By Maureen Renzi, vice president - communications

Managing money is not fun, they say. It takes time and it can be tedious, some moan. Regardless of the excuses, by not managing your money you are avoiding the solution to financial security. April is Financial Literacy Month, and the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) wants managing your money to be a task that you don’t avoid.

The Scare Tactic

The Motley Fool posted some scary statistics about savings, including that many don’t have an emergency fund and that others don’t have enough money to retire. Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck. CPAs have been working to change this for more than 10 years through the profession’s financial literacy efforts. The month of April has been identified as financial literacy month to highlight the need for sound personal financial planning all year long.

Make April Count

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a resolution designating April as Financial Literacy Month. The PICPA is one of the biggest champions. CPAs offer resources to help the young and the not-so-young manage their cash. Through articles, worksheets, videos, and blogs, CPAs provide guidance on how to become financially savvy.

Finding the Right Resources

The PICPA has a library of resources to raise awareness and provide some valuable guidance. You may want to start with a quick quiz to assess your financial knowledge. Once you get the results, you can find videos, blogs, and other resources to help increase your knowledge in the areas that most interest you (or the areas that need the most work). Here are some of the top categories:

• Budgeting
• College Financing and Paying for Student Loans
• Managing Credit Cards
• Fraud Prevention
• Health Insurance
• Retirement Planning

The Personal Touch

The PICPA also offers live programming offered by CPAs. They volunteer their time go into high school and middle school classrooms to teach students the basics of money management through the Inspire program. Students learn basic money management tips to help them succeed financially as adults.

CPAs also go to Girl Scout troops to help these young women earn badges while learning basic money management concepts, including wants vs. needs, fixed and variable costs, and evaluating the true value of a sale. From Daisies through Cadets, there are Girl Scout programs designed to address their needs.

April is a new beginning. If you haven’t started a financial plan, begin today. Don’t wait to make it a New Year’s resolution. Every day you stick to your own personal financial plan will bring you one day closer to achieving the goal of financial security and success.