Personal Finance Education

The National Financial Educators Council provides personal financial education tools, training and resources to organizations and individuals internationally. The NFEC is focused on helping people improve their financial capabilities to live a richer, healthier and more rewarding life.

The National Financial Educators Council offers personal financial education services that range from smaller products and events to comprehensive financial literacy campaigns. The NFEC offers “Life Stages” financial education material that serves people of all ages – age 3 through senior personal finance training.

The NFEC personal financial education page has several articles listed below as well as information on services that can help you reach your financial goals. If you have questions at anytime, feel free to contact us and one of our solution experts will be in touch.

• Non-profit and Government Organizations

• Schools (K-12), Colleges and Universities

• Financial Professionals and Advocates

• Parents and Individuals

• Employers and Corporations

• Complimentary Resources

Financial Education Products - NFEC Certified products (all ages).

Financial Literacy Programs - Home-study courses, live training and more.

Financial Coaching Personal coaching from our Certified Financial Coaching Professional.

Workshops and Events - Bring an even to your community.

Financial Education Services  Funding, grants, speakers and consultants.

Were you taught about money at school?  I wasn’t.  In fact, still to this day core curriculum requirements through college do not include personal financial education courses.  The news highlights the results of this each night – many people are uncertain about their future.

Achieving financial security is what many people aspire to.  Not having to worry about paying bills, getting out of debt or stress out that you may not have enough for retirement are issues most people wish they never had to be concerned with.  Unfortunately, this is reality for the vast majority of people in this country and the world. 

So since we weren’t taught about money where do we start? This article will cover money management topics that will directly impact your future. The good news is that the subject of money is easier than most courses you’ve taken in high school and can have a lasting impact.

1. Determine your goals.  It’s a scary process sometimes but ask yourself – what do you really want to do and how much money you need to do that. 
2. Set up a practical budget.  Now that you know how much you need to live that ‘dream lifestyle’ figure that into your budget.  Use one of many online budget calculators to get it down in writing!  Don’t forget those annual expenses like car registration, gym memberships and other yearly expenses.  Divide those annual expenses by 12 and save that each month so you have cash ready when the bills are due.
3.  Set up your emergency fund.  Have at least six (6) months of your bills set aside – a tall order, but you can do it.
4. Pay off bad debt. Get those credit cards and other high rate revolving debt paid off.  For those in credit card debt, pay the maximum amount on the credit card with the highest interest rate and the minimum on the cards with the lowest. 
5. Check your credit.  Find out where you stand with your credit rating.  Having good credit is an asset and a topic addressed with most personal financial education workshops.
6. Save!   Start saving your money ASAP.  Get in the habit by automating your savings plan.  Set up an automatic transfer between your checking and savings each month so you know what you have left in your checking is money you can spend.
7. Start a business.  In today’s age, you cannot rely on your employer as your only source of income.  Start a business doing something you love.  Just 30 minutes a day and over time that can mean an extra paycheck or your only paycheck. 
8. Pick up investing skills.  No longer can you count on the stock market, real estate market or other ‘traditional investments’.  Today you need to learn methods to protect your downside risk while being able to beet inflation with your returns.
9. Work your plan.  Once you take those first few action steps, you have everything working in your favor so keep up the momentum.  Be patient, roll with the punches and keep focusing on your goal.
10. Share this information.  Talk about money and business.  We need to as a society; it’s a form of peer-to-peer personal financial education training.

Knowledge will free you.  Just 30 minutes a day of study in this area can shave off 5, 10, 20 years of work.  We hope these personal financial education tips have helped and wish you wellness.

Personal Financial Education

Most of us never received a personal financial education and (coincidently) most of us have experience financial struggles in our lives. Those times of ‘scrapping by’ are not fun, but often during this time we begin to finally learn about money.

The National Financial Educators Council survey recently showed that most people start to learn about personal financial education topics when they are near the bottom of their current financial situation, or as they finally gain positive momentum.  Anytime is a good time to learn but with the subject of money sometimes there are emotions that distract us and skew our thinking.

It has been noted that during ‘tight money situations’ many people freeze up instead of taking the action steps that they know are correct.  Working with people in foreclosure and bankruptcy situations, it has been observed that many people have ways out but choose to do nothing because they are not 100% confident in their decisions.  This all goes back to lacking the confidence that a personal financial education can bring.

Education is great but it is what that education gives us that is most important.  It gives us the ability to trust our instinct, finds the best solutions that meets our goals and take action on those steps.  Few things involving money always go perfectly, but with newfound confidence people are able to make the appropriate adjustments to their plan along the way. 

How did we get here?

Most adults received their personal financial education from the school of hard knocks – they suffered financial setbacks and learned expensive lessons along the way.  Teaching our future generations about money will give them an advantage that could last a lifetime.

Why do so many college students get deep in debt, max out their credit cards and miss payments regularly?   It comes down to the fact that they never received a personal financial education.  They never had the opportunity to learn in a safe environment like their home or school; consequently, they often mess up their first few financial decisions.  These little mistakes early on sometimes spiral into bigger problems later.

Just by providing high school students a personal financial education class, workshop or seminar before they gradate could dramatically improve college graduation rates and get students off on a positive start. Like drugs, prevention is the key.  If students don’t get into debt, than they don't have to worry about getting out of debt.  In reality, overspending is a ‘drug’ to some.  For many of us, it gives us a rush as we buy something and when we show it off to our friends.  So helping students understand the emotion behind the purchase and helping them curb those feelings with a built of logic, can help them keep more of their hard earned money.  

Where do I go from here?

You have taken the first step by researching different education solutions.  Choose the training you think will help you most effectively get the personal financial education that can improve your live and the life of your loved ones.  In person classes, internet courses, seminars, videos – today we have so many ways to learn just pick the method you are most comfortable with. 
The NFEC is here to support your efforts.  Feel free to contact us and a representative will get back with you.