What's wrong with personal finance?

[jeffrey]

"The personal finance industrial complex continues to prosper," she writes in her book, "but real people find themselves continuing to struggle with "stagnant salaries, income inequality and a society that offered a shorter and thinner safety net with each passing year." Retirement plans are lost to market downturns and bad advice, homes are lost to bad mortgage deals and family finances suffer from job losses, burdensome student loans and more...

Stern Advice - What's wrong with personal finance? | Reuters

[Anton martin]

[QUOTE=jeffrey;344050]"The personal finance industrial complex continues to prosper," she writes in her book, "but real people find themselves continuing to struggle with "stagnant salaries, income inequality and a society that offered a shorter and thinner safety net with each passing year." Retirement plans are lost to market downturns and bad advice, homes are lost to bad mortgage deals and family finances suffer from job losses, burdensome student loans and more...


Well I would like to say that if you have better financial planning good and trusted financial advisor, then you don't need to worry about your financial portfolio. All you need to do is make better investments and follow particular financial guidelines to continue with you financial planning.
Most people find it difficult only because of constantly changing their financial plans and their financial advisors. Avoid these thing you will be more successful in your financial planning.

[Baby_nurse]

I would venture to guess that more people are worrying about day to day expenses than their investment income.

[elessar78]

I saw her on Jon Stewart and her whole premise annoys me. "Even with proper guidance, not everyone can be good at money management. So don't beat yourself up if you can't." What an asinine position.

Yes, circumstances happen that sabotage even the best savers and planners, but without the saving and planning people would be up a creek without a paddle. Who cares how Suze Orman and Dave Ramsey got rich (by hocking financial products), it doesn't make their premise less true.

[JoeP]

Those most prepared are the ones who have basic financial knowledge, low debt, started saving for retirement early, and don't try to time the market. Being deficient in any of these exposes you to more risk.

[Baby_nurse]

I think the point she is making is that there is such a plethora of things that pass as financial advice these days that its difficult to weed through the mass to find what really DOES work.

Yes, it does make sense to those who have done it that saving, consistency and long term thinking is what works. But to someone starting out, it's really, really easy to fall for gimmicks and products and the (often) conflicting advice of the so called experts. Lets face it, we ALL want a quick fix to things. That's where bad mortgages and over spending comes from. Not everyone is good at waiting through a down term in the market. They panic when their 401(k) value takes a nose dive. Some people, through past mistakes of their own doing , CAN'T wait for the markets to turn around.

If you are one who got smart early, consider yourself lucky. Thank those who taught you to do things right.

I take the "don't best yourself up" attitude as don't dwell on your past mistakes, but go out there and do it right this time around.