Iona Bain
I had the pleasure of talking to marketing guru, financial services wizard and martial arts supremo Roger Edwards for his excellent podcast recently. We ranged over many different subjects, including why I got into blogging, where I get my ideas, the pitfalls of social media, my ethos, inspo and (of course) the state of financial education/information for young people today.
Several things jumped out at me when listening back to our chat;
- When I say get in touch, leave comments, tweet me…I mean it! Blogs cannot exist in a vacuum and I never want to be inward in my approach. I thrive on interaction and feedback (whether good or bad…though a balance of the two would be nice!)
- I spoke about my plans to get into investment commentary for young people a lot more. If you or anyone you know could help me in that mission, please get in touch. I have already written about this subject for the Financial Times, as well as blogging about it here and here. Expect more in the coming months.
- Financial education in schools HAS improved tremendously in recent years and I would hate for anyone to think that I’m denigrating schools or indeed charities for their efforts to relay must-know information about money. However, it is definitely worrying that pupils won’t be tested on this subject, considering the factory line of exams and learning by rote that pupils have to prioritise these days, and teachers have so much on their plates that they need far greater guidance and training in this subject, not least because it would actually benefit their own finances too! And for those who believe financial education is a putz (and there are some), I would argue that schools have a role (indeed a duty) to provide an educational safety net, particularly if there is an absence of tuition on this subject in the home, in order that we reduce the chances of society having to pick up the pieces of debt, scams and destitute finances later on in life.
- Blogs have become a lot more established and high-profile today than they were five years ago when I started, but unfortunately, the blog I mention favourably towards the end (Good With Money) is one of the few that I respect. Without wishing to name names, there are many blogs today that put monetisation first and readers second. For many bloggers, their main goal in life is to make as much money as possible from advertising, guest posts and affiliate links without due (or any) care for the readers. It is a sad state of affairs and I hope to write more about this (at risk of making myself slightly unpopular!) so people out there better understand the huge ethics problem surrounding blogs, and hopefully grasp why the Young Money Blog is different, independent and on their side.
So check it out by clicking right here or using the media player below.
