Beyond Budgets: What Financial Literacy Really Means...

My introduction into the world of money could be said to be when I was in SS1. it's not that it was the first time I ever got in contact with money, nah, that's not th case but it was the first time I was ever exposed to the teachings of money. My parents never brought it up at all, so I never got to have any teaching from my parents initially about money but I didn't know they were also indirectly teaching me until I was taught in school.

Everything I nug literally came from my parents giving me the money for it... So I always thought that ocean will never dry unknown to me that there will be a time when it will be on you to decide when to open that ocean and when to close it.

It was introduction to economics that opened my eye... Terms like the scale of preferences and opportunity costs made me understand that finances have rules to follow and when you eventually don't follow them, it becomes tough for you to deal with.

Financial literacy isn't just about knowing how to save money or draft wonderful budgets, I think it goes beyond that to encompass understanding the flow of money, the way to maintain it, the way to keep it growing and also understand the way it can quietly slip away if you mismanage them.

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Bearing this in mind, I can say my financial literacy started my early teens when I would earn little money from helping some of our neighbours fetch water and do other menial jobs and they will thank me with little money which I saved.
But do you know the funny thing? One day when the money will be big a bit, one thought will just fly into my mind.. what if you die today and all these your money will be dashed to someone else?
Childishly, I will take all the monies I've saved and eat it, feeling happy I was the one that ate the money I laboured for, lol. So for me then, all that mattered was that money came and money should go.

Some experience might be terrible but indeed they expose to the realities of life... In my mate teens, I saw myself struggling to get myself what my mates could afford because I already ate all my savings, this was the first time I saw myself having the need to have money at all times if not for anything for the avoidance of pressure that comes from failing to have a way to solve your financial needs. Budgeting, Saving, Investing, and having Emergency funds became a top priority to me.
Sometimes I wonder how wonderful it would have been if I learnt it earlier

In my opinion, I think financial literacy should begin earlier in life, just when you've entered your early teens even before you start earning little tokens because I believe that when you have the knowledge, it's yours forever and when you start earning, the application of the knowledge starts, hence, I think from 13years is not a bad age to start this because at this age, the child already knows the worth of money from the various gifts he or she probably receives from relatives.

However, financial literacy isn't a one-time lesson, it should keep evolving as we grow to the extent that by 17 year old, the child should be knowledgeable of credit and balance book, insurances and know how to make simple budgets. The knowledge of all these doesn't mean financial problems will be entirely avoided but it limits the reckless financial problems we create for ourselves because of lack of knowledge.

Thanks for reading and have a nice day ahead 👍

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