Wise Bread currently boasts nearly 30,000 RSS subscribers and 20,000+ visitors a day (source: site meter), spreading the writers’ wisdom to many.  With such success, one would imagine money management must be stress-free  for the guys running the show.  Well it wasn’t always easy for Will Chen, one of the Wise Bread founders who started his career as a lawyer with minimal knowledge on money management.  Despite his 6 figure salary, he lived paycheck to paycheck.

Read on for more from the recent interview with Will Chen.

“Will, can you describe your evolution as a successful attorney to the founder of a top personal finance blog?  And why Wise Bread?”

As an attorney, I was making a six figure salary but was living paycheck to paycheck because I was clueless about financial management.  When I confessed this to my two good friends Greg Go and Lynn Truong, they told me I wasn’t alone.  They also felt overwhelmed by the financial burdens of being a new 20-something professional.  We tried looking for help online, but most online resources were too dry or intimidating.

We wanted to build a personal finance website that speaks to our generation.  At first, we did this just as a side hobby.  But in less than a month our blog hit the front pages of Digg, Reddit, and BoingBoing. We immediately received hundreds of emails from people telling us how much they enjoyed our fresh approach to personal finance. We knew we had a hit!

“What was your experience like starting up Wise Bread with your co-founders?”

It has been an exhilarating experience.  We compliment each other perfectly.  Before co-founding the company, Greg worked as a tech guru for Rhythm & Hues, an Academy award-winning media company.  He had a ton of experience building complex networks and programs that affect million dollar projects.

Lynn used to work at Grey Worldwide and CBS/King World creating and implementing national ad campaigns.  Her client-side experience gives her unique insights on how to provide maximum value to advertisers.

Greg’s tech know-how, Lynn’s sales experience, and my legal/marketing background allowed us to scale our business quickly.

“What do you enjoy most about managing Wise Bread?

To see our writers get awesome opportunities as a result of writing for Wise Bread.  In 2009 we published a bestselling budgeting and money management book which featured several of our best writers.  Two of our other writers have their own nationally-syndicated columns.  When I see their names on LA Times or Chicago Tribune I still get goosebumps.

Any aspects  you can live without?”

I feel guilty whenever I waste money.  As the co-founder of a personal finance website, I feel like I should know better than to blow my money on useless gadgets (but I still do, once in a while).

“When it comes to the topic of personal finance, you weren’t born an expert.  As your profile says best, ‘How can I effectively counsel a client about how to deal with debt collectors when, in my personal life, I had no idea how to protect my own FICO score?’  It has now been a few years since the launch of Wise Bread.  What were some of the most valuable lessons learned that all of us should strive to absorb?”

The biggest lesson I learned is that you can’t get out of debt alone.  You need a support group.  We are easily influenced by our peers.  If your friends are eating out all the time and driving new cars, you are likely to do the same.  Tune out your wasteful friends and tune out the media.  Start hanging out with savvy, frugal-minded folks who take personal finance seriously.  Wise Bread forum is a great place to start.

“Do you have any personal mantras that help you stay motivated and inspired?”

“We’ve done the impossible and that makes us mighty.”  — Mal Reynolds, Firefly.

Thanks for sharing your mantra and your history.  Best of luck with continuing success at Wise Bread.