INTRODUCTION TO THIS BLOG

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Up to the summer after I graduated from high school I was not very interested in attending college. We did not have the money, nor did I have a good background. My final grades in high school were 3 C’s and one B-.  I was working every night and weekends, so there was little time to study. My mother wanted me to attend West Point, because it was free and they had a stipend of $700 per year. I passed the mental exams, but failed the physical goals. During the summer of 1951, I received a letter from Heidelberg University in Tiffin Oh. They had one Scholarship available for 2 semesters which paid $150 a semester and also would give me a job on campus. Also I could drive back to Mansfield every 2 weeks and work at the hospital. It is hard to believe today that the tuition was $300 per year while today it is $20000 or more. My grades at Heidelberg the first year and half were the same as high school; all C’s. The 2^nd semester my sophomore year I learned something that I use every time I talk to a group or an individual. This saying is:

WORK: No matter what you are doing in life, it takes work to accomplish the job. Also you need to be FOCUSED on the work and do not expect INSTANT GRADIFICATION.

It is good if you have a strong degree of motivation and use help and suggestions from the people you trust.

So what did the above do for me?  From the 2^nd quarter of my sophomore year until I graduated, all my grades were A’s except one B. My Chemistry Professor at Heidelberg wrote to Purdue and they awarded me a full fellowship. I had all expenses paid and even had some left over for personal spending.

My first encounter with a financial investment was when I graduated from high school. I received about $500 In cash, so I went to a bank and took out a $500 Certificate of Deposit at 5% it gave me a big thrill that I would make $25 without doing any work. As you will see if you stay with my Blog, I am an ultra-conservative. Sixty years later, I still have that same CD, but I now only receive $4.00 per year.

What is a Certificate of Deposit?

A Certificate of Deposit is, in reality, a savings account with some strings attached to it. You are telling the bank how long you will keep your money there.  If you take your money out before the date that you and the financial institution (bank or credit union) agreed upon, you will need to pay a fine. On the positive side, your money in your account is insured up to $250,000. Usually you can invest your money for 3months to 10 year. The longer you invest the money, the greater will be the interest you will receive. You will need to make that decision.

Note: Every time I use a new financial term I will give a definition of the term, so in this manner you will learn the basic terms of finance.  The difference between a bank and a Credit Union will be discussed at a later time.