the IRS estimates 1 in 4 eligible working people do not claim it. You can also negotiate your bills and payment plans.
Negotiating with Lenders and the IRS
Grimes advises people to negotiate fees, interest rates and payment options with credit card lenders, the IRS, banks and even with their bosses. Most people do not know they can do that. For example, if you got a big tax bill you cannot pay right away, take a deep breath, pick up the phone – which I know no one likes to do any more – and call the IRS. You can negotiate around the fee and interest rate they will charge you. They have an entire department of people who want to help you figure out how to give them your money.
"I think money is such a difficult topic for so many of us, because we're raised in ways where it's not talked about. When I left my home in my teens, I didn't know about money and I made a bunch of mistakes early on and I just felt deeply ashamed. Calling someone to negotiate a lower interest rate, or to advocate for yourself requires some belief that you think that's appropriate, that you have earned the right to want better and to ask for better, and to demand better."
Shame Gurus and Crash Diets
Grimes criticizes "credit card debt shamers," influencers who specialize in "tough love" advice and drastic bare-bones budgets. She calls them the shame gurus. "Boy, does that drive me crazy. It reinforces a tape [people in debt] have in their own head, which is that they are bad at money."
When folks choose extreme new money habits, like only eating rice and beans, it is kind of like a crash diet. It does not stick. Really changing money habits in the long-term happens when somebody actually changes their relationship to themselves and their money. One of the behaviors she has seen help people succeed is understanding what good thing they get to do with their money in that month.
From Labor Organizer to Personal Finance Author
Grimes was a union organizer with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) for 20 years. She realized early on that there were two problems: most people did not have enough money, and when they did have any money, most people did not know what to do with it to make more of it. She wanted to give people real tools that are not for people with a bunch of disposable income or who are already rich – how to budget, how to trim your bills and figure out what investments suit you.
"I wrote the book that I wished I'd had when I was figuring out money, and the book that I want my daughter to have as she becomes an adult: I want her to know that anyone can learn to be good at money, that everyone will make a money mistake and that it is important to understand her feelings about money if she wants to make more of it."
Money Is Math Plus Feelings
Grimes likes to say money is math plus feelings. The math is usually pretty understandable. If you can add and subtract, you can generally figure out the right thing to do here. But the economy is not exactly an easy thing to navigate. She thinks folks have a choice individually, which is either to say "Gosh, the system is really tough to navigate. I'm doing my best, but it's really hard" or "I'm just really bad at money." It is easier to assume that a singular person is the problem, but once she realized that she could be good at money, and that the system was pretty hostile to that, it is a very different frame of mind.
Worst Money Advice
The worst piece of money advice Grimes ever received was from a boss who told her not to take a 401k match, and instead to put that money into buying some particular individual stock. She did not take the advice because she was too intimidated to buy stocks – not because she knew it was bad advice at the time. To be very clear: if you have a 401K and you have a match, absolutely do that. It is free money.
Dealing with High Grocery Prices
WorkMoney highlights food banks and federal programs to cut high grocery prices. For people who do not qualify or cannot access those, Grimes recommends Costco: buy in bulk where things are cheaper. Look for deals, and stock up on non-perishables. She uses Instacart – not to buy things and have it come to her house, because she is too cheap for that – but she has a standard set of staples that she price checks and that determines where she shops in person.
Preparing for Economic Uncertainty
Households feeling squeezed should first figure out their "minimum viable number" – that is your mortgage, your rent, your food costs, transportation, utilities. The goal is to have three to six months of that minimum monthly amount saved up somewhere. You should have an additional $1,000 in a savings account that you can get to fast, something pretty liquid.
Then, aggressively pay down your credit card debt. Call your credit card company to try to negotiate a lower APR or lower balance. If you are already missing the minimum payment, call the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a not-for-profit credit counselor that can walk you through options from a debt repayment plan to bankruptcy.
Last, pack your financial "go bag" – know where you are going to go to file an unemployment claim and how to apply for Snap and Medicaid. Do not let the government keep your money. If you have worked a day in your life, or you have shopped and bought things, or paid taxes, this is your money.
Defining Money Success
Grimes defines money success as going to sleep at night knowing she is OK, and believing that when she wakes up, she is probably going to be OK. She is deeply familiar with money anxiety and being working poor, and then scraping her way into the middle class. She mostly just wants the feeling of no worry and ease.
There are some tangibles: her daughter is in college, and she does not want her to have any student debt. She wants to be able to retire, and she wants to be able to go and see her wherever she is. Some day, she wants to have a pony. But her husband is not a fan of horses, so that one is under review. Her money goal now is "Are my beloveds all solid?"
Four Key Takeaways
- Do not assume you are "bad at money" just because you do not have a lot of it or have gotten into debt.
- Pick up the phone to negotiate your bills and payment plans.
- If your employer offers to match your 401K contributions, do it. It is free money.
- When facing job insecurity, know where you are going to go to file an unemployment claim and how to apply for Snap and Medicaid. If you have worked a day in your life or paid taxes, this is your money.
