COURTESY KATHY ENTWISTLE As a Forbes top money advisor, Ridgewood mom Kathy Entwistle has been helping families make smart money decisions for years. Now she’s sharing her knowledge in a box, literally. The Money Date Box ( themoneydatebox.com and @themoneydatebox on Instagram) walks people through eight weeks of “money dates,” self-guided exercises to educate, set priorities and build a road map to financial wellness for couples, singles and teens. We asked her how it all came together.
New Jersey Family: Your financial expertise was honed as a volunteer in your hometown when your kids were growing up. What did you do and how did that eventually lead to your role as a Forbes Top Financial Advisor?
Kathy Entwistle: As a stay-at-home mom with a background in finance, I realized most people don’t understand financial topics and are not comfortable with their money. I went to the local YWCA and asked if I could volunteer to teach a course called Women and Investing. We had a tremendous turnout and great feedback. I provided education. I was not selling anything. Many of the women asked if I could review their portfolios and manage their money. This made me think that there was a need for a female financial advisor who could speak about financial topics in a way that was easy to understand. I became a financial advisor when my youngest was going to first grade and have since built up a successful business with wonderful clients and have been named numerous times as a Forbes Top Financial Advisor. THE MONEY DATE BOX NJF: How did your work as a financial advisor inspire the idea to start the Money Date Box?
KE: In the last five years or so I have spoken to many young people in their 20s, 30s and even 40s who just don’t know where to start when it comes to their money. They haven’t had formal education on this topic in school, they haven’t been taught about smart financial steps to secure their future and they don’t know where they can get guidance that is objective. They are concerned they don’t have enough money or will ask silly questions. This made me think, what if I take all of my years of experience and create financial education for them in a relatively easy way to access?
NJF: What was the process like to go from idea to product launch?
KE: Once the idea came to me, creating it was not as complicated as it could have been. I am literally pulling together all of the financial education I provide to my class or my clients and sharing it in a box, delivered to your doorstep so that you can learn on your own time and at your own pace. The first thing I want to do is inspire others to have vulnerable, authentic conversations about money. Then I want them to act on the pain points they discover during those conversations. his means getting organized, planning money dates to address these topics and working through some exercises to set your financial foundation.
NJF: What was the biggest challenge in launching the Money Date Box?
KE: The biggest challenge to launching a new company in a pandemic were things I never even thought of like supply chain shortages such as paper. Although I had been developing the brand prior to the pandemic, nothing could have prepared me for the nuances of navigating a business during an unprecedented time. In a way, this challenge was transmuted into a strength of mine, as I got a glimpse into what some of my clients were experiencing THE MONEY
DATE BOX NJF: How do you use the Money Date Box?
KE: The Money Date Box is a conversational card game to inspire authentic discussions about money and to drive positive change.
Through questions that examine your relationship with money, you will uncover your own money story and access tools and resources to support you on your journey to attain financial confidence and wealth. The Money Date Box is my solution to provide financial education and confidence to everyone. Whether you want to start a discussion with your friends, with your significant other, with your children or as an individual, the cards stand alone as a great way to spark meaningful conversations. For those that want to take it a step further, The Box contents include not only the conversation cards, but also instructions to secure your financial […]
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