Things You Will Learn This Week

Protection from financial hardships
Avoiding and eliminating debt
Saving and investing for the future
Addition and subtraction with fractions
How to integrate quotations into your writing

Things You Need to Know This Week

You will use your expense tracking data in next week’s application activity, so keep tracking this week.
In your gathering this week, you will discuss needs versus wants, so be sure to review this week’s Gathering Agenda before your gathering.

Avoiding Debt and Investing in the Future

To review, last week you learned about the positive impact the following two skills can have on your financial stewardship:

Becoming unified in your approach to finances
Understanding the importance of tithes and offerings

You also learned about the importance of holding regular financial family councils. Likewise, you learned about the benefits of taking the time to “counsel with the Lord in all [your] doings” so he can “direct [your] path” of financial stewardship. Lastly, you set goals in these areas to work on now and hopefully the future.

This week, you have another exciting lesson ahead of you as you will explore and learn to apply two new skills:

Protecting yourself from financial hardship by eliminating and avoiding debt
Saving and investing in the future

One of the main challenges of implementing these two essential skills is that they often require change. Financial habits that you have developed over the years may need to be modified in order to achieve the level of responsible and inspired financial stewardship you are seeking. Change is hard, especially in the area of finances. Such change seems to come not only as a result of your own willpower and desire to change, but also through the enabling power of the Savior and His Atonement.

In preparation for this week’s lesson, please watch Elder Christofferson’s video below and consider/answer the following questions related to “Change”:

(02:59 mins, Daily Bread: Change Transcript)

Ponder & Record

As you watch the video above, please review and write down your thoughts and answers to the following questions in your Learning Journal:

Why is Jesus Christ referred to as the “Bread of Life”?
How does His Atonement enable us to change and become different people?
How could this enabling power of the Atonement enable you to make and meet financial goals?

Skill #3: Learn to Protect Yourself from Financial Hardship by Avoiding and Eliminating Debt

Pharaoh talking to the people about storing up grain.

In the Old Testament, we learn that Joseph warned Pharaoh of the seven years of plenty that would happen before the seven years of famine. Pharaoh could have ignored Joseph’s warning, but instead chose to take his advice by storing up as much grain as possible. He and his people would then have a storage of wheat during the years of famine. This simple step of slowly building up a supply of wheat literally saved his entire kingdom.

Like this example, your financial stewardship imposes upon you the responsibility to take certain steps during years of plenty to protect you and your family from financial hardship when it comes your way.

As in the time of Joseph, modern-day prophets have warned of the unpredictability of our future. As President Thomas S. Monson has stated, “We live in turbulent times. Often the future is unknown; therefore, it behooves us to prepare for uncertainties” (If Ye Are Prepared, Ye Shall Not Fear, Oct. 2004).

Whether you are in a time of plenty, a time of hardship, or somewhere in between, the principles discussed in this lesson will help you get started or continue on a path of strong and inspired financial stewardship.

Disclaimer: The savings and investment content in this lesson is intended to be an introduction only, and not a replacement for professional financial advice specific to your circumstances. Examples are given for explanatory purposes only and are not to be interpreted as tax, legal, or investment advice.

Protect Your Family from Hardship

As the image below illustrates, once your foundation of faith in Jesus Christ and a unity with your spouse or other financial family council members is established (assuming your tithes and offerings are paid in full as well), your next step should be to think of ways to protect your family from financial hardship.

Financial Stewardship Success Map: 1. Pay tithes and offerings. 2. Protect your family from hardship. 3. Eliminate debt. 4. Save and invest for the future. 5. Continue to give and bless others.

There are many ways you can do this, but we will focus on two in particular.

Avoid Debt
Eliminate Debt

Avoid Debt

Many modern-day prophets and apostles have warned about the dangers of living beyond our means. Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin pointed out several of these warnings in his April 2004 General Conference address entitled, “Earthly Debts, Heavenly Debts”.

President Heber J. Grant said, “From my earliest recollections, from the days of Brigham Young until now, I have listened to men standing in the pulpit…urging the people not to run into debt; and I believe that the great majority of all our troubles today is caused through the failure to carry out that counsel.”

President Ezra Taft Benson said, “Do not leave yourself or your family unprotected against financial storms. … Build up savings.”

President Harold B. Lee taught, “Not only should we teach men to get out of debt but we should teach them likewise to stay out of debt.”

