100% Money Madness

In the U.S., many States have adopted policies promoting financial education in primary and secondary schools.

Yesterday, I read a piece by a “financial literacy expert,” applauding how a financial literacy curriculum in New Zealand could be improved.

I can see the writers meeting at a coffee shop in Auckland. The triumvirate nods their heads in unison, acknowledging that “the man” is a good and wise man.

Express skepticism about government-controlled financial literacy.

Fortunately, these are only opinions of forthcoming financial literacy content in a New Zealand curriculum offering for younger children. Three educational academics express how much better a financial life would be if you ceded control and guidance to a central authority. Mind abuse at the hands of the all-knowing puppeteer.

What would the parent of a school-age child say to the teacher who parrots how a government makes the best decisions for the financial well-being of its citizens? A lot. They would be told, “Sit down and shut up.” I am all for them to have a platform to express their views, but their views are not about financial literacy.

Moderate Income Households Need Guidance

In the U.S., the market lacks baseline financial planning for moderate-income households. Advisors who chase “assets under management” to earn their fees don’t see lower and middle-income individuals as low-hanging fruit. They know their time is better spent elsewhere. This leaves a void in the market, one unresolved by mandating that everybody should be financially literate. Knowing where to locate trusted answers is key. Money questions pop-up; they are not continuous.

My argument is financial awareness can be better built around the structure of tax filing.

Tax filing services offer an annual economics-based financial plan as a premium addition to filing services.

Two things you can do today to improve your financial literacy

1. Direct message me. It is one of the benefits of being a paid subscriber.

2. When you have a money question, run it through Chat GPT or Perplexity. Put stock in the citations of the work that generated the response to assure the source is credible.