10 Harsh Money Lessons That You Never Learned in School
10 Harsh Money Lessons That You Never Learned in School
By Martin Dasko / STUDENOMICS
“They should teach personal finance in college.”
“I wish I learned more about money in school instead of studying all that useless stuff.”
I’ve seen a variation of this message on social media over the years. Personal finance is one of those topics that we have to figure out on our own as we go through life, and it can be highly frustrating. This is why I wanted to look at what you likely weren’t taught about money as a high school or college student that you should know.
Here’s what college and high school never taught you about money that you need to know.
Money lessons you didn't learn in school
I can’t tell you how many times a reader or friend complained about how they learned nothing about finances in school. You have to figure out credit scores, mortgages, credit cards, investing, retirement planning, budgeting, being able to afford a Friday night with soaring inflation, and career advancement all on your own.
You don’t learn much about personal finance and money management as you go through the education system. You go from trying to get by as a broke college student to being thrust into the real world, where you suddenly have to worry about paying your bills, all while trying to figure out how to balance between saving for your retirement one day and trying to afford all of these weddings that you have to attend.
Let’s go over what every young person should learn about money right now that you probably won’t learn in college or high school. These are ten money lessons that should be taught to all young people.
Lesson #1: The World Is Designed To Separate You From Your Money.
“I firmly believe that everything in this world is designed to separate you from your money.”
An economics professor dropped this gem on us one morning (so I technically learned this in college). Since hearing this, I can’t stop thinking about it because it’s accurate. He described how everything is happening around us to take our money.
There will always be something to spend money on. You can’t scroll social media for more than two seconds without being sold something. There are ads for everything, and the ads are targeted to promote something you likely discussed an hour earlier or thought of in your mind.
What can you do about this?
Save first. Always pay yourself first. Have money automatically come off your paycheck. Don’t attempt to save when you don’t spend after getting paid. Save first.
Hide/lock your money. I call this the Houdini System. I hide my money in an investment account and ensure I cannot access it.
Stop saving your credit card details with every online retailer. It’s ridiculously easy to spend money these days. Don’t save your credit card information with Amazon. You don’t always need everything delivered to you in minutes.
Set priorities. I’ve learned that you can have anything you want, but you can’t have everything you want.
Whatever you do, never rely on willpower. Hide your money and set it aside. The world is designed to take your money from you. On top of finding ways to keep more of your money, you also have to ensure that you don’t get scammed. The video below covers this…
Lesson #2: You Must Figure Out Where Your Money’s Going.
“I have no idea where my paychecks go.”
I’ve heard this from many friends over the years, and it’s always startling. I understand why this happens, though. Life comes at you fast, and everything that you want to do is expensive. Suddenly, you’re a week removed from payday and have no idea where your money went.
You don’t have to track every penny, but knowing where your money’s going is essential. You don’t want to be confused as to why you’re broke. You have to figure out where your money’s going.
How do you figure out where your money’s going?
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