In this week’s post, I explain what this blog will be discussing, explore why personal finance is important, and explain my background.
What will we be discussing?
This blog will explain personal finance topics. My goal is to write clearly and plainly, so that all topics are easy to understand. I will also be approaching these subjects from a Christian worldview.
I plan to discuss a variety of personal finance topics, including: budgeting, planning for major purchases, education funding, retirement planning, investing, debt management, insurance, estate planning, and tax planning. I also want to answer any questions that you have and discuss topics that you would like to learn more about. If you have any ideas for future posts, please let me know!
Why is personal finance important?
A logical first question to ask is: why is personal finance important? Whether we like it or not, money plays a large part is our lives and is related to a lot of things we do: countless day-to-day spending decisions, saving for retirement, investing our retirement account, buying insurance, managing debt, buying a car or a house, etc. Making all these decisions wisely requires us to have knowledge about money and personal finance.
The most important reason why we should care about how we are managing our resources, is that God created and owns all things – we are simply managers:
Genesis 1:1 – In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
1 Chronicles 29:10-11 – Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.”
Psalm 24:1-2 – The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.
As such, we should strive to take our role as manager of God’s resources seriously and seek to glorify and honor Him.
If personal finance is important, there must be a lot of financial education and high levels of financial literacy, right?
Despite its importance, there is a systemic problem of financial illiteracy in the United States. I think the best evidence of this is how, despite the country’s wealth and prosperity, many people struggle financially. There are many examples of this, including these widely available statistics:
Well over 50% of Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck.
Credit card debt averages $5,000+ per person with an average interest rate of 15%+.
Total student loan debt is now over $1.7 trillion.
Our national debt is now over $30 trillion, which is over 120% of our gross domestic product (GDP). This does not include unfunded liabilities, which many estimates put at more than $100 trillion.
Although it is impossible to know exactly why there is such an issue with financial illiteracy and poor financial decisions, I believe there are at least several factors that contribute to the problem:
There is a lack of formal education about money. My understanding is that, in Virginia, high schoolers must only take one year of personal finance and economics. For a subject that is so important, I think that brushing over it in early education is not a good idea.
Less formally, there is also a societal stigma around talking about money. I believe that this prevents common sense and wisdom about the subject from being widely disseminated.
Even if someone knows the right decisions to make, following through usually requires a lot of self-discipline. This is naturally related to the fact that many wise financial decisions are inherently long-term. For example, forgoing spending today requires you to understand and value the savings you will have five or more years from now. Many people have a hard time appreciating something so far away and would rather have immediate gratification.
I hope this blog will fill in some of the gaps left by the lack of formal education and the societal stigma around money. A lack of self-discipline is hard to address in writing, but I will try to show the positive impact of delaying gratification, when possible.
What is my background?
My name is Crawford Ulmer. First and foremost, I am a Christian, and I seek to glorify Jesus Christ and make Him known.
I became fascinated by investing at a young age. When I was nine years old, I started learning about investing and read a couple of books about it. When I was 10 years old, I began investing for myself. Throughout my teen years, I continued to learn about investing and personal finance. I also quickly realized that, despite its importance, personal finance is not taught in school and rarely ever talked about.
I majored in business in college, with a focus on finance and accounting. After college, I wanted to learn how to help others manage their finances well, so I worked as an assistant to a financial planner for about four and a half years. While in this role, I created and operated our investment management process, researched a variety of financial planning issues, and served clients. I also studied to become a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (TM) professional and Enrolled Agent.
I became a Christian when I was 21, around the time I graduated from college and started working. Becoming a Christian changed my perspective on a lot of things, including money and my role as a financial planner. My goal went from trying to enrich myself and others, to trying to assist others in wisely stewarding the resources they have been entrusted with.
Earlier this year, I decided to start my own financial planning business, Ulmer Financial, to provide people with financial planning, investment management, and tax preparation. Historically, the best financial advisors have high minimums and many of the advisors who are willing to work with those who don't have substantial assets are commissioned product salespeople. My goal is to fill this gap and make fee-only financial planning accessible.
If you have any comments, questions, or ideas for future posts, please let me know
I hope that this blog will help you learn about personal finance. If you have any comments, questions, or ideas for future posts, please let me know. You can reach me directly via email at crawford@ulmerfinancial.com.
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