A typical housewife with no knowledge of money matters, Richa transformed herself into a financially smart lady - and in just six months. Till last year, she was a 35-year old happy-go-lucky wife of Raj, a senior sales manager in an MNC, and mother of two kids Mitesh and Ria.
When they lost almost Rs.50,000 to a wrong investment, done at the recommendation of a relationship manager, Richa was jolted out of her complacency. She wondered whether understanding personal financial matters was really such a big deal. At school she could easily master trigonometry and calculus; chemical reactions, equations and formulas; Newton�s and Einstein�s laws; and all the history, geography, etc. So why couldn�t she study personal finance too?
So with lots of enthusiasm and determination she decided to crack the finance code. She vowed that her money knowledge would no longer be restricted to just spending what Raj earned, but henceforth she would also manage the money judiciously while her husband was busy with his work and travel commitments.
As a first step, therefore, Richa registered herself for an online course on the basics of personal finance. This would enable her to study from home and at her convenience. The idea behind doing this course was to first learn the ABC of finance. There are many aspects to Personal Finance such as Investments, Borrowing, Insurance, Taxation etc. Further, for each of these, there are a plethora of alternatives/options available. Therefore, Richa wanted to begin by familiarizing herself with the nitty-gritty of each of these facets.
To supplement this, she started buying one book on personal finance every month. She thought how ridiculous it was with people (including herself till a few months back) willing to spend Rs.500-1000 on pizzas and burgers every weekend but not investing Rs.300-500 in a book even once a month. Thus, with time, Richa not only enhanced her knowledge multifold, but also created a nice little library (and a more useful legacy than money) for her children.
She also decided to avail the services of an independent personal finance advisor. However, her intention was not to be spoon-fed. Rather, Richa was looking for a person who would also be her mentor and accelerate her learning process.
From time to time, she enhanced her knowledge and understanding in a few areas of her interest by attending specific workshops and seminars.
Further, she has subscribed to a personal finance magazine and a business newspaper. Richa knows that policies change, investment climate changes, products change, economic situations change, and therefore, timely action is important if one doesn�t want to get caught on the wrong foot or miss any new opportunities. In fact, these magazines and newspapers not only disseminate news, they also carry useful analyses; interviews with financial experts; product comparisons; new investment ideas; investor queries; and so on.
And of course, internet, the storehouse of unlimited knowledge, has become Richa�s friend, philosopher and guide. Internet is no longer just for entertainment, chatting, social networking and online shopping. It is also a very useful learning tool.
That apart, Richa has switched channels. No more saas-bahu dramas for her! Now she mainly watches the business channels.
Read on for more tips!
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