As a kid, her parents gave her $2 each week for allowance, stipulating that she could spend $1 and put the other into a savings account. Learning the value of a dollar from such a young age meant that this 20-something, who blogs by the name Money Rabbit (MR), was on the right track financially when she started university.
Even though
she knew enough about saving and how to budget for her expenses, which
undoubtedly put her further ahead of many of her peers, MR still got swept up
by the excitement of being on her own and being in complete control of where
her money was going and went into debt her second year of university.
But, unlike some of the other people her age who go into the red and then take their debt further, MR said she was not about to shrug her shoulders and continue on the way she was headed. That, in just her second year of university, was the turning point for MR, that moment where she decided she wanted to become savvier in personal finance and frugal living.
“…when I got into debt in my second year of university I felt sick to my stomach, so I made a promise to learn everything that I could about money to begin laying the foundation for wealth and freedom later in my life,” she explained. “I was never afraid to ask for advice from people who I respected and who I could see understood the principles of money - my grandfather retired at age 55, and so he was the first person I asked about investing in the stock market.”
Since that financial epiphany, MR has been doing all that she can to better educate herself about saving and investing to meet her ultimate goal, financial freedom. Having recognized that people her age could use a resource or outlet that could help them become more responsible money managers, she created a personal finance blog, Money Rabbit.
Money Rabbit has a lot to offer anyone who is starting out in their career or living on their own for the first time, just starting to think about saving for retirement, or even how to balance a social life and travel and still stick to a budget. From DIY, at-home workouts and building your net worth, to putting money into RRSP’s and decorating on a budget, MR blogs about finding balance through frugal living and fiscal prudence, while still living the life and doing the things that matter most to 20-somethings.
MR said she doesn’t agree with the stereotype that most people in their 20’s have little interest in being financially responsible. In fact, she said she thinks that most 20-somethings want to be better money managers but they have yet to learn how.
“I do think 20-somethings need to learn about good money management, and I also think that the majority of them are hungry to have a better grasp on their finances,” she said. “I've noticed lately that a lot of people seem to have given up on my generation, calling Generation Y a self-entitled group who only want instant gratification. Sure, maybe there are some bad examples of that, but I also know a ton of 20-somethings who work hard, and are striving for higher self development.”
She’s optimistic that, given the chance and the right information, people her age will nip their bad habits in the bud. That’s why a personal finance blog, like Money Rabbit, makes perfect sense as a tool for teaching her tech-savvy generation about money.
“Blogs are great because they're accessible and you can find the finance writer who speaks most to you and your life,” MR said. “They're also great because it opens the door for learning, and connects you to a broader world of finance, and so if I am able in any way to help direct people towards a brighter financial future simply because my blog shows up in a Google search, then I'm happy.”
While MR has some friends who live modestly but are, in fact, self-made millionaires who started online businesses or own rental properties, she said she hopes her site will appeal to people, like some of her other friends, who have yet to fully understand that debt freedom is in and of itself a reward that is far greater than that which can come from any material object.
“It's the ostrich-head-in-the-sand syndrome, basically the equivalent of putting your fingers in your ears and going ‘la la la’ and hoping it'll go away,” MR explained. “And it's these people who tend to get mad at me when I say, ‘I'm sorry, I can't afford to do (insert activity) at this time.’ Strangely, it's the friends who are financially stable who understand completely when I bow out due to financial constraints.”
MR was lucky enough to have been raised by parents who realized that educating their daughter about saving and investing was a very important part of their role as parents. Starting them off on the right financial foot is one of the best things you can do for your children, without a doubt. That’s why it’s sad that those kids, who grew up in households where the only money talk that went on consisted of their parents whispering about credit card debt, can’t even rely on their schools to teach them about money.
This is something that, MR said, could be easily implemented and added into regular school curriculum; learning how to file taxes in the schools’ computer labs or about investing in the stock market, how to identify and set financial goals, or reading books like the Wealthy Barber would put young people leaps and bounds ahead of where the majority measure up in terms of money skills today. But, as MR explained, maybe there’s a reason money talk has been left out of school curriculum:
“If we put just a little bit of effort into instructing the next generation at a young age, we wouldn't be experiencing the kinds of credit crunches that we've been experiencing, due to greedy financial institutions and even greedier consumers,” MR said. “However, I believe that to a certain degree, the government doesn't mind cultivating financial ignorance, since that means fewer people understand and question financial decisions made in Parliament and at Queen's Park. However, that's just my opinion...maybe things have changed since I was in school, but I didn't learn a damn thing in the classroom, it was all on my own time.”
While the education system lags behind and fails to give young people the tools and resources they need to make smarter and more responsible contributions to society, MR said at least others are working to bring money talk out into the open.
She credits the huge number of personal finance and frugal living blogs for providing a space where people can offer advice and information or ask money-related questions. Apart from individuals, the Toronto Star’s site, Moneyville.ca, and the ING coffee shop where people talk to financial advisors about money, without obligation, over a cup of coffee, are helping to shake off the long-held notion that money is a topic best kept quiet.
It’s true, the efforts of individuals and businesses to change the way we, as a society, think about and talk about money has great promise and couldn’t have come at a better time, especially when you consider many of the world’s economies’ current juncture.
It’s going to have to be a collective effort if we want to see real, positive change, and I can’t help but think that young people, like MR, who talk about updating their net worth and monthly budgets with such enthusiasm and pride, that they hold the key to a brighter financial future.
“I LOVE updating my net worth on the first of every month. Even if my worth only goes up by $100, it still means I'm making progress,” she said. “There's also the satisfaction of feeling completely in control. When I stick to my budget that means I've managed to beat back my temptations and emerge as a more financial stable and independent person. That is what allows me to sleep at night.”
Going forward, MR dreams big about what she can achieve with her frugal living lifestyle, a persevering attitude and continuing to educate herself about the best financial practices.
“…my hope is that I'll reach a point in my early to late thirties where working is an option, not a necessity,” MR said. “I have many things I want to do in my life, many goals I want to accomplish (writing a novel, traveling the world, buying a property) that I need a strong financial foundation in order to achieve. I set a goal on my blog that I want to be a millionaire by the age of 30; so far, it's slow progress, but I refuse to give up on that simply because time is ticking on. You know what they say, shoot for the stars and, if you don't make it, well, you may wind up on the moon instead.”
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