More than ever, with new banking regulations, banks want to pitch their products to college students. It seems that a college student's account has a major impact on the bank's earnings.
Before stepping onto campus for the first time, there are three things every Freshman should know about finances. It's important to get aquainted with a these three financial instruments; they'll not only be important throughout college, but the rest of your life. They'll serve you well if you serve them well, but before you can begin to serve them well, you must understand them.
Perhaps your parents took you to work when you were a child; if they did, hopefully you learned from that experience that money doesn't grow on trees nor does it come from the ATM. You have to trade your time and talent for dollars.
Our parents are our role models; we develop our sense of ethics, our dispositions, and even our eating patterns based on their behaviors. Did you ever consider that you developed your financial habits from your parents as well?
...not the marriage kind...
But just what does it mean to be more excited about what you spend at least 8 hours a day doing! If you're not, it may not be your fault. Just as a lack of financial education, which isn't your fault, can lead to poor spending habits, a lack of concern on the part of your employer to get you engaged at work is also not your fault. This can lead to poor morale and poor performance.
Due to the fact that financial literacy is generally not taught in school, young adults graduating from high school are entering the world not knowing how to handle money properly. CapitalOne conducts an annual survey on the state of financial literacy among graduating high school seniors. This year 40% don't feel comfortable managing their money.
The study by Financial Finesse clearly shows that women lag behind men in financial knowledge. Due to this, women lack the confidence in their finances as well as their ability to meet their long-term income goals. The report said that women lag men in their knowledge "in virtually all areas of finance."
We all know that working out can improve your health as well as improving your finances. Just like working out, using cash as opposed to plastic at the register can also improve your health and your finances. Huh? Really...
Identity theft is not just for adults. Nearly one in four Americans have experienced identity theft of some type. Unethical online businesses find inactive social security numbers belonging to children and sell them to people who need to establish fake credit.
It's a fact of life: we need to go to the grocery store. Navigating one can be difficult, especially if you're not familiar with it. Here are some things to look for during your quest to find the things you need and end up buying the things you don't need.
I was on the Texas Jump$tart Coalition, an organization to teach financial literacy, for several years. What we found was that not only in Texas, but the other 49 states as well, financial literacy is not taught in the public schools.
Many ask the difference between the deficit and the national debt. The deficit is the yearly amount the government spends greater than it's revenues. (If the government spends less, then there is a urplus.) The national debt, on the other hand, is the accumulation of all the deficits.
In a recent workshop someone asked me what I thought the most important financial lesson a kid could learn besides saving money. I told them to teach them about the value of interest and how interest compounds on itself, so the recipient ends up with a lot more money than they started with.
My father used to say, "Everything in moderation." Well spoken. Yes, me, Mr. Thrifty, believes you can be too frugal. As a matter of fact, financial therapists refer to this disorder as "underspending." That's so clever, I never would have thought of it.
Financial disorders are a subset of the broader psychological disorders, and they ARE recognized by health professionals.