Jane Bryant Quinn is a nationally known commentator on personal finance, with books and columns read and trusted by millions. In her long career, she has established herself as America’s most reliable voice for people trying to manage their money well, with columns syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group to more than 250 newspapers, and in Newsweek, Bloomberg.com, Woman’s Day and Good Housekeeping. A winner of Emmy, Janus, Gerald Loeb and many other awards, Jane has worked extensively in television and is a frequent speaker for business, civic, and educational groups. Her full bio can be found at her website, JaneBryantQuinn.com, along with her personal story of how her own financial gaffes helped her in her career.

“Making the Most of Your Money NOW,” the third edition of her best-seller, named by Consumers Union as the best personal finance book on the market, has been updated for the new economy and is available now.

You can also stay in touch with Jane via her Twitter feed or Facebook Fan Page.

How did you get to where you are now?

For me, learning about money was a slow and sometimes painful job. No one is born with a mind for personal finance. Some lucky people have a natural talent for math but that’s not me (my lips move whenever I have to add or subtract). I came from a family that handled money prudently, but I understood that only in retrospect. We generally didn’t talk about it. Everything I learned, I learned by watching, reading, doing, and—yes—making some awful mistakes.

The rest of my story is here, at JaneBryantQuinn.com.

How do you see yourself differently now than you did 10 years ago?

 

 

Personal finance has nothing to do with math. It’s all about understanding simple principles (such as automatic savings), knowing where to find the advice and tools you need (I’ve rounded them up for you on my website, JaneByrantQuinn.com, and in my books), and choosing low-cost, plain-vanilla financial products (they’ve proven to be superior to everything else).