President Gordon B. Hinckley declared: “Many of our people are living on the very edge of their incomes. In fact, some are living on borrowings. …
“… I urge you to be modest in your expenditures; discipline yourselves in your purchases to avoid debt to the extent possible. Pay off debt as quickly as you can, and free yourselves from bondage.” (April 2004)

This prophetic counsel was repeated by Elder Robert D. Hales in his talk on spiritual and temporal self-reliance.

(02:35 mins, Becoming Provident Providers Transcript)

Ponder & Record

As you watch the video above, please consider the following questions and record some of your thoughts in your Learning Journal:

At the beginning of the video, Elder Hales shares the four principles of provident living. What are they?
What did Elder Hale’s wife tell him when he asked her why she would not be purchasing the dress?
What lesson did he learn from this experience about temporary vs. eternal value or significance?
Elder Hale’s describes unnecessary spending as a “temptation” and even an “addiction.” In what ways have you seen the truthfulness of this statement in your own life or the lives of those around you?

As illustrated above in both Elder Christofferson’s message on “Change,” as well as Elder Hales’ message on “Becoming Provident Providers,” the avoidance of debt starts with you and your own desire to stop the behaviors that lead to its useless accumulation. Accessing the enabling power of the Atonement and learning to say “no” to the purchase of items with little or passing value, is definitely the right place to start. However, there are also additional steps that can be taken right now to put a stop to unnecessary debt increase. These three steps are:

Create an emergency fund
Purchase adequate insurance
Quit using credit cards and consumer loans

1. Create an Emergency Fund

President Ezra Taft Benson once said,“I would respectfully urge you to live by the fundamental principles of work, thrift, and self-reliance and to teach your children by your example…Live within your own earnings. Put a portion of those earnings regularly into savings…

More than ever before, we need to learn and apply the principles of economic self-reliance. We do not know when the crisis involving sickness or unemployment may affect our own circumstances. We do know that the Lord has decreed global calamities for the future and has warned and forewarned us to be prepared…

[It worries me that] a large proportion of families with personal debt have no liquid assets [savings] whatsoever to fall back upon. What troubles they invite if their income should be suddenly cut off or seriously reduced! Do not leave yourself or your family unprotected against financial storms. Forgo luxuries, for the time being at least, to build up savings.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson, 2014)

Hard times are sure to come. Some may be of your own making, but often they come because it’s just the nature of this fallen world. As Adam and Eve were warned before leaving the Garden of Eden, we should remember that “Cursed shall be the ground for thy sake…thorns and thistles shall [the earth] bring forth unto thee…[and] by the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread, until thou shalt return unto the ground” (Moses 4:23–25).

Because you cannot predict when your own personal thorns and thistles might appear, it is crucial that you begin today to prepare for them. An emergency fund is one such way to do that.

Financial advisors generally urge people to put away the financial equivalent of 3-6 months worth of total living costs for emergency situations. While such a reserve is definitely the end-goal, starting small with a one-month reserve is something the Church strongly advises. As the Personal Finance for Self-Reliance handbook urges, “You should work to build a one-month emergency fund as fast as possible. Put any extra money you have toward your emergency fund until it is complete. Even if you have debt, make only the minimum required debt payment until you have built a one-month emergency fund” (p. 94).

Where to Start

According to the instructions contained in Week 04, you should have four weeks-worth of living expenses recorded and calculated by the end of this week. Since four weeks is about a month’s worth of expenses, the total amount you spent during this time should serve as your guide when determining how much you will need to save in order to build up your one-month emergency fund.

For example, if your combined living expenses over the last four weeks totals $2000, then your one-month emergency fund should equal the same amount ($2000). This fund should be stored in a safe and secure place (such as a bank account) and should only be used in cases of emergency. As Chapter 6 of the Personal Finances for Self-Reliance handbook indicates, when emergencies do arise and money is withdrawn, one should “immediately begin putting money back into the fund until it’s full.” (p. 93)

Ponder & Record

As you review the above material, please thoughtfully consider and record your answers to the following questions in your Learning Journal:

What is the purpose of creating a one-month emergency fund?
According to your own calculations, how much should you be saving up for your own one-month emergency fund?
Why would it be important to immediately begin putting money back into the fund after money is withdrawn from it for an emergency?

