Former exec could use some management

As an executive, Lesley Hawks earned as much as $400,000 a year. But the business acumen that made her a success in the corporate world is not reflected in her personal finances.

She can't say how much is in her checking account, guessing (incorrectly) that it is somewhere between $10,000 and $100,000.

She let $100,000 idle away for 16 years in a wrap account, a type of catch-all investment fund, that earned her just half of 1% annually. The account held technology stocks bought at the peak of the Internet bubble in 2000 that were never sold.

Even worse, she trusted a friend with $200,000 to invest in two risky ventures -- a Long Beach restaurant and a bicycle rental shop in New York. She lost it all, and then got stuck with $18,000 in legal bills to shut the operations down.

Recently, however, the 46-year-old Long Beach resident has been forced to keep a closer watch on her money. Two months ago, she was let go from ISold It, a company that franchises stores that help people sell goods on EBay.

"Even though I did make big bucks there, I don't really know where it's gone," Hawks said. "I don't open bank statements. It really is head-in-the-sand, and I know it."

Financial planner Sandra C. Field thinks Hawks needs to take command of her money. And quickly.

"She's completely scatterbrained right now. There's no reality there around money, and she readily admits that," said Field, who works out of Los Alamitos. "She needs direction."

Hawks never planned on a career in business, nor expected she would one day need to manage her own finances. She moved to the United States from Britain 24 years ago to work as a tennis coach. After marrying, she focused on raising her son, Conor.

When her marriage broke up in 2000, she lucked into what proved to be a lucrative career -- consulting on franchise operations -- which eventually led to an executive position with ISold It. But she never took the time to manage her own finances.

"I do feel I'm underwater most of the time. The thing that goes is organizing my financial life," she said. "Throw a little bit of midlife dating in there, and it's really the Superwoman syndrome."

Fortunately, Hawks earned $70,000 this year before her layoff, and she is free of debt. The franchising expert has begun consulting on a freelance basis and has landed three clients.