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FCSfit Wellness Wednesday: #FinHealth Matters Day, College Edition

By Sophy Mott posted 04-25-2018 12:00 AM

  

Today is officially designated Financial Health Matters Day. As we like to share content from our members whenever possible on Wellness Wednesday, today the stars really aligned!

Lorna Saboe-Wounded Head, CPFFE, CFCS, Family Resource Management Field Specialist at South Dakota State University (and the leader of the AAFCS Community of Family Economics and Resource Management (FERM)), penned this post which will undoubtedly resonate with many of you. We've only excerpted from it below, so encourage you to read the full post on her blog. You can also connect with her in person at AAFCS AC2018 in June!

From The Financially Independent Life

". . . I also remember getting my first credit card. I went to college long before the Credit CARD Act of 2009 went into effect so credit card companies were able to solicit on college campuses. Getting that credit card made me feel equal to my friends who had money. With the card, I could go shopping and actually buy stuff instead of looking longingly at an item, wishing I could buy it. In a way, it helped me to feel like I fit in with my peers. That first credit card started a long tenure with credit card debt because it took me a while to figure out how to use a credit card as a positive financial tool.

When I was in college, I needed two things, an emergency fund and a healthier understanding of my relationship with money. The emergency fund would have helped me out when I needed to buy new glasses during finals week and numerous other situations that occurred. It would have given me the ability to feel like I had control of my financial decisions instead of feeling as though I had no choice. 

As I reflect on the feeling of freedom I experienced when I got my first credit card, I now realize how unhealthy I was financially. Feeling deprived of something and then finally getting access to it causes people to over-indulge. I felt like my lack of money was controlling me instead of thinking that I had control over the little bit of money I did have.

Now I work with college students to help them become financially healthy. My focus is to help them learn how to budget and track spending, the value of an emergency fund, and to keep student loan borrowing in check.

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