Million Dollar Baby Financial 2.26

Love this write up from Gail Von Oxlade from Til Debt Do Us Part:

"There’s been a lot of yadda yadda yadda about financial literacy, but it’s not what most people think it is. It doesn’t matter how much you know, if you aren’t using what you know, you aren’t financially literate. Some of it’s not particularly exciting. And some of it is a royal pain in the arse. But if you don’t do the detail, you can’t whine when you feel like you’re standing on shifting sand.

At any point the ground beneath your feet can begin to shake. Lose some hours at work, shake. Lose your job, major shake. Get sick for a week, a month, a year, shake, Shake, SHAKE!

If you don’t have a plan that includes money set aside for the future, how do you deal with the crap that life throws at you?

No budget means you have no idea where to trim back. No emergency fund means you have no options. No retirement plan means that not only are you going to be old, you’re also going to be poor. I don’t know what would suck more than that.

But Gail, you say, I just can’t seem to save a cent?

Sound familiar? Well take a look at yourself in a fresh light. If you can’t save because you’re living on a very low income, you’re right, you don’t have any money to save. You’re going to have to develop some strategies to cope with not having money to spare. And you’ll be counting on CPP and OAS to see you through retirement.

But if the reality is that you’re making excuses — if you drink coffee in the morning, buy cigarettes, or have cable — you’re choosing not to save. It’s not a lack of money. There are about 7,496 ways you can spend money rather than saving. All the financial knowledge in the world isn’t going to change your behaviour unless you stop making excuses."