Start here · Module 1 of 2
Your money, without the flinch
Take an honest look at your money for a week and write down three real numbers. No judgment, just a starting point.
Key terms in Your money, without the flinch
- Financial literacy
Financial literacy is the knowledge and skills a person needs to make informed decisions about money. It covers understanding how earning, spending, saving, borrowing and protecting money work. Governments and international bodies treat it as a foundation for financial security, and national strategies often pair it with consumer protection and access to financial services.
Source: MyMoney.gov (Financial Literacy and Education Commission), Home | MyMoney.gov
- Financial capability
Financial capability is the combination of knowledge, skills and habits that helps a person manage money well over a lifetime. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes it as resting on three building blocks: executive function, financial habits and norms, and financial knowledge and decision-making skills. It is treated as a broader idea than classroom knowledge about money alone.
Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Financial capability: youth financial education framework
- Financial education
Financial education is instruction that helps people build the knowledge, skills, and confidence to handle money and banking. Programs typically cover everyday topics such as budgeting, saving, credit, and protection from fraud, and are offered to children, adults, and older people. In the United States, the FDIC publishes a free curriculum called Money Smart, which schools, banks, and community groups use.
Source: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Financial Education for Every Stage of Life
Every term on Lever is in the money glossary.
About this module
Your money, without the flinch is part of Start here, one of 15 subjects in Lever. It’s a short run of 7 lessons, about 18 minutes in all, so you can finish it in one sitting.
Every lesson takes one idea at a time. You read it with the math worked out step by step, answer a question that puts it to use, then see why the right answer is right and why the others aren’t.
It’s for anyone who was never taught this, and you don’t need to know anything first. Every lesson is free. Lever works out what you already know, so you can start here or let your path bring you to it.
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It’s part of Start here. Lever will bring it to you when you’re ready, or you can go straight there.