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��������Nevada California Regional Alumni Association and the �Alpha of Ohio Alumni Association �of Phi Theta Kappa �Present:��“Your Resources to �Personal Financial Freedom”��

Presenter: William Dimopoulos

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Agenda

  • Deficit vs Debt. What is the difference.
  • Why is financial literacy important?
  • Money Basics.
  • Identify your income.
  • 50/30/20 Budget Rule.
  • Budgeting applications.
  • Basic Investing Principles – Why you should invest.
  • Retirement accounts.
  • The importance of an emergency fund.
  • Credit do and don’ts.

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Your Personal Deficit vs Debt

Monthly Deficit (April)

  • Income (job) $ 5,000
  • Expenses�Rent�Utilities �Savings�Interest�Food      �  You spent $ 6,000

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  • Monthly Deficit ($ 1,000)

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Monthly Debt

  • Prior Month Deficit $ 3,000�Jan, Feb, Mar
  • April Deficit $ 1,000
  • Total Debt $ 4,000

U.S. national debt is approximately $39 trillion as of May 2026. 1-trillion in interest annually.

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Why is financial literacy important

In fact, 4 in 5 Americans (80%) say they put off financial decisions

  • Women are more financially stressed than men

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Shortfalls in Financial Literacy Cost Americans $246 Billion

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  • Across all age groups, the average estimated money loss reported due to lack of personal finance knowledge was between $1,000 and $1,800 in 2025.

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https://www.debt.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Financial-Anxiety.jpg

https://www.financialeducatorscouncil.org/financial-illiteracy-costs/

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/personal-finance

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Money Basics

Managing your finances

  • Budgeting
  • Investing
  • Creating an emergency fund for the unexpected

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Being financially responsible

  • Spend wisely
  • Pay you bills on time
  • Take control of your debt
  • Use your bank to send your bill payments
  • Saving for the future – pay yourself first

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  • Identify your income

Any and all income should be included in the budget

  • Create a budget plan

The basic one to start with is the 50/30/20 plan

  • Execute

Put the plan in action.

Nobody said this would be easy.

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50/30/20 Budget Rule

Needs 50%

  • Groceries
  • Housing
  • Utilities
  • Transportation
  • Insurance
  • Loan payments

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Want 30%

  • Clothing
  • Eating out
  • Social media subscriptions
  • Gym Membership
  • Travel
  • Technology

Savings 20%

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  • Emergency fund
  • Investing
  • Retirement
  • Debt repayment

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Month:

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November

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Bank Main Checking

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To be paid

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Date

 

Income

Date

 

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Expenses

Amount

 

Paid

Bal Fwd

$ 450.00

11/1

✔

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Phone Cell

80.00

✔

1

Adj bank

 

11/1

✔

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Rent

800.00

✔

8

Income Job

$ 3,500.00

11/1

✔

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Visa

50.00

✔

2

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​

​

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Car pymt

600.00

✔

7

Total

$ 3,950.00

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​

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PG & E

15.00

✔

1

​

​

​

​

​

SMUD

50.00

✔

2

Income

$ 3,950.00

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​

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Car ins

50.00

✔

25

Expense

$ 3,258.00

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​

​

 

 

■

 

Balance

$ 692.00

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Savings 1

500.00

✔

16

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Investing

500.00

✔

16

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Savings-KTC

13.00

 

 

Bank Savings

 

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Fun

50.00

 

 

Bal Fwd

$ 1,500.00

11/1

✔

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Misc

50.00

 

 

Cash reward

$ -

 

 

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Food

400.00

 

 

Interest

$ 1.00

 

 

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Gas

100.00

 

 

Add sav 1

$ 500.00

11/16

✔

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Other

0.00

 

 

Deduct

 

 

 

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3,258.00

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Total

$ 2,001.00

 

 

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This could be separate from your 401K account

KTC= Keep the change

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Budgeting applications

  • Free Budgeting Applications
  • Goodbudget
  • SoFi Relay
  • Rocket Money
  • Empower
  • Nerd Wallet
  • Excel – the best one because I can truly customize to my needs
  • Pay a monthly or annual fee
  • YNAB
  • Monarch Money
  • Copilot - good option that's only available to Apple users
  • There are others…

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20/4/10 Rule

If you have to take a loan to buy a car then follow the 20/4/10 rule:

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  • 20% minimum down payment
  • 4-year maximum of years the car should be financed
  • 10% maximum of your income

Remember: most cars depreciate with time

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Allows your money to grow itself

Saving for retirement

Reach your financial goals

WHY SHOULD YOU INVEST?

