When I grew up it was a big no-no to talk about money. So of course I never asked about it, and never dared to look up how to deal with money. As a migrant to a foreign country without any family around I spent most of my 20’s feeling absolutely panicked that I wouldn’t have enough to pay rent or eat. Potentially buying a house to have a safe place to live felt so far away it was basically unattainable.

I did not get the opportunity to sit down and reassess these feelings until I was 30. I came across some random subreddit where people were talking about the FIRE movement. In short, this movement is where you hustle hard to become financially independent and then retire earlier than retirement age. After initially being a bit annoyed about other people discussing money (how dare they deal with money in a healthy way!) I realised that I wanted to be one of these people because they seemed confident and not quite as lost and panicked as I was feeling.

I dove into a rabbit hole for a few days only to feel even more panicked than before: there were literally so many things one can do when it comes to financial assets (wow, fancy). It was overwhelming seeing so many people do so many different things: Stocks, Bitcoin, Living in a car and showering at the gym. I also wanted to do these things! But do I even have money to put into stocks? SHOULD I be having enough money to put into stocks? I didn’t even know that!

After a little more panic, and mainly probably because my brain combusted trying to organise all my thoughts, I decided to KISS - Keep it simple, stupid! Of course, the best way to start learning about money is by having a look at your own money: seeing where it comes from and seeing where it goes. When I did that a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders because I felt like I was in control.

Long story short, if you feel like I felt then, don’t worry, things will be alright! If you are ready to get started then let’s start with simply tracking where the money goes. In the link above you can find a spreadsheet with a simple overview viz and a monthly tracker. Nothing fancy, nothing complicated, just a humble spreadsheet to check what dollars you have and what you spend them on every month. Get comfortable with this, try to add to it every month, if you forget a month it’s no problem, just go back and add it in later. Bank records are your friend.

My 2 unsolicited pieces of advice:

1. Building financial literacy is a journey, it is important to start small and build your way up at your own pace.

2. The best time to start learning about money is yesterday, the second best time is today.

Now go get ‘em, tiger!

PS: I have some articles in the work that follow on from this one, bare with me please :D

A little more about where I am at in my financial literacy journey (and the spreadsheet)

As mentioned above, I only sat down and started learning about financial literacy when I was about 30. I originally created just a simple spreadsheet to keep track of our finances (like the one uploaded here). Over time it has gone through many iterations (and will likely go through quite a few more). It eventually paved the way for my partner and I to have a conversation about our financial goals. I built investment calculators that we then experimented with, and eventually settled on a financial path that will help us reach these goals.

The current version of the sheet (not what I uploaded here) includes an overview, monthly tracking, monthly averages, investment trackers and a FIRE, mortgage and deposit calculator. It also includes a record of all of the investment decisions we locked in, i.e. how much we should put away each month and what goals we have in 5/10/15 years. Also, these goals are not set in stone, they are just a guideline and can be reassessed as we develop as people. It’s totally okay for goals to change!

I love looking at the overview sheet now because seeing everything in one place gives me a reassurance that we are on the right track, even if one month didn’t quite go as planned or we had unexpected expenses.

A note to you

I built this spreadsheet when I was 30, and over nearly 1.5 years. I only added new features when I felt ready for the knowledge and conversation that comes with it. Of course I don’t know everything but I feel much more confident in my financial literacy now than I felt 1.5 years ago. I am so glad I ripped the band-aid off when I did.

If you are hesitating: please don’t be afraid, just KISS. You’re depriving yourself not only of knowledge, but also the feeling of empowerment and independence that comes from knowing you’re taking care of yourself and trying your best.