QUBER User Profile: Lea-Ann
As part of our User Profile series, we interview a QUBER user to give them the chance to share more about themselves and their experiences with financial life. Learning more about an individual’s experiences with money management is not only interesting, but can help highlight that the challenges each of us have faced with our finances aren’t so unique after all. By sharing stories and tips, we can help each other get ahead and avoid making mistakes with our money that might be avoided with a warning from those who have been there already.
This edition features a chat with Lea-Ann, one of our Grand Prize Save to Win winners, who has been saving money with QUBER for almost 5 years! We hope you enjoy learning more about Lea-Ann and her life!
[QUBER]: Hey Lea-Ann! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
[Lea-Ann] Born and raised in Nova Scotia, I am a 70’s baby. I am a mother of 2, stepmom of 4 and grandmother to 5 wonderful kids. My husband of 18 years and I currently reside in East Hants with our teenage son and German Shepherd, Taze!
How would you describe your relationship with personal finance throughout your life?
Although I have worked all of my adult life, I also always struggled with finances. Nickels n Dimes – all of the time!! I am not a big fan of shopping, I’d rather not go into malls shopping at all, actually. I guess, because I cannot afford to, especially since the Covid 19 pandemic. I find shopping very frustrating if we’re being honest. I look at an item and do quick math in my head to figure out approximately how many hours I must work to make up for that purchase. Where is the fun in that! Being careful with my spending is also not proving to be very rewarding. I was raised to believe, if you deserve it, you’ll have it. If you must ponder and wrestle with the idea, chances are you do not ‘deserve’ it.
The lovely Lea-Ann, who has been saving money with QUBER for almost 5 years!
If you could teach your younger self one lesson in personal finance, what would it be?
Most of us who live pay cheque to pay cheque think, “we’re good people, why don’t good things happen to us?” – the fact is, good things do happen to us every day. But not money wise. We overlook the very most important aspects of our lives – A LOT! I guess we should be more specific when we put our thoughts and wonders out to the universe. We think we appreciate money, we don’t. We appreciate choices. Money gives us more choices. There is a difference!
What are you saving for these days, and what keeps you motivated?
My QUBER account right now is for emergencies! There’s been a lot of those happening around us more frequently lately. I’ve learned, you can never be too prepared. Oh, and property taxes!! Can’t forget those. They used to come out of our mortgage automatically but no longer do. So, I set money aside for these bi-annual payments as well.
How long have you been saving with QUBER, and how has QUBER helped you along your financial journey?
I have been with QUBER for about 4 or 5 years now. In those years, I’ve saved about $2500 in ‘spare change.’ I cash out when I need to. Rather than putting actual coins in a piggy bank, I prefer the digital round ups according to my very own QUBER rules. Having some control over your own money is quite empowering.
Quber is offered to employees as an employee financial wellness benefit. Employers match a portion of their employees’ savings towards an emergency fund, and they get access to all of Quber’s features for free. What are your thoughts on this type of employee benefit and the impact it could have on employees’ financial stress?
I think more businesses should join QUBER. Providing that option for staff shows you care about their well-being, not just the bottom line they help you achieve!
Any final thoughts?
I work for a non-profit organization. I wake up on my own and make more per hour now than I ever did working for large corporations. It took guts to make that move. To say I wasn’t afraid would not be truthful. I was terrified. I also knew staying at my previous job was literally making me unwell. While I appreciated the opportunities I was given, the countless people I met along the way, and the valuable experiences over the years, I am beyond happy and grateful for where I am now.
I was so used to being unlucky and undervalued, when my sister told me I was the Grand Prize Winner of $1000 on QUBER, I didn’t believe her! Thank you, QUBER! Save on!!
Thank you so much to Lea-Ann for participating in this piece, taking the time to answer our questions in detail, and sharing openly about your story with our user community. If you’re interested in being a featured user in our User Profile series, let us know! You can reach a member of our team by sending us an email at support@quber.ca.