If you’re struggling with money, one of the best ways to improve your financial situation is through financial literacy.
Financial literacy can teach you how to have money skills.
I recently watched the Netflix documentary “Get Smart With Money,” and think it’s a great way to learn about financial literacy. This 90-minute documentary will teach you about the following:
- Debt
- Budgeting
- Investing
- Retirement
The documentary helps break down these topics by following four individuals with specific financial coaches.
The lessons from the financial coaches and the actions of the individuals help to illustrate these lessons. By learning from real-life examples, you can start to see how a simple action like tracking spending can one day impact your retirement.
Here are the 4 key takeaways from “Get Smart with Money.”
Takeaway 1: Being debt free can give you financial freedom
Having debt means that you have monthly payments. Monthly payments can take away from paying your rent or, later on, investing.
This documentary follows Ariana, who has credit card debt and student loan debt, as she learns the importance of being debt free. Ariana’s coach, Tiffany Aliche, AKA “The Budgetnista,” helps Ariana to come up with a debt repayment plan that will work for her.
Ariana pays $2,000 a month on her monthly payments. This is half of her income. Ariana struggles with overspending, so she and “The Budgetnista” come up with a plan to help her budget her monthly income and automate her payments.
Ariana is motivated to do this because she begins to understand how having an extra $2,000 a month can make a huge change in her life. She currently works overtime and doesn’t have as much time with her family. Paying off debt will allow her to be with her family.
Takeaway 2: Turn your hobby into a side hustle
Lindsey works in the food industry and works two jobs over fifty hours a week.
Lindsey is living paycheck to paycheck and is not able to work on her art. Her coach, Paula Pant, works with Lindsey on ways she can create art and make extra money.
Find ways to earn extra income, especially if you have a low income. Any extra money can be used towards savings to help pay debt or invest. While a side hustle is helpful, finding a way for it to be your hobby is an added bonus. It will bring you so much fulfillment as well!
Takeaway 3: Investing matters more than a high income
Many people believe you need a high income to be financially secure. However, after watching this documentary, you may see how having a high income isn’t the most important way to grow wealth. Financial Coach Ro$$ Mac helps Teez find the importance of investing.
Teez is a football player who earned $1.6 million at 21. While this seems like a lot of money, Teez only had $280k left.
He spent his money on the following:
- Taxes
- Buying a home for his family
- Buying a home for his mom
- Vacations
Usually, if you are able to have that much money, you want it to work for you. Teez spent his money and didn’t invest. While a home can be seen as an investment, it doesn’t work for you until after you sell the property. Investing in the stock market, especially at a young age, can allow you to build wealth.
Takeaway 4: Your spending can impact your retirement.
John and Kim are a married couple. Kim makes $300,000, and John is a stay-at-home dad. John and Kim are classified as high-earners. Kim used to make $70,000, and as their income has gone up, so has their spending. They spend money on eating out, Amazon, and more. This is a classic tale of lifestyle inflation.
John and Kim’s money coach is Mr. Money Mustache, also known as MMM. MMM retired at the age of 30 and documented the steps he took on his blog.
He is into extreme frugality. MMM shows John and Kim ways that they can be frugal while still enjoying their life. He is able to help them cut back on $3,000 a month’s worth of expenses. They can use the extra $250,000 a year towards their goal of early retirement.
Final Thoughts on “Get Smart With Money”
“Get Smart With Money” is an excellent Netflix documentary that teaches you the basics of financial literacy through coaches and individuals. Each coach is paired with an individual who has some issues with money.
These issues can resonate with many people as they revolve around basic money problems, from a lack of a budget to overspending. This documentary can show you real-world examples of why budgets and savings are important.
