Money affects a lot of our decisions in life and while schools are increasingly teaching kids how to save and invest, there are still gaps. Here’s what you can do to be financially literate!
It’s key to have a healthy relationship with money because money can be a significant source of stress in our relationships with people and how we get by in life. Although schools have made some strides in teaching more financial literacy and 21 states have made personal finance a high school graduation requirement, it’s still not enough.
The answer is that you can be proactive and learn how you can be more financially literate by increasing your knowledge on financial and investing topics that I discuss in today’s video.
If teachers were grading financial progress in America, they would probably give it an F because US household debt hit a new record of $15.24 trillion in 2021. And student loan debt hit over $1.5 trillion!
With 78% of adults living paycheck to paycheck and 2 out of 3 families lacking emergency savings, only 27% of workers feel very confident that they’ll be able to live a financially secure retirement, 35% of Americans say that their household financial situation has become worse over the last year, and 75% of Americans are winging it when it comes to their financial future — it is time to arm yourself with financial knowledge and know-how!
Being aware that you don’t want to despair and end up in financial misery is the first step toward making better financial decisions so you can have a better financial future.
Financial Literacy just means having the ability to understand and to use financial skills and knowledge to manage money and to invest.
Research has shown that having financial literacy in high school is positively linked with better financial outcomes in life, better credit scores, and low interest student loans when paying for college.
Even if you don’t live in a state that requires students to take a personal finance course to graduate, you can talk with your parents, other family members, and people you trust about how to be responsible with managing your money. Find a mentor who can teach you how to invest.
And even if you live in a state that is lacking in financial education resources, the good news is that the internet has a lot of free financial education you can learn from and you can search my YouTube channel for topics you are interested in learning about.
For example, check out my video about getting the basic money skills you need to know.
Also check out my video on Financial and Investing Advice For 18 Year Olds and Teenagers.
I like to say it’s never too early to start saving up for retirement, so learn more about retirement investing accounts in this video.
I provide my guidance on how I like to use credit cards the best way in this video.
Empowering kids and young people with the understanding of money and investing experience can prove to be extremely valuable. One example is how Warren Buffett bought his first stock at age 11 in learning from his stockbroker father on how to invest.
And one mother taught her 8 year old about how to invest, so she bought him 10 shares of Gamestop at a price of $6 a share. When the meme stock frenzy happened in 2021, the now 10 year old gained 5,000% and gained $3,200 on an original $60 investment.
There is a power in teaching kids how to invest the right way. The more that they understand about the stock market, and what it means to invest, and investing goals, then they might be in a better position to make the right investing decisions. It paid off in the story of the mother and her son’s Gamestop investment.
A lot of people share comments in financial YouTube videos about how school didn’t teach them how to manage credit cards, loans, and how to invest. Schools are trying to make up the gap in financial education and some curricula focus on financial literacy within 21st century skills.
I’m impressed with the strides that some school curricula are making with personal financial literacy in covering a wide breadth of topics on income and careers; money management; credit and debt management; planning, saving, and investing; becoming a critical consumer; civic financial responsibility; and insuring and protecting.
In summary, get to googling/youtubing and get a mentor to teach you more on these topics. I wish you well on your journey to financial literacy and achieving a lot of financial success in life!
If you’re interested in learning how to take control of your finances and start becoming an investor like Warren Buffett, check out my free PDF guide.
I look forward to making more investor friends! Add me on Instagram: michellemarki