2. Acquire Adequate Insurance

Sadly, creating and maintaining a one-month emergency fund is only part of the battle of helping you and your family avoid financial hardship. Certain tragedies can strike at any time and some of those terrible tragedies can cost a person far more than a month’s worth of living expenses. When health fails, accidents occur, or natural disasters destroy property, the financial effects can be extreme for those without proper protection.

Chapter 6 of the Personal Finances for Self-Reliance handbook states:

“A good source of protection is acquiring adequate insurance. Insurance is an arrangement in which an organization (typically an insurance agency) guarantees to compensate an individual for specific hardships in exchange for a fixed payment. Insurance can protect you and your family from significant risks such as damaged property, theft, illness, accidents, or even death” (Chapter 6, p. 94).

In general, there are typically three types of insurance available to you as a consumer (though this can vary based on where you live):

Health Insurance	Can provide you and your family protection from the heavy financial burden of medical expenses
Life and Disability Insurance	Can provide you and your family with protection from the financial burden of sudden death or loss of income due to disability.
Property Insurance (Homeowners, Renters, and Automobile)	Can provide you and your family protection from the financial burden of damage to your automobile or to the property you own or rent.

Not all forms of insurance are the same. Careful prayer, study, and consideration should be given before acquiring its different forms. For more information on things such as common “insurance vocabulary” and guiding principles for selecting insurance coverage, feel free to review the entire chapter on Protecting Your Family from Hardship in the Personal Finances for Self-Reliance manual or talk with your local stake president about enrolling in your stake’s self-reliance “Personal Finance” course.

Ponder & Record

As you review all you have learned about acquiring adequate insurance coverage, please consider and record your answers to the following questions in your Learning Journal:

What is insurance?
What purpose can it serve?
Why is insurance important and what is its connection to the principle of “protecting your family from hardship?”
How could acquiring adequate insurance coverage for you and your family make you a wise and successful financial steward?
What if insurance is not offered in the area you live?
What steps can you take to prepare for emergencies in other ways?

3. Quit Using Credit Cards and Consumer Loans

On the topic of unnecessary debt, President Gordon B. Hinckley once remarked,

“We have been counseled again and again concerning self-reliance, concerning debt, concerning thrift. So many of our people are in debt for things that are not entirely necessary…” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Gordon B. Hinckley, 2016)

President J. Reuben Clark Jr., in the priesthood meeting of the conference of 1938 said:

“Once in debt, interest is your companion every minute of the day and night; you cannot shun it or slip away from it; you cannot dismiss it; it yields neither to entreaties, demands, or orders; and whenever you get in its way or cross its course or fail to meet its demands, it crushes you.”

“We are carrying the message of self-reliance throughout the Church. Self-reliance cannot be obtained when there is serious debt hanging over a household. One has neither independence nor freedom from bondage when he is obligated to others.”

As mentioned by President Clark, one of the primary dangers of consumer loans and other such forms of credit debt is the interest attached to the borrowed sum. Lenders expect additional compensation for the risk they take when loaning you money. That means that in addition to paying back the original loan amount, you will also be required to pay interest on that loan and even interest upon that interest. Such compounding interest often results in borrowers paying out far more than even the initial loan amount in interest fees alone over the life of the loan.

Because debt like this can be so hard to get out of, it is only logical that a vital step to eliminating debt involves your commitment to stop using credit cards and other types of consumer loans. As Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has suggested:

“[Financial plastic surgery] is a very painless operation: Just cut up your credit cards…No convenience known to modern man has so jeopardized the financial stability of families, especially young struggling families, like the credit card” (“Things We Have Learned— Together,” June 1986).

2. Eliminate Debt

Eliminating debt is another important part of the battle. Statistics show that 80% of the American population is in debt. Similarly, alarming statistics regarding personal and national debt exist in many other countries throughout the world as well. Since the Church considers debt to be a form of “bondage” (as explained by President Hinckley in the section above), this next section will help you learn to:

Objectively review your debt realities
Explore ways to eliminate it

Your Debt Reality

How much debt do you have? What are the interest rates? How much do you owe and how long will it take you to pay it back? Knowing the answers to these basic questions is vitally important to your success in understanding your current debt reality. A simple way to gather and assess this information is to create something called a debt inventory chart like the one you see below:

Debt Inventory Chart

W08 Inventory Chart Accessible Version

As the table above shows, a debt inventory allows you to assess and take inventory of the types of debt you may have, the balance that currently exists on those debts, your current interest rates and monthly payments. Creating such a chart with your own financial situation, will enable you to see clearly the realities of debt and the ways it can delay the achievement of your desired financial goals. Later on in this week in the Application Activity, you will have the opportunity to create your own debt inventory chart with your own financial debts (if you have them). Begin thinking now about what information you should be gathering to complete that activity.

