Financial literacy is crucial when navigating life and planning for your future. Whatever you do or don’t already know, below are some tips for building up your financial knowledge.
Commit Time to Financial Literacy
It’s important to set aside time to focus on personal finance. Better yet, choose a day and time you can stick to, such as when you have downtime in your schedule. During a commute or other time spent waiting can also present opportunities to beef up your financial knowledge. Even just five or ten minutes can be enough to get started.
Committing time to learn about finance is sort of like creating a good new habit. A powerful way to do that is by habit stacking or connecting a new habit to an existing one. For example, if you drink a cup of coffee every morning before you go to work, habit stacking could involve adding a new activity, like reading financial news while you drink your coffee.
Be a Sponge for Financial Information
Read up on finance with books, articles, magazines, newsletters, and other written materials. Look for content that’s conversational. Finance can get complicated, but the language we use to discuss it doesn’t have to be. So, scout out materials with accessible, plain language.
Bite-size material can be more welcoming and less intimidating to dive into and tackle, so look for resources that will let you dip in and out at your convenience, like chaptered books, serialized articles, or otherwise encapsulated content.
Take a financial literacy quiz to see what you don’t know, so you know where to focus your attention.
Take a Class or a Workshop
Sign up for a financial course or workshop online or in person. There are tons of free and paid options out there that are specifically geared toward the fundamentals of personal finance. Remember, if you’re handling money, it’s never too early or too late to take a course or try out any of these tips for improving your financial literacy.
Join a Financial Literacy Group
There’s no shortage of social media groups, forums, and other groups dedicated to financial education and learning. That can give you a ready-made support group with access to tons of knowledge and resources. It can also help you stay accountable and motivated.
Talk to a Financial Professional
Meet with a financial professional to get one-on-one advice and answers tailored to your needs, concerns, and objectives. You don’t know what you don’t know, and life can get busy, stressful, and complicated, no matter how much you plan for the future.
Still, you don’t have to forge ahead in your financial life alone. Financial professionals, such as your American Federal banker, can offer essential support, education, and guidance, especially in uncertain times or when you’re at a significant financial crossroads. They can also help you improve your financial literacy. Call us today to discuss any of your questions or needs.