Instructions: In 750 words or less, describe why financial planning is important to young adults?
Here’s a sample of an essay from a previous scholarship winner’s essay:
I wish I had a house by the beach. I want to pay for my children’s college education. I desire to be retired by my sixties. Commonplace and worthy aspirations as they are, these statements are typically made in mid-life and go unrealized because of little or non-existent financial planning earlier in life. A lack of financial planning beginning in the late teens and early 20s often causes many of these wishes, wants, and desires to be tragically supplanted by near inescapable credit card debt, crippling student loans, and monetarily bleak career choices. Financial planning goes beyond just understanding the monetary costs to fulfill these dreams, as concepts like how to budget, how much to earn, and the impact of taxes, empower those who understand them to better achieve their goals. Financial planning gives a person clarity in life by providing direction & meaning to their financial decisions. It is crucially important for the younger generation to seek out personal mentors and professional advisors that can increase their awareness and open the treasure trove of financial planning. Financial planning will provide insightful information and direction that young adults want and need to know to be financially successful. The significance of personal financial planning for young adults cannot be overstated, as they make decisions that will set a trajectory for the rest of their lives. The financial decisions young adults make may either facilitate their future financial success or make it more difficult to achieve their goals. Young adults have the advantage of time and having a clean financial slate. If financially smart choices are made from the start, people can set themselves on the path to success and avoid missteps that may cause long-term damage. The utilization of credit and debt are some of the biggest struggles; however, these are conversely useful tools if leveraged strategically. A lot of responsibility comes with using credit cards as it is a great tool for establishing credit and aid in future loan applications if properly utilized. When used improperly, it may damage credit, cost money in avoidable interest, and make it difficult to get credit in the future. Letting debt build-up is one of the largest errors that young adults make when using credit. Failure to manage debt makes it more difficult to accomplish other financial objectives. Making reasonable decisions that will help build good credit will require a financial plan and budgeting. Good debt is also an important tool that has the potential to increase net worth and enhance life in meaningful ways. Some examples include a college education and a house, neither example is an inexpensive proposition. Debt is considered to be good debt if it helps you generate income and build your net worth. Financial planning as a young adult leverages the advantage of time. Beginning to invest at a young age is incredibly beneficial as the power of compounding interest is positively correlated with time. Time is one the most powerful tools for retirement and investment accounts because it allows young adults to make manageable contributions to their portfolios that will accumulate into a large sum. When money is consistently reinvested, the return on investment can increase quickly. For many, it may seem difficult to fit retirement/investment savings into a budget, but even small regular investments can add up over time. A quote from Albert Einstein brilliantly sums up the importance, “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it; he who doesn’t, pays it.” Young adults who decide to invest early on, even if it’s just a small monthly contribution, allow for compound interest to have increased earnings across their life span. Contributing early and frequently will allow compounding interest to have a significant impact on an investment portfolio’s overall performance. In summary, financial planning for young adults is vitally important as the financial decisions they make will have a measurable impact on their capacity to support themselves in the future. A well-constructed and thoughtfully explained financial plan can inspire people to responsibly manage their finances and avoid potential mistakes that can take years to recover from. Learning to manage finances early is an important part of the more general maturation process and will set young adults on a path to a healthy financial future. Though not easily perfected, financial planning early in life will decrease worries and aid in achieving long-term goals.