Ponder & Record

As you review and ponder the material above, please consider and write down your answers to the following questions in your Learning Journal:

What might your debt inventory chart look like? What debt are you currently carrying?

Please start now to gather this information together as you will need it to complete your Application Activity later this week.

Debt Elimination

Once you have stopped accumulating debt and assessed your own debt reality, the next logical step is to explore the possible means of eliminating the debt you have already incurred. The Personal Finance for Self-reliance handbook indicates,

“We have been counseled to pay down our debts as quickly as we can. “If you incur debt…work to repay it as quickly as possible and free yourself from bondage” (True to the Faith, 2004).

There are several ways this can be done, but most financial experts generally recommend that at least the following three steps be taken:

Pay extra toward your debt
Decide where to pay extra
Use the rollover method

You will experiment a great deal more with these three principles in the application activity, but first, take a cursory view of these concepts in action.

Pay Extra Toward Your Debt

Chapter 8 of the Personal Finances for Self-Reliance handbook states that, “One of the most expensive ways to get out of debt is making minimum payments.”(p. 132) As the balance of the loan goes down, so will the minimum payment. The reason why companies do this is to extend the life of the loan. The more time it takes you to pay off the loan, the more money they earn because of the growing interest. With debt payments, the best way to save money is to actually pay more of it.

As an example, consider the inventory chart example shared earlier in this lesson:

Debt Inventory Chart

W08 Inventory Chart Accessible Version

Let’s look more closely at the debts above. If you were to make the minimum payment on each of these debts for the life of the loans, how long do you think it would take you to get out of debt? How much interest do you think it would cost?

Take a look at Credit Card #1. Use the link to the calculator below to find out how long it would take this person to pay off this debt:

Loan Calculator

Use the information above to plug in the information for credit card #1, like so:

Loan Calculator: Current loan balance ($): 4,000. Annual percentage rate (0% to 40%): 17%. Current monthly payment ($): 97.

Then click “Calculate.”

Calculation Result. Information available below.

As you can see, it would:

Take 5.3 years (63 monthly payments) to pay off the remaining balance.
Cost over $2000 in interest.

Now, imagine what would happen if this person were to contribute an extra $100 toward this debt each month, like so:

Infographic shows an addition of $100 to the "Current Monthly Payment" section.

By taking this simple step, this person could achieve the following results:

Infographic shows: Interest paid: $750, Years to pay off: 2.1, and Number of payments: 25.

A payoff date of over three years sooner.
A total interest savings of over $1300!

Clearly, there are benefits to paying down debts long before the life of the loan expires.

Decide Where to Pay Extra

You have learned about the importance of stopping the accumulation of debt and the benefits of paying it off faster. Now you may be wondering where and how you can start.

In general, there are two options you could choose that reflect the principles of wise financial stewardship. You could choose to:

Pay extra toward the debt with the highest interest first

Pay extra toward the debt with the lowest balance first

The Personal Finance for Self-Reliance handbook indicates, “Both options have advantages and disadvantages, but they will both lead you to be debt free.” (p. 133) Please thoroughly review the advantages and disadvantages in the chart below. You will be asked to choose a debt to pay down in next week’s lesson as you create and finalize a new budget for yourself and your family:

Use the Rollover Method

Once you have decided to pay down extra debt and have determined which debt account you would like to pay down first, determining the order in which you will pay down ALL remaining accounts, is the next logical step. It will enable you to begin applying something known as the “rollover method.”

Chapter 8 of the Personal Finance for Self-Reliance handbook teaches,

“The rollover method is a great way to pay off your debts. Let’s say you can now pay an extra 100 a month toward your debts. When you pay off that debt, what should you do with the money that had been going to that loan? Roll it over to pay down other loans! This is where you really start to get out of debt more quickly” (p. 134).

Take the example shared with you earlier, for instance.

