Listening is a Superpower | MK Williams

In today's episode, you'll hear from MK Williams who authors Financial Independence Fiction.

She started out chasing a career for money but found herself unsatisfied.

MK studied the art of writing and self-publishing.

Now she is authoring books and helping other authors as well.

Listen and learn all about side hustles and let us know what you think.
Episode Summary

MK saw her mom put herself through law school and struggle
* From there she always wanted to hoard money vs spending it
* She decided to major in economics
* This decision was largely to earn a higher income
* She had a passion for writing but didn't feel like she had the skills
* MK graduated in the middle of the recession so no job was lucrative
* Her first job would come through a fluke all at USAA
* She had moved down to Florida to live with her parents
* Her starting salary was $38k but she didn't love her job
* While in Tampa she would meet her now-husband Jason
* Jason actually owned his house and was renting rooms out to people
* It's very obvious that Jason and MK are completely on the same frugal page
* We then discuss how they keep finances straight as a couple
* They actually just use whatever credit card they need for rewards

Writing as a business

* MK had this dream that she would just write a book and a publisher would show up
* That didn't happen
* She said it took her three to four years of learning to be ready
* In the end, she settled on self-publishing
* MK wasn't driven to write for money at first
* She then discusses how she grew her brand organically
* Mk wasn't open to the idea of just paying for tons of ads to grow
* Then we talk about MK's inspiration for her fictional novels
* She shares a story of her husband who started selling her families stuff at 12

FI Journey

* MK got out of debt in 2012
* Then they discovered Mr. Money Mustache in 2013
* The topic didn't stick at first but then they read Early Retirement Extreme and it stuck this time
* They had always been good with money but there was no real purpose behind it.
* Then we swap gears into how she's helping Fiology and ChooseFI with their books
* MK is now a full-time author and independent publisher by helping others learn how to self-publish
* She's also taking all these lessons and sharing them via her YouTube Channel
* MK also shares how authors can still provide physical books without huge upfront costs

Key Takeaways

* Partner in crime: It's so important to get on the same page with your partner, if your not today, just keep working
* Keep Learning: MK shows how she's continuously learning such as re-reading Harry Potter to understand how a series builds
* Cheap is harmful: We discuss how being cheap is destructive to relationships and the environment

Call to Action

Practice your listening skills, We learn from listening not from speaking.

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