Some Thoughts on Personal Finance & Alt Lifestyles: A University Lecture I Never Gave

This was a final lecture I meant to give to my FINA 469 "Intro to Investments" course @UofSC over the summer, but ran out of time. After the usual curriculum getting into the weeds of securities markets, portfolio theory, stock, bond, and option valuation, etc. I figured I'd take a step back and get to the basics: Investing starts by getting your own finances in order! 

Why bother saving and building wealth in the first place? My intended parting comments to the students were that there's so much more to life than money, and money is a tool to make your life what you want it to be. 

In that light, I wanted to introduce them to the concepts of "mini retirements," thinking out of the box to retire young, vagabonding to see the world, and being a perpetual traveler (PT). Certainly not the usual stuff you learn in college! 

Rather than let the lecture go to waste, I figured I'd offer it as a Steemit exclusive! You can view or download the slides to have access to all the embedded links. Unfortunately you won't be able to hear my cheery commentary in person, but here's a little more about what the short presentation meant to convey...

Your Money or Your Life

One of the most important concepts to learn in finance is that we trade our lives for money. Every hour we spend working for money is an hour we trade from other things in our lives, whether that's hanging out with our families, playing fun video games, or hiking the Appalachian Trail. Seems obvious, but how often do you think about the amount of your life you're trading when you click away on Amazon's checkout or load a new TV into your shopping cart? 

Food for thought: The median income earner in the U.S. spends anywhere between 1,000 to 2,000 hours of their lives every time they buy a new car. 

Technology is Fundamentally Changing Finance

"Fintech" is not only changing how hedge funds trade, it's also disrupting how we track our spending, budget, and allocate our personal portfolios.  The "old fashioned" (early 1990s-2000s) version of budgeting is already outdated. A spreadsheet is better than nothing, but services like Mint automate and turbocharge the process. 

Also dying are the days of taking your savings to a financial advisor and trying to discern the signal of investment competence from the noise of prowess as a salesperson. Millennials, at least, are finding it much easier, more comfortable, and profitable to hand over savings to robots to allocate unemotionally, unbiased, and according to best industry practices. Services like Wealthfront and Betterment are just the start of a complete disruption in investment management.  

You Only Live Once, Enjoy It! 

Finance shouldn't only focus on money, as odd as that might sound. Money is only a means to do what you want with your life. Unfortunately, too many people get caught up in the daily grind, the career pressures, the money trap of living beyond their means and enslaving themselves, or even just putting off truly living until a future that may not come. 

The last slide in the lecture was meant to introduce students to some alternative ways of viewing our short time on this tiny blue dot. Taking control of your life starts with actually believing it is yours to control. You are not meant to be the guinea pig of social planners, or the hostage of customs and inertia.  

Finance should ultimately be about helping us free ourselves, enjoying lives we consider worthwhile, and making the world a better place. 

What are your thoughts? 

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Rob Viglione is a PhD Candidate in Finance @UofSC with research interests in cryptofinance, asset pricing, and innovation. He is a former physicist, mercenary mathematician, and military officer with experience in satellite radar, space launch vehicles, and combat support intelligence. Currently a Principal at Key Force Consulting, LLC, a start-up consulting group in North Carolina, and Head of U.S. & Canada Ambassadors @BlockPay, Rob holds an MBA in Finance & Marketing and the PMP certification. He is a passionate libertarian who advocates peace, freedom, and respect for individual life.