About

alexandra-by-lark-sm2I first read The Wealthy Barber, Dave Chilton’s down-home financial planning guide for “ordinary Canadians” as a teenager. Since that time, I’ve read through pretty much a whole library of personal finance books, getting more and more technical as I went (and up to and including the textbooks for the Canadian Securities Course, from when I was a licensed investment advisor; and the texts for the Certified Financial Planner courses and exam).

However, the concepts I learned first in The Wealthy Barber are the financial planning basics to which I return again and again. These concepts - pay yourself first; save 10% of everything you earn and invest it for long-term growth; avoid credit cards; max out your RRSP when you can; understand the role of your principal residence in your overall financial plan, and more - are the foundations of building wealth and avoiding financial catastrophe, and I think these are the strategies Canadian families should be exploring!

Accordingly, I shamelessly borrowed from Dave Chilton in naming this blog. I aspire to be wealthy (note: not “rich”), and I’m a heck of a baker. In fact, if you follow me on Twitter, you’ll note I tweet as much about what I’m making for dinner as I do about anything financial. (I’m also a volunteer historic cook at Spadina House, a City of Toronto museum.)

I’m a wife and a mom; I live with my family and our two cats in Toronto, Ontario; and I’ve created this space as my place to muse on all things financial.

I work as a Manager of Special Projects at the QWeMA Group, which develops intellectual property, software algorithms and product solutions in the fields of wealth management, investments and insurance. None of the articles on this website represent the official position or views of the QWeMA Group or its management.

You can also find me at Canadian MoneySaver (the magazine for Canadian DIY investors).