How to increase your financial knowledge

There are so many big first purchases and financial considerations to contemplate when you head out into the world – from your first car to your first overseas holiday, savings and investment options, even your first home.

When you’ve never done these things before, it can be hard to know where to start. The good news is that free financial advice is available, and you can tap into it to educate yourself, make more confident decisions and take ownership of your money, your way.

Here’s four great and free ways for sharpening your financial knowledge.

Financial blogs and websites

Managing money is a hot topic right now, especially with the growth of a movement called FIRE, or Financial Independence Retire Early.

This means there is an abundance of free blogs, websites, podcasts and social pages out there filled with information and tips on how to get ahead of the game financially.

Here’s a few to get you started:

• My Millennial Money – Hear interviews with different finance experts on the podcast and join the online community to talk to others.
• Cashed Up Money Challenge – This six-week budgeting challenge is presented by news.com.au and aims to help kick start your financial goals.
• She’s On The Money – Aimed at women, this blog has paid and free resources, including a free e-newsletter with useful financial info.
• Money Smart – Information here is independent and offers great fundamentals on how to approach everything, from reducing debt to investing.

Superfunds

If you have ever had a job, you will be a member of a superannuation (super) fund.

Most super funds offer their members free financial advice and tips via their websites and apps. They also offer great tools to help with daily budgeting, such as financial budgeting and insurance calculators, that can help you understand the power of your money.

A great example of this is Rest Super Fund’s ‘Small Change, Big Savings Calculator’, which shows how investing as little as the amount you would spend on one daily coffee would add up to an extra $56,000 in your super fund by retirement.

Your bank or financial institution

Another great resource is your bank’s blog or article section of their website, like our Power of &nd blog. Our posts provide members with advice on a variety of finance-related topics, from budgeting tips to home loan information and even articles about our digital banking solutions.

Family and friends

Lastly, why not try tapping into the financial life experience of your family and friends?

Here are some useful topics to speak to a friend or family member about and learn more from their financial experiences:

• Budgeting and saving tips.
• The steps they took to buy their first property.
• Recommendations for personal finance books.
• The biggest financial mistake/s they’ve made, or wish they’d done differently.

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