Introduction

Welcome to the Personal Finance Guide! Before diving in, let's go over a brief introduction to make sure you know what you're reading.

What is this?

The Personal Finance Guide is a consolidation of information from a variety of sources to help you manage your money. This step-by-step guide attempts to provide you with meaningful information while explaining any financial jargon in simple terms.

Who is this for?

This guide assumes zero prior knowledge and will hopefully help establish a foundation for financial literacy. This guide was created for people who have recently completed their full-time education, obtained a job earning income, and are relatively, if not fully, independent from their parents or legal guardians, but you are more than welcome to read through this if this does not describe you! This information is specific to the United States.

Inspiration

I'm a recent college graduate who had (probably still has) no idea how to handle money, but I knew I wanted financial security in the future. I read a bunch of blog posts, forums, wikis, articles, etc. to try and educate myself, but I wished there was just a tutorial I could read through that would give me all the basics of what I needed to know step by step. Thus, the Personal Finance Guide was born. This is my attempt to hold myself accountable in learning about personal finance concepts while creating a useful resource for others.

Disclaimer

Here are some disclaimers you should be aware of before you read on:

• Always conduct your own research. Before acting upon any of the information presented in this guide, read other sources and perspectives to verify and/or qualify the information. This is true of most things on the internet.
• Your financial situation is unique. You should consult with a professional if needed. This guide aims to be broad enough to help many people, but what may work best for you may not be best for someone else.
• I cannot guarantee that the information in this guide is complete or accurate. I’ve done my best to consolidate complete and accurate information, but neither I nor this guide is perfect. I do not have an educational background in anything finance related.
• I do not take any responsibility for anything you may do based on the information provided in this guide. There is no guarantee that you will be successful saving, earning, or investing money.
• The opinions expressed in this guide are mine alone. They do not reflect the views of my employer or any other entity.

Test Your Knowledge

Before proceeding, take some time to take this Financial Literacy Quiz. You can also see how you compare to the national average and your state's average. If you can't answer some of these questions, don't worry - this guide was meant to help you learn these basic concepts. If you aced it, hopefully you can still learn something new!