Debt Inventory Chart

W08 Inventory Chart Accessible Version

Remember “Credit Card #1” and what happened to the balance and interest being paid out when the minimum payment of $97 was more than doubled to a monthly payment of $197? The borrower ended up paying off the loan three years sooner and with an interest savings of over $1300!

Imagine what could happen if the borrower, once “Credit Card #1” is paid in full, rolled over that monthly payment of $197 toward the 6,500 balance for “Credit Card #2.” With a minimum monthly payment of $168, plus the additional $197 from the debt rollover payment after “Credit Card #1” is paid in full, the resultant $365 payment would result in that debt getting paid back much, much sooner as well.

Check out this debt calculator to see the power of this debt rollover principle in action. Open the link and plug in the above debt inventory information so it mirrors the below image:

Debt Calculator. Accessible document available above.

When you are done, scroll down to the bottom of the page, adjust the “Debt ordering” drop-down menu to “shortest to longest payoff period” and adjust your “interest earned on savings to “0%.” Then click “Calculate.”

The following results should appear:

Calculation Result. Accessible version available below.

As you can see, by adding $100 to the first loan payoff and then rolling over each payment from each loan, this person could:

Be 100% debt free (mortgage and car payments included) within 12.1 years!
Save nearly $40,000 in interest

Ponder & Record

As you ponder and reflect on the information above, please consider and write down some of your thoughts to the following questions in your Learning Journal:

What are the two steps you should take to stop incurring debt?
What are some of the benefits of paying extra toward debt?
What two things should you consider when deciding which forms of debt to pay extra to?
What is the rollover method and how could it help you get out of debt faster?

Skill #4: Learn to Save and Invest in My Future

Once that debt gets eliminated by the “rollover method,” the next logical step is to roll over those same payments that had been going toward paying off debt to investing in your future.

When you hear the term “investing,” what do you tend to think of? A chaotic trading floor with people selling stocks and bonds? While that may be part of investing, investing is also “the act of putting time, effort, or money into something and expecting some type of a return” (Personal Finance for Self-Reliance, p. 167). Investing in your future can take many forms, but often includes these three basic principles:

Saving Money.
Seeking Education.
Setting a Retirement Goal.

1. Saving Money

One of the easiest and safest ways to invest your money and in your future is to put some away in a safe place such as a savings account. As Elder L. Tom Perry has taught,

“[Consider] pay[ing] yourself a predetermined amount of money into savings…It is amazing to me that so many people work all of their lives for a grocer, the landlord, the power company, the automobile salesman, and the bank, and yet think so little of their own efforts that they pay themselves nothing” (“Becoming Self-Reliant,” Nov. 1991).

You cannot hope to get where you want to go if you don’t prioritize and invest in the things you most want out of life. As you learned in Week 07, honest tithes and generous fast offerings are always the first steps toward success. Second in importance though, is your focused and consistent investment in yourself and the high-level goals you have set for yourself (see Week 06).

Below is a video detailing the story of a young man named Sedrick who had a savings goal and created a plan to achieve it, despite seemingly impossible odds.

(02:32 mins, Sedrick's Journey Transcript)

Ponder & Record

As you watch the video above, please consider the following questions and record some of your thoughts in your Learning Journal:

What was Sedrick’s goal? What was he saving money for?
What did he do to reach his desired goal?
What did you learn from this video about saving and investing in your future?
What high-level financial goal do you have and how might a regular pattern of saving help you achieve it?

2. Seeking Education

Another way you can invest in yourself and your future is by obtaining an education. You are already doing this by being enrolled in this PathwayConnect Program!

As President Gordon B. Hinckley wisely taught, “The world will in large measure pay you what it thinks you are worth, and your worth will increase as you gain education and proficiency in your chosen field” (A Prophet’s Counsel and Prayer for Youth, Jan. 2001).

Education will benefit you and your family in both temporal and spiritual ways, as is shown in the video below entitled “Education for a Better Life.” Watch the video below to see Elder Joseph W. Sitati of the Seventy describe his childhood in Kenya and decision to get an education despite the challenges he faced.

(04:55 mins, Education for a better life Transcript)

Ponder & Record

As you watch the video above, please consider the following questions and record some of your thoughts in your Learning Journal:

What did Elder Sitati notice about the people who seemed to have a “better life” in Kenya?
What challenges did he face in his goal of education and a better life?
Why do you think Elder Sitati would refer to one 4-minute conversation as a “defining moment” in his life?
What blessings came to him as a result of his continuous goal of education?
Elder Sitati encourages all to obtain a “vision for what we can become.” Why would he do this? How might following his advice help you invest in your future?

