I learned the most about economics and financial planning, not while in college or at work, but during my time off from the working world during the years I got married and started a family. After working for three and a half years in the financial services industry I had been exposed to the business side of financial advising; I learned about stock portfolios, retirement funds and the importance of a diversified portfolio, and though I was passionate about the industry I never fully understood the level of freedom and empowerment that one attains from financial security. I was a naive 20-something when I got married and thought my husband could be responsible for our financial future. I grew up in a relatively “traditional” family where my dad managed the finances and my mom took care of the home. And even though I had graduated from a prestigious college program in Political Science and expected to maintain a career I still had very little understanding of the importance of being a financially independent woman in today’s world. Throughout the years I have learned that there are many other women in my same situation that would benefit from financial counseling and education. Though I had an understanding of the financial industry, the fact is that prior to starting a family I had never been responsible for basic home economics such as balancing a checkbook, paying bills, or starting a college fund for my daughter. It became apparent to me how important it was for me to become involved in all of the household financial decisions and encouraged me to take charge. I figured that even if I could not be part of the working world, I could still contribute financially to my family and later learned I could help others in my community as well. Within a year, I had convinced my husband to open a joint account, something that is incredibly important for military families, and overall I was able to reduce our debt by 90 percent, increase our savings, open Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA), and set up a college fund for my daughter. After some time my husband also realized the benefit of planning for our family’s financial future and he is now on the bandwagon. Even though I was not working outside of the home, it was during this time that I learned about my professional interest and strengths in the business world. I fine tuned my managerial skills such as time management, conflict resolution, and customer service skills. I also had the benefit of joining a local mother’s organization where other military families were also members. As a member of this group I put my business skills to work and took on the role as the group’s publicity coordinator. In this position I work with enrolling members and marketing our organization to the local community. It is through membership dues that our club is able to function and sponsor a variety of events throughout the year. In addition to increasing membership I have also taken an active role in managing the organization’s yearly budget. In this position I have learned about the countless other women and families that would benefit from financial education and it is my intention, through more formal education, to pursue a career in financial counseling. I believe that pursuing my MBA degree will allow me to hone my personal interests in business and finance and provide a strong framework to pursue a career in this field.