Archive
Ten Things Facebook Taught Me About Personal Finance
Down with Facebook but not with money? You might be savvier than you thought. Here are some personal finance lessons I’ve gleaned from Facebook:
1. Guard Your Identity: Information about you, whether it’s a credit card statement or a photo of you as an inebriated fairy (especially one playing hooky from work), is as good as published unless shredded or never put up online in the first place. Be careful about the unflattering photos or pertinent information about you that’s out there, whether you think it’s just friends and family checking your profile out or not.
2. The Importance of Networking: Sure, there are those awkward friend requests from the kids who stole your lunch money (or your tenth grade crush), but there’s also tremendous opportunity to connect and learn from people who are actually living life. You never know who might have useful insight on a stock, industry or potential boss.
3. Nothing is Forgotten: Whether it’s a wall post about a 60-second keg stand or a neglected credit-card bill, it can easily go down on your permanent record.
4. Don’t Get Swamped: My Facebook homepage beckons for me to organize it - unread messages in my inbox, application invitations to be deleted, friend details unconfirmed. And my desk? Unread bills, junk mail to be shredded, customer service numbers that haven’t been called. Turning down that Facebook “Vampires” application invite may seem humdrum, but it leaves more time for slaying the vampires in my wallet.
5. But Maintain a Portfolio of a Reasonable Size: If I can learn to manage my Facebook profile, maybe there’s hope for my investment portfolio.
6. Keep Up with Current Information: The world of money management is a soap opera. People and companies flirt, hook up (yes, it’s “complicated”), date again, have public spats — it never ends. Staying on top of such interpersonal and economic drama helps to prevent faux pas in the girl’s bathroom and at the bank.
7. The Future is Near: Marriage announcements, updated work info and pictures of plumper versions of former cheerleaders just serve as reminders that time flies and everyone ages. So it might be time to start thinking about opening a 401(k), asking for a promotion or saving for that future botox injection.
8. Learning from the Mistakes of Others: The transparency of the Internet, whether it’s that long-winded Facebook note about a wretched breakup or a ranting consumer thread on a financial site, might prevent you from committing the same error as someone else. Dating certain psychopaths might be unwise. Applying for a loan without knowing the terms and interest rate isn’t so smart either.
9. There’s a lot of Garbage Out There: Sift accordingly. I don’t really need to know about a RAGING AWESOME EVENT GOING ON AT A SCHOOL NEAR YOU!!!! Nor do I care about the printed sample checks that come with my credit-card statements. Being a savvy consumer demands much of the same skepticism of a good Facebooker.
10. The Mundane Can be Interesting, Maybe Even Fun: What would happen if personal finance was as engaging as a Facebook newsfeed? Sexy 401(k)s? Loudmouth mutual funds? Hey, at least Thrasher is trying, even if we’re not crazy about its fund.
Want to do some more good on the web? Check out our list of ways that a small bit of your money can have a huge (and direct) impact on the life of someone else.
- Comments (3)
- Add a comment »
(3) Comments
This is a great analogy and a very entertaining read. I guess our financial profiles, like our facebook profiles, aren’t very forgiving.
I feel the same way… this is a great analogy. I like the most number 8- Learning from the mistakes of others.
Hey Mary Pilon, you should make a personal finance widget on facebook.