3. Setting a Retirement Goal

As you learned earlier in this lesson, investing is “putting time, effort, or money into something and expecting some type of a return” (Personal Finances for Self-Reliance, p. 184). One of the reasons you may want to invest is to create a way for you to eventually retire from work.

President Ezra Taft Benson has taught, “As you move through life toward retirement and the decades which follow, we invite all…to plan frugally for the years following full-time employment” (Teachings of the President of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson [2014], 208).

While there may be government or social programs in your area to help support you during your retirement years, you will likely need to supplement those programs with some of your own savings in order to cover all of your expenses. This can become expensive, so it is important that you begin to plan now how you will invest and save your money.

How Much Will You Need?

The first step toward establishing a stable retirement plan is to estimate how much you will need. You will practice this further in your Application Activity this week, but feel free to experiment with the calculator below to begin estimating what your own goal should be using your present or possible future circumstances:

Retirement Calculator

Keep in mind that most people around the world retire between the ages of 60 and 70 and may live an additional 20 to 30 years after that. Some other questions to consider might be:

Will I have a mortgage or will it be paid off?

Will I need to support any family members financially?

Will my living expenses likely be more or less than they are now?

Do I intend to serve missions or travel a lot?

Compound Interest

While a regular savings account is a great way to put money away for emergencies or other “rainy day” expenditures, it is not usually the recommended method for retirement savings because of its low rate of return (usually less than 1%).

As you learned earlier, interest rates have the power to produce good and negative outcomes depending upon what they are attached to. Attached to debt, high-interest rates can create a form of “bondage” for the consumer that can prove very difficult to get out of. Attached to savings, however, interest can create some amazing investment returns.

Compound interest can be one of the keys to having enough money for retirement. Compound interest is earning additional interest on interest, and it is typically represented as a percentage or rate of return. Once you earn your first payment, it is added to the principle balance. Then that larger balance continues to grow (see image below). Compound Interest Over Four Years: $10 plus 9% equals $10.90. $10.90 plus 9% equals $11.88. $11.88 plus 9% equals 12.95. $12.95 plus 9% equals $14.12.

Investing in ways that provide a good rate of return often helps people have enough money saved for retirement. Most people find it easier to invest small amounts of money consistently over time, such as a certain amount each month or from each paycheck, rather than large periodic sums. The example below demonstrates the total value of investing 100 per month for 30 years, with different rates of return. This is the power of compound interest.

Compound Interest Graph: Shows the return for the following compound interest amounts: 0% return is $36,000.00. 1% return is $41,962.82. 5% return is $83,225.86. 8% return is $149,035.94. 12% return is $349,496.41.

As you have seen, the rate of return can be very powerful. It might seem that the solution is a simple one—invest money in the areas that provide the highest rate of return. It isn’t that simple though. As the illustration below demonstrates, investing in things with a higher rate of return always carries a greater risk.

Graph of risk versus return: A slope intercept line shows risk on the x-axis and return on the y-axis. The slope equally increases in return and risk and shows examples of increasing risk and return: Savings accounts, CD's, Government bonds, Mutual funds, Large company stocks, Small company stocks, Real estate, and Business ownership.

It is important to note that all investments carry a risk-and-return relationship. A higher risk could mean receiving a higher return, but there is always that risk of higher loss. Likewise, lower risk typically means lower return, but it also means there is less potential for loss.

4. Search, Ponder, and Pray

When deciding where to invest your money, it is important to do a lot of research. Study out your options and talk about them in your family council. Pray as a family and as individuals so you know your options and feel comfortable with the choices you are making.

To explore some of the more common investment options available consider reviewing the complete chapter on Investing in the Future in the Personal Finances for Self-Reliance handbook.

Ponder & Record

As you review the material above, please consider the following questions and record some of your thoughts in your Learning Journal:

Why is saving for retirement so important?
What is the positive power of compound interest when applied to investments and savings?
Explain the relationship between risk and return when it comes to investing. What types of investments tend to have high risk and high return? What types of investments tend to carry lower risk and yet yield little return?
What role can the family council and prayer play in setting and achieving your retirement goals?

Mark as done once you have completed all the reading and ponder activities on this page.