After writing this newsletter for a few months, I decided that it deserves more attention and structure. While rambling about seemingly unrelated topics was fun, it was perhaps not most helpful for my readers.
With that in mind, I wanted to lay out some thoughts on the future of Financial Shenanigans. Going forward, I will focus on creating content that I consider useful for three distinct groups of readers:
Those of you with little to no financial experience. Perhaps you have always struggled with saving money, or maybe you did save some but don't quite know what to do with it. You want to learn but have to start from the beginning. If this is you, then you probably enjoyed this article on financial independence for the masses.
You sort of understand money, know that maxing out your credit card is not a sound financial decision and might even have some stock investments. But you feel like something is missing. You want to skip the entry-level stuff and get high-impact advice right away. I’m sure my story about trying to save money on coffee caught your attention.
You are kind of like me. Maybe you spent some time in the financial industry, know how to save and have been investing your money for a while. Somewhere along the way, you realised that the financial sector is deeply flawed - excessive money printing, currency debasement, zero interest on savings, screwed up incentive systems, etc. You want to find a way out, an alternative financial system. Which is why you enjoyed reading this.
As you can imagine, readers in each category have their distinct requirements. From holistic and educational for the first group to concise, pragmatic and experimental for the third one. This is something I will attempt to address.
To start off, throughout December, I will publish several articles under the theme of "understanding money." There will be something for everyone in this series, covering things like the history of money, how money works in the economy, the current monetary state of the world, transition to digital currencies and Bitcoin. If you feel like a particular newsletter is too basic or advanced, don’t worry, the next one might be a better fit. And as always, don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions, comments or suggestions.
From my perspective, financial literacy and financial education are sorely missing in today's world. Like many other areas of life, money is evolving at an increasingly fast pace. Furthermore, this evolution of the money narrative is happening at the same time as the existing story crumbles under the strain of unsustainable monetary expansion. Unlike before, at least in the western societies, not understanding money could have profound negative consequences. That's my big picture assessment. In that context, financial literacy is more vital today than at any point in the past.