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Rule of 72

  • Find out how long it will take your investment to DOUBLE.
  • Divide 72 by the growth rate of your investment (expressed as a precent).

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/ruleof72.asp

The Rule of 72 is a quick way to estimate how long it will take for an investment to double. For example, if you expect an annual return of 6%, it would take about 72 ÷ 6 = 12 years to double your money. Similarly, at a 9% return, it would take approximately 72 ÷ 9 = 8 years to double.

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  • The sooner you start, the better

Compounding interest is a powerful effect. The earlier you start, the more you will have later on.

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  • Keep it simple

Start small, and don’t over complicate it.

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  • Be consistent and invest regularly

Don’t try to time the market. Stay on schedule with your plan.

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  • Have a plan

Maintain perspective, short-term movements do not affect your long-term goals (the market is going to go, and down)

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  • Diversify

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

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COMPOUNDING INTEREST

Step 1: Invest money ($100)

Step 2: Earn interest (10%)

Step 3: Have more money ($110)

Step 4: Repeat

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Both of these people had a 6% annual return. These are hypothetical situations.

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Year 10

Year 11

Year 12

Year 13

Year 14

Year 15

Year 16

Year 17

Year 18

Year 19

Year 20

Year 21

Year 22

Year 23

Year 24

Year 25

Year 26

Year 27

Year 28

Year 29

Year 30

80,000

60,000

40,000

20,000

0

Student A: Invest $100 a month for 20 years. $1,200 for one-year. �Total invested: $24,000. The investment with the interest after 30 years is $79,052.

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Year 6

Year 7

Year 8

Year 9

Year 10

Year 11

Year 12

Year 13

Year 14

Year 15

Year 16

Year 17

Year 18

Year 19

Year 20

Year 21

Year 22

Year 23

Year 24

Year 25

Year 26

Year 27

Year 28

Year 29

Year 30

75,000

50,000

25,000

0

Student B: Starts 6 years later but invests $120 a month, for 24 years. $1,440 for one-year. Total invested $34,560. After 24 years you have $73,174.

Waited until graduated college

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REMEMBER...

  • Investing is long term. Don't be caught up in trying to gamble with individual stocks or timing the market as a beginner. You will lose money and motivation.
  • You are not going to get rich quick.
  • The stock market will go Up and Down 4-5 times in your lifetime.

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Retirement accounts and Raises

  • Retirement accounts 401k, 403b, 457b, IRA & Roth IRA.
  • When you leave one employer for another.
  • Don’t leave the money, move it to the new employer.
  • Do not take possession but transfer it.
  • Start as soon as you can. Some employers do a match funds.
  • Enjoy the raise.
  • Take half and put it into your retirement account.
  • Spend the other half, because you earned it.

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Emergency Fund (Rainy day fund)

Medical emergencies

Auto emergencies

Home repairs

Job loss

Emergency funds should be quick and easy to access.

Save 3-months to 6-months worth of living expenses in your emergency fund.

Emergency funds can save you from unexpected costs, like:

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Credit

Do’s

    • Find the right credit card.
    • Pay off the balance every month.
    • Build a good credit history.
    • Get a copy of your credit report annually.
      • Beware of identity theft. (LifeLock)

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Don’t

    • Pay your bills late.
    • Get close to or reach the credit limit.
    • Open multiple credit cards.
    • Use credit cards carelessly.

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https://www.nerdwallet.com/credit-cards/best

https://www.creditkarma.com/credit-cards

https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/free-credit-reports

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“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do, than by the ones you did do.”

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Mark Twain