I began my journey into Retail Banking more than 25 years ago when I entered the Management Training Program of a Community Bank in Chicago. I was excited about the prospect of learning about banking and one day becoming a Branch Manager. 18 months later I became an Assistant Branch Manager and about 18 months after that I became a Branch Manager. A few years later I began to notice something that I had not expected. I witnessed the same thing over and over again. So many people did not know how to manage their money. They were amassing NSF fees because they were spending without managing their checking accounts. They were applying for loans and credit cards and being declined because they did know how to manage credit. They were also not able to open checking accounts because they mismanaged checking accounts and still owed balances on accounts they had previously opened and had been closed. They had never been taught how to manage their money. Unfortunately, but sometimes intentionally, they were being taken advantage of by the financial services industry instead of taking advantage of the financial services industry and the products and services that it offers. While continuing to work in banking, I decided to begin to empower individuals and families by educating them on finances and how to manage their money. I no longer work in banking, but I continue to educate and to empower. This has become my purpose and my mission. I truly believe that learning how to manage your money can change your life. This is just the beginning.
All of us manage money but many of us would like to know how to manage it better. We want to learn how to have control over our money instead of our money having control over us. We have several questions about what we need to do to turn our money life around. A lot of us think the answer to our money problems is more money. I want to propose that the answer for many of us is not more money.
The answer is learning how to manage the money we already have.
This is easier said than done. Mainly because many of us do not know how to manage the money we have because we have never been taught how to do so. Fortunately, many students in middle school and high school now have the benefit of taking courses in school related to Personal Finance and Money Management. Still, many of us (including me) were never taught about money management from our parents, in high school, or college. Many people have advanced degrees but were never taught how to manage their money. They received educations, learned crafts and skills, but never learned the very necessary skills of managing their money and as a result are failing this very important subject.
I have put together some information in this book to give you an introduction that will hopefully help you to gain a basic understanding of personal finance and lead to you being more successful on your financial journey. There is enough information here to make a major impact in your financial life.
The first thing we need to do is to change the way we think. This is definitely easier said than done but needs to be done. The quote below is one of my favorites, and I use it often in financial seminars.
“Change is hard because people overestimate the value of what they have and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up.” James Belasco and Ralph Stayer – Flight of the Buffalo People know they need to spend less and save more to reach their financial goals, but they overestimate the value of their current lifestyle even though they know they want a change in their financial situation. They underestimate the value of what they may gain by spending less and saving more so they continue their current lifestyle (and behaviors) and there is no change.