Your Financial Health

From Financial Literacy 101

If you’ve ever tried to get in shape, you know that there’s no magic formula for exercising and eating right. You need the discipline to put your knowledge to work in the real world – even when it would be so easy to grab a super-sized burger and skip that trip to the gym. Becoming a financially healthy student is not so different – there are just a few things to know, but finding the motivation to make informed decisions every day can be the greatest challenge. Luckily, you can often start to see benefits of effective financial management right away – in the form of extra cash.

A financially healthy student works to minimize educational debt while successfully pursuing their career goals in college. They get the best deals on their loans, make informed decisions about whether or not to work while in school, and understand the tradeoffs between spending now and repaying later.

How does one become a financially healthy student? Financially healthy students share most of the following traits:

  • They are organized. Most of us think we are pretty good at keeping track of our money, even without creating a spending plan. The only problem is that we are… often wrong. If you’ve ever been surprised by your checking account balance or credit card bill, you know what we mean.
  • To avoid wasteful spending, financially healthy students track their income, monthly bills, and daily expenses. Being organized doesn’t take much time, and it will help to ensure that you are spending money on what matters the most to you.
  • Next, financially healthy students are informed. They understand any fees associated with their bank or credit union accounts, and they know how much these fees add up to each month. They check their credit report at least once per year to spot errors and to check for the warning signs of identity theft. They also know the interest rates on all of their debt, and understand what could possibly cause those rates to change. By being informed, financially healthy students can create a plan for minimizing the most expensive debt while in school – possibly saving thousands of dollars over the life of their loans.
  • Finally, financially healthy students think about the future. They may not have all the answers, but they have a good idea about where they would like to be – financially – after graduation. They have thought about their career and what their financial situation may be like as far as five years into their career. These are the big questions that too few students consider when making decisions about college, careers, and debt levels. 

If your student wants more information on their financial health, encourage them to go to financialliteracy101.org and log in using access code GRIFFMONEY.