In this special Mailbag episode of the HerMoney Podcast with Jean Chatzky, we welcome back personal finance expert Dana Miranda, author of You Don’t Need a Budget, to tackle your most pressing money questions. From navigating early retirement goals to rebuilding credit post-divorce to whether or not you can justify your boutique Pilates membership, we’re getting real about money, self-care, and financial freedom.

Mailbag Questions:
01:00 “I’m 58, burnt out, and want to retire early; is $200k saved enough?”
07:00 “Should I use my 401(k) to pay off $70K in debt?”
13:00 “Can I afford to work part-time post-divorce, or do I need to look for a full-time job?”
20:00 “I make $180k and have 2 kids, is $200 a month too much for a gym membership?”

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???? Got money questions? Drop them in the comments or email us at mailbag@hermoney.com.

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Listen to the podcast episode “I make $180k and have 2 kids, can I justify my $200 Pilates membership?” | Mailbag with Dana Miranda” – [https://youtu.be/2gHW4CqC7wc]
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You’d love to get your kids through college debt-free — but your kids aren’t getting any scholarships, you haven’t saved for college, and you make too much to get government financial aid. Is there still hope? Yes, but you’ll need someone to guide you.

In LAUNCH, academic strategist Jeannie Burlowski lays out clear, step-by-step strategies that empower parents to get their kids through high quality, best-fit colleges debt-free — and then directly into jobs they love afterward.

Experts rave about LAUNCH:

“The checklists at the end of each chapter in this book are fabulous. They’re golden. Well worth the entire price of the book.”

—Bob Shorb, former associate dean of admissions and financial aid and director of student aid and family finance, Skidmore College

“Students who go through college without career direction are, as Jeannie Burlowski says, ‘like archers who pull the arrow back on the bow string, shoot, and then years later look around for the target.’ This book helps parents set their kids up to take aim early and fire a sure shot, whether that’s at medical school or at some other worthy endeavor.”

—Dr. Paul Amble, MD, assistant clinical professor, Yale School of Medicine

“I’m a certified financial planner who cares deeply that parents are able to send their kids to college without risking their retirement. You can be sure I’ll be recommending this book every chance I get.”

— Mike Branch, CFP, Focus Financial, Minneapolis, MN

“High school guidance counselors have a difficult time covering the intricacies of the college admission and financing process in the small amount of time they have to work with a large number of students. This book fills in all the gaps—and more—for parents.”

—Josie Robinson, author and former high school guidance and career counselor, White Bear Lake Area High School

Borrowing money is advertised as “easy”. So, why not do it? The truth is, taking out loans can create big problems for kids. Debt Dangers tells a great story about Chelsea and Jack saving money, living within their means, and why kids should avoid debt. A book in the series “Marvels of Money … for kids”; richly illustrated, engaging and practical fictional stories for young readers about the fundamentals of money. This book supports emerging educational (K-5) learning standards for common core, integrating “life skills” and “reasoning skills” into the fictional but realistic financial literacy stories. Each story in the series includes essential financial words, which are highlighted throughout each story and then defined in a glossary along with summary concepts at the end of each story. 3rd-6th grade level readers will find the 2,500 word story and numerical examples great for reading, mathematics, social sciences and financial literacy! Younger (K-2) readers may skim the concepts in a picture book manner, as there are incredible illustrations on each page. Great real-along and discussion books! Messages to last a lifetime.

What grade would you give your parents for how well they prepared you to manage your finances? What grade will your kids give you someday? At best you have 18 years to teach your kids how to manage money skillfully. So how do you accomplish this overwhelming challenge? Don’t panic! Everything you need to get the job done is right here in this book. Think it’s too late to debt-proof your kids? It’s only too late if you don’t start NOW!