Hey there! I’m Ameena Rey-Franc and welcome to The Thrifty Pinay blog! I am a former Accountant and Banker turned Personal Finance Blogger, Motivational Speaker, Content Writer, and Author of the Thrifty Pinay Book entitled “How to Build A Strong Financial Foundation that can Withstand a CRISIS”. Currently, I work at home while juggling being an entrepreneur, full-time mom and wife, with no nanny.
My Story (From a Corporate Slave to an Entrepreneur)
Journey
Back in 2012 when I was still in the corporate world, I’ve always been a career-oriented woman. I also started investing my money in stocks and other investments since I started working. My love for reading personal finance books – backed up with my degree in Accountancy and experience as a Banker – shaped my passion for things that are related to Personal Finance.
Come 2018, after getting married, I experienced a dry spell in my career due to the brunt of child-rearing. I felt the “stay-at-home mom depression” and in addition, the complex world of being a first-time mom with a newborn resulted to me having postpartum depression. On top of that, as I am used to my lifestyle in Manila, the adjustment of living in the province with my husband was something I took very lightly. All these 3 drastic changes in my life took a huge toll on me. My zest for life vanished and I felt worthless like I had no purpose to live any longer. I often had mood swings, would get irritated easily, and would pick out a fight with my husband even with petty things.
Learning
As the saying goes, “Just like a caterpillar, you grow your wings during a season of ISOLATION”. I wanted to feel inspired again! I wanted to do something new and fresh that revolved around my passion! But just like most people who started from zero, the question “What am I passionate about?” needed to be addressed.
After fulfilling my devotional prayers, doing a personal SWOT analysis of myself, and finding my inner voice, I decided to start blogging. Of course, Personal Finance would be my niche. Then and there, The Thrifty Pinay was born.
Outcome
The first year of blogging was the hardest and messiest. Within that first year, I put up my blog, started writing countless finance articles, and offered my freelancing services. But no matter how hard I tried to establish my presence, people wouldn’t notice me. People thought I was just wasting my time on something that would not bear anything good. There were times when I wanted to give up.
It was only after I passed the first-year mark that I noticed people started to mention how my budgeting and investing articles helped them in their financial journey. I started getting content writing jobs too. That was also the time I started earning from Adsense.
One blog post after another, more and more people started visiting my blog. That’s when I also started getting recognitions as one of the “top finance bloggers in the Philippines” while being offered partnerships and projects. Come the second year, companies started to invite me to be a resource speaker for financial wellness webinars.
Financial Turbulence during the Pandemic
Unfortunately, when the pandemic reared its ugly head, my husband experienced a major salary cut which drastically affected our budget. Knowing how the pandemic’s chaos has affected so many people’s livelihood and financial standing, I came up with a self-published book entitled “How To Build A Strong Financial Foundation that Can Withstand A Crisis”.
My mission with this book is to educate Filipinos on how to properly solidify their financial foundation that they will use as their “first line of defense” in case another crisis strikes again
As of this writing, The Thrifty Pinay blog has been up and running for 4 years, and hopefully, we’ll be around for the next decade or two. I have taken up the Registered Financial Planner’s program to further help fellow Pinoys in handling their finances toward a brighter and more fruitful future. With my story, I wish to convey that ” every Juan”, no matter what your financial status is (single, married, solo parent) should strive to be financially independent and should educate themselves to be financially literate.
Being married and being a parent should not be a hindrance to being financially-independent. If you have dreams, you can still work on them even if you have a family to take care of. Though the journey is a rough path, you need to be radical to break down barriers and get even.
Nobody said the rules are fair. But given what you’re given, make the best of it. Put in the work and effort now to be financially-independent and I promise you, one day you will reap the benefits – for yourself and for your family.
DISCLAIMER:
The Thrifty Pinay blog is a personal finance blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, kindly contact Ameena Rey-Franc at thethriftypinay@gmail.com or leave a personal message in my social media accounts. I am a regular person with a passion to help others by spreading knowledge about financial literacy and any areas that are finance-related. I am not a Financial advisor nor a Financial Planner. The information in this blog is intended to be information only and not financial advice. Any documents attached or material content contained herein does not constitute a solicitation or an offer to purchase securities.