No matter what is the nature of your job and lifestyle, financial literacy is crucial. Whether you are an investor, an employee, or a normal consumer, you need to have enough knowledge about money: Its functionality and utilization. Essential as it is, money is something that is not a part of the educational curriculum, sadly. So, you are destined to educate yourself financially.
To see the inevitability of financial literacy, we reached out to 3 highly influential business moguls. From Karen Firestone and Brandon Copeland to Tim Saymour, all these influential people have one thing in common: Finacial literacy is essentially regardless of your gender, status, job, and background. Though all of these put essentiality of financial literacy, they revolve around the same theme.
Let’s evaluate the crux of their perspectives about financial literacy and see how you can relate to them:
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“Financial Literacy Gives You Independence” Karen Firestone
It is not unheard of that a vast majority of Americans are dependent. Not on their parents only, but rather on their monthly paycheck. A recent report from Statista suggests that almost half of Americans do not have $1,000 emergency funds in savings.
“This is largely because they do not know how to use money,” argues Karen Firestone. She goes on to say: “Once you know the usage of money and keep a fair track of your expenses, you will become independent. It is not making money that is hard to deal with. Rather, it is the use of it where most people fail.” Furthermore, Karen suggests that as one becomes financially literate, he can effectively manage his money and build up his savings.
“Emergency funds are an epitome of one’s financial literacy,” she concludes recommending that “just saving is as important as saving for emergencies.”
2. “No One Can Invest in You Better Than Yourself” Brandon Copeland
Another sane perspective about financial literacy comes from the finance expert, Bandon Copeland. “I urge our young generation to invest in themselves,” he recommends, adding that there is no one else who will invest in you better than yourself.
“We need to have a different perspective – different from the conventional thought of earning money and spending it. How about investing it in your older self for good?” He asks. Copeland does not endorse saving for retirement. Rather, he suggests investing in your older self “and making yourself better than you were yesterday.”
3. “Making Kids Financially Literate is the Foremost Obligation of Every Parent” Tim Seymour
As an influential investor and a mom of three, Tim Seymour is of the belief that young generations are the most valuable assets of society. “It is on parents to make their kids financially literate from an early age. To instill in them how to make, use, and invest money,” she suggests.
Furthermore, she asserts that her mom was the first teacher who made her acquaintance with money, and now she is “making her family the first institution of financial literacy for her kids.”