Many of us are uncomfortable addressing the subject of money. This lack of comfort pertaining to the subject, can create an array of problems for us as young adults. If we lack this vital financial knowledge, it can hurt our financial success in the future. We should be incorporating this knowledge into our lives now in order to create more responsible and successful financial futures. We work hard to earn our money through our various jobs and internships throughout college, and later during our adult lives, so it is important and beneficial for us to learn how to properly save and invest this money.
The basis of financial literacy is to give individuals the tools and resources necessary to fully understand money, and how to manage it properly for today and the years to come. Just because we did not receive an abundance of financial knowledge growing up, does not mean we are doomed to be financially irresponsible. Northwest Community Credit Union understands this, and has spent time and effort to offer financial literacy modules that are easy to understand, which also translate to everyday life. One of the easiest and most beneficial ways to get on the path to a brighter financial future, is understanding how you spend your money in your everyday life.
A part of financial literacy education that is extremely important to me is budgeting. Most people use some type of planner at work or school in order to have all their tasks in one place and to manage their time properly. The use of a planner provides structure, which often leads to successfully completing tasks on time. I think it is just as critical to have this system for money management as well. Many of us tend to overspend because we do not keep track of where our money is going. Keeping track of your money and monitoring expenses is the first step to becoming financially responsible. Now, you may be asking yourself, “How Do I Start Budgeting?” The first step should be having a physical budgeting sheet or creating an excel spreadsheet of all of your expenses. Then, you should create a category for each of your expenses. I would try to put your most important expenses at the beginning. Once you have a visual representation of how much you are spending on essentials including utilities, groceries, tuition, credit card bills, etc., you can then see how much you have leftover to put in your savings. Try to have a set amount to immediately put into your savings every paycheck to make it a habit. Once you have taken care of all the vital categories including savings, you can visually see how much you have left over to spend on “luxury items” such as entertainment, take out, or shopping. Set limits for yourself and gain a full understanding of how much you are spending.
As I have stated multiple times throughout this article, being financially literate and responsible is vital for a comfortable and successful financial future. Northwest Community Credit Union wants you to know everything about money so that once you graduate, you will not make silly financial decisions that can delay buying your first home, your first car, or when you will retire. Even though these all seem far away now, the financial decisions you are making today affect the financial decisions of your future.
Learning how to properly use a credit card can help you build a great credit score, so you will be able to get a loan for your future home or car at better rates. Learning how to pay back your student loans in an efficient and responsible manner will help you rid yourself of this debt sooner and learn how to deal with bigger expenses later. At NWCCU.com, you can study modules that teach you how to deal with these expenses and understand what you must start doing now in order to set yourself up for success in the future. We are also here for you because we understand how scary and difficult it can be to pay loans and bills, but education is the first step to making the process easier.
Growing up is inevitable, so learning how to tackle adult responsibilities now will make the transition easier later. It is important to understand that you have a support system at Saint Xavier University not just for your educational needs, but your financial needs as well. We want to guide you in the right direction towards a brighter financial future.