I DIDN'T KNOW!!!

As humans no matter the situation we always feel as if we can fall back on one answer that will never fail us, "I DIDN'T KNOW!!!" Think about it, as a kid we could do something wrong and as one parent was about to lay into us, the other would say, "Oh they didn't know any better." I found out while working at "Walk-all-over-ya" that believe it or not, some people really don't know. Of course on this blog I am talking about them not knowing about finances. I was amazed by the number of people that did not know they needed money to open a checking account. I was amazed by the number of people who had checking accounts and DID NOT KNOW HOW THEY OPERATE! People with mortgages who did not have any idea how the interest on them worked. Customers who were ok paying on their car for the next 7 YEARS! Credit cards with 30% rates, AND THEY STILL USED THEM!

As I left the state of shock and began to ask questions I realized something, people really did not know. They did not know because they did not ask and they did not ask because they did not know. I look back to my childhood and this is a conversation that took place often:

Me: Mom I want this.

Mom: We don't have the money.

Me: Then write a check.

Mom: I wish it worked that way.

WORKED WHAT WAY??? WHAT IS THE BIG SECRET?! Now let me say this before I am kicked out of the family. I grew up in a family that both worked in the financial industry and were very conscious when it came to finances. They took every opportunity they could to teach me how money and finances worked. However, for a lot of families the operation of finances seems to be this big secret.

Here is my question to those who did not learn about finances at home. Where did you learn about them? Here is what I am discovering...

Most of our schools teach you how to discover the molecular make up of any object in the universe but THEY DO NOT TEACH YOU HOW TO BALANCE A CHECK BOOK! GET REAL!

In college unless YOU decide to take a business course, you will not be taught anything about finances.

After college you're on your own. So who is teaching a large portion of Americans how to handle their finances? It's easy, here's the answer.

The car dealer teaches us how to buy a car.

The mortgage lender and real estate agent teaches us how to purchase a home.

Visa taught us to use credit cards.

Banks taught us how to use checking accounts AFTER YOU OVERDRAFT!

DOES THIS MAKE SENSE? COME ON!

Let me let you in on a secret. BANKS DO NOT HAVE YOUR BEST INTEREST AT HEART. THEY ARE NOT NON PROFIT! I worked for one that claimed on every marketing add available that they were number one in customer service yet turned around and said AND I QUOTE "give ever credit worthy customer a credit card, car loan, mortgage, and equity line." Here's a thought Mr. Bank NOT EVERY CUSTOMER NEEDS ALL OF YOUR JUNK! There comes a time when we have to educate ourselves. We must want to learn so that we know what we are getting into. We must educate ourselves instead of relying on the wrong ones to educate us. We must do these this before we have "Too Much Month."

Thanks