The Dangers of Millennial’s Lack of Knowledge in Economics
Up until 3 weeks ago, I found myself oblivious to the world of business and economics. Now, I’m thinking about pursuing a major in the subject alongside journalism. As a millennial, I see time and time again articles on The Atlantic, NPR, and stories on CNN about my generation that suggest that my obliviousness is the cause of the failures of such companies as Mervyn’s, Sears, and K-Mart. Seriously.
Really, there doesn’t exist so much a blatant and purposeful ignorance, as much as a lack of knowledge in how to invest money and gain assets on a low income. Luckily for me, my job has allowed me to pay off my debts by next year, and being self employed got me interested in knowing how taxes work and stirred a personal interest in the government sector of money managing.
What really stirred my interest was the recent death of my uncle. At 75, he left behind 4 children, the youngest being my cousin who’s one year older than me, and my 65 year old aunt. He was an immigrant and had no savings, no home, no car, no assets. For 40 years he simply got by, paying rent and paying for my cousin’s college. The anxiety of the situation made me ask my mother what her plan was for investing in retirement, if she was going to buy a house, or what my sister’s plan was for investing in a home. No one had any answers.
