Financial literacy is critical to ensure together with starting a job, you also can pay taxes, avoid unnecessary debts, and overall manage your salary wisely. Unfortunately, this crucial survival knowledge is often overlooked in most schools worldwide, making it challenging for graduates to manage their finances wisely and plan for their financial freedom. This is the reality for millions of people worldwide. The good news is that it is relatively easy to attain important financial knowledge and put it into practice, ensuring financial freedom and well-being. Let’s dive into this intriguing topic and outline the main steps to learning finance online.
Why so many are left without financial literacy
It is important to note that all these issues with financial literacy are not intentional by educational systems as it is a complex task to catch on to the ever-evolving modern society where technology is evolving so fast, even tech giants such as Google and Microsoft often struggle to follow the trend. Every new technology brings new challenges and opportunities for financial freedom and if there was a subject called financial literacy, it would also need to adapt almost every year or so. Here are some of the most widespread challenges hindering the financial literacy of the world population:
- Outdated curriculum – It is not news that schools worldwide often operate with old curricula and the introduction of new subjects often requires educational reforms which is a very complex process
- Lack of trained teachers – Few educators specialize in finances and many schools prioritize exam-oriented content to make it easier for students to get into universities
- Cultural taboos – Money management is rarely discussed at home in many countries and money is often seen as negatively
- Policy delays – Slow integration of financial education in curricula
As a result, many people try to educate themselves and employ various strategies such as financial trading, investing, and starting their own businesses to ensure financial freedom in a reasonable time window. Financial trading typically is seen as a holy grail to becoming financially independent, but also requires robust knowledge of economics and finance. Many try to learn FX to ensure a steady income. While trading is undoubtedly very rewarding, traders need to spend enough time to learn important concepts and practice trading. When it comes to investing, it also requires knowledge of financial fundamentals. One advantage of trading over investing, it requires much less capital to start your career.
Consequences of poor financial literacy are dire and often include rising personal debt, poor investment and trading choices, and vulnerability to scams like Ponzi schemes.
How to Learn Finance Online: A Beginners Guide
Getting financial education from online sources has several benefits including accessibility, affordability, and flexibility. Anyone can learn about finances online from anywhere in the world without time limits and other constraints. There are a plethora of free online courses available including channels on YouTube enabling you to get access to quality content for free. Let’s list some of the most viable options to learn about financial literacy.
For learning the basics of personal finance, there are many free resources available on both YouTube and Google search engines. Apart from personal finance, it is also possible to get important knowledge about investing and stock markets. Despite there being many resources, it is crucial to follow the learning process with discipline step-by-step:
Step 1. Assess your financial goals
This is a starting point, where you need to assess your current financial situation and determine what your end goal is. Maybe you want to plan for an emergency fund or retirement, or you want to study abroad. In any case, it is crucial to clearly write down your financial goals.
Step 2. Enroll in a financial course
Find an online course that teaches how to achieve your determined goal, and be sure to check online reviews so that you can only select reliable and well-tested courses.
Step 3. Practice with simulations and games
Practicing with simulations like demo accounts and virtual trading apps is crucial. There are many games online, and you should take advantage of this availability of free resources. Games like Monopoly allow players to learn important skills while enjoying a game-like experience.
Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash (Free for commercial use)
Image published on January 19, 2018
