This Is the Year I Put My Financial Life in Order
12th April 2018
Cheery Friday Greetings to our Learning How to Learners!
Book of the Week
This week, we read This Is the Year I Put My Financial Life in Order, by New York Times reporter John Schwartz. This is an important book—before she passed away, Barb’s aunt Renie could have told you why.
Renie was a smart, independent career woman. When she retired, to her surprise, found herself unable to afford to live independently. The reason? Although Renie had learned many things over her life, she’d never bothered to learn about personal finances. As it turns out, putting away a little each month beginning relatively early in your career can make enormous improvements in your life, and the lives of your family members, as you grow older.
John Schwartz tells you how to get your financial life in order, no matter what your age. This is the Year is not some dry accounting discussion—instead, the book builds from a candid and entertaining description of Schwartz’s own occasional financial successes and many failures, including his brush with bankruptcy and disastrous housing “investment.” Schwartz describes the what type of account to set up for retirement, how much to put away (it’s not much, especially if you start early), and how to think about your income, taxes, debt, investments, insurance, and home purchasing. If you want to do the best you can long term for yourself and those you love, you owe it to yourself to read this excellent book. (Also nice on audio.)
The Conference “Career Goldmine”
Here’s an article from Barb in the Open SUNY Online Teaching Blog on how conferences have made enormous improvements in her career—and how they can change your life, too!
Insight into Raising a Bright, Quirky, and Sometimes Challenging Child April 25-30
Are you raising a bright and quirky child? Looking for support in helping your child thrive, even with focus, learning, social, emotional or behavioral challenges? Wanting to find a community of experts who ‘get’ a twice exceptional child who is both bright and struggling?
Join Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Debbie Steinberg Kuntz for a free (each day) series: The Bright & Quirky Child Online Summit. Speakers include Ned Hallowell, Temple Grandin, and our very own Barb Oakley, along with many more psychologists, authors, and experts.
You’ll learn tools and strategies to:
- Manage anger and intensity
- Calm anxiety and perfectionism
- Navigate school and learning challenges
- Increase motivation and executive function
- Find balance with screens and video games
- Solve problems without power battles
- Develop talents, passions and interests
- Enhance social interactions
Note that between April 25-30, 2018, content for each day of the summit will be free for 24 hours. Click here to sign up!
How to Memorize Large Numbers
The indefatigable 4-time US Memory Champion Nelson Dellis is back with another entertaining and informative random memory tips video—this one is on on how to create a 2-digit number system for memorizing large numbers. Enjoy!
How to Make the Most of Class Central
This insightful article from Pat Bowden of Online Learning Success gives you insight about the best MOOC-related search engine and review site: Class Central.
Specialization of the Week
And in conjunction with Schwartz’s book, we’d like to bring up Arshad Ahmad’s specialization Finance for Everyone, through McMaster University-Coursera. This specialization goes into the language of finance and helps you better understand the flow of money. You’ll examine the connections between global and local finance; the flow of assets through businesses, governments, and other institutions; and the commodity, bond, and equity market dynamics that create and destroy financial value. This specialization helps you to better understand both global financial news and your own personal financial decisions.
That’s all for this week. Have a happy week in Learning How to Learn!
Barb, Terry, and the entire Learning How to Learn team
Get the course recommended text, A Mind for Numbers!
NEW! Learning How to Learn: How to Succeed in School Without Spending All Your Time Studying; A Guide for Kids and Teens. Great ideas for parents, too!
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