I hate the word frugal

The word frugal always seemed to me to be another way to say CHEAP but with a touch of nostalgia, something Jack Benny would say. I would prefer to phase it as “money wise”. Wisdom with money is something everyone should learn. Many parents of today’s youth are not educated enough to teach their children wisdom with money. After all it is today’s mid age parents that are drowning in debt and some are over their heads with their own mortgages. In general people under the age of 45 did not receive any advice or training from their parents when it came to money management. The people in the next age group from 45-55 probably only got the following advise from their parents “put your money away for a rainy day”.

When I was growing up my parents emphasized saving and living on a very tight, extremely “frugal” budget. The only problem with that type of teaching is that they did not teach me to spend wisely or how to invest. My father did not believe in loans or credit of any type so needless to say he never owned a home, my parents were forever renters. Their type of investing was limited to money market CD’s and they would complain about paying taxes on the interest earned. I only wish they had known how to manage their money better so they could have taught me at a younger age. All what I learned and still learning is by trial and error when it comes to money management.

After seeing and indeed going through hell at times with money worries I would love to see schools at the elementary and above level require courses in money management. I would not like them taught by school teachers but by financial advisor experts and accounts. Without adequate training our youth of today will have great education but not know how to manage their earnings correctly when they have a nice paycheck. The current emphasis on today’s youth is to get an good education but it seems to end there. No mention of after you get that first job with your college education what to do with your money next. Is it best to pay back your education loan first, or start to invest your money while slowly paying back your loan? Only those people that know interest rates, credit scores, tax laws and your lifestyle can help you answer questions like that - not your parents unless they are expert financial consultants.

Help yourself like I am doing and get all the education you can about money and it’s management.