First Paychecks

1. 1

   The Money Rules You Already Know

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   Six money rules in grown-up words: needs first, every choice has a trade-off, save first, interest cuts both ways, growth takes time, scams rush you.

   Next up
2. 2

   Own Minus Owe: Your Starting Line

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   Net worth is what you own minus what you owe. Cash flow is money in minus money out. Learn what each one tells you, and why direction beats the number.

+1 more lesson coming

1. 1

   Gross, Net and Everything Between

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   Follow a paycheck from gross pay through taxes and payroll deductions to take-home pay, and see which deductions lower which taxes.
2. 2

   The W-4 Is Your Tax Dial

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   The W-4 tells your employer how much tax to hold back. Learn why a big refund is your own money returned late, and when people update it.

+9 more lessons coming

1. 1

   Benefits Enrollment Day

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   A new job gives you a short window to pick benefits. Learn which choices lock for a year, which can change anytime, and why beneficiaries matter.
2. 2

   What's Worth Insuring?

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   Insurance trades a small, sure cost for protection from a big, rare one. Learn premiums, deductibles and limits, and what to insure versus save for.
3. 3

   Picking a Health Plan

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   Compare health plans by yearly total, not just the premium. Learn copays, coinsurance, the out-of-pocket max and why the network matters.
4. 4

   The Match Is Part of Your Pay

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   An employer match is extra pay you get only if you put money in. Learn to read a match formula, how vesting works, and what leaves match money unclaimed.

+7 more lessons coming

1. 1

   A Budget Is a Plan, Not a Diet

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   A budget tells your take-home pay where to go before the month starts. Learn the three buckets, fixed vs variable costs, and when to adjust the plan.
2. 2

   Pick a Budget Style You'll Keep

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   No budget method is “right.” Compare 50/30/20, zero-based, pay-yourself-first and envelopes, and find the style you’ll keep using.
3. 3

   Paydays, Due Dates and the Money Calendar

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   You can have enough money for the month and still come up short if bills land before payday. Learn to spot short days and fix the timing.

+6 more lessons coming

1. 1

   Where Your Money Lives

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   Checking is for spending and savings is for keeping. Compare banks, credit unions and money apps, and learn what APY and deposit insurance mean.
2. 2

   Your Emergency Fund

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   An emergency fund is money kept only for real surprises. Learn what counts, where to keep it, and how to build it from a small starter amount.

+7 more lessons coming

1. 1

   How Borrowing Really Works

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   Principal, interest, APR and term in plain English, and why the total you pay back matters more than the monthly payment.
2. 2

   Your Credit Report: The Record

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   What a credit report shows and leaves out, how to get yours free from the official site, and how to spot and fix mistakes.
3. 3

   Your Credit Score: The Grade

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   What goes into a credit score, two myths that cost people money, and why paying on time and using little of your limits matter most.
4. 4

   Credit Cards Without Getting Burned

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   How credit card balances, the grace period and minimum payments really work, and why paying in full every month means no interest.
5. 5

   Debt Payoff: Avalanche or Snowball

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   How the avalanche and snowball methods pay off debt, how a paid-off debt’s payment rolls forward, and how people pick the order that fits.

+14 more lessons coming

1. 1

   How Income Tax Really Works

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   How tax brackets really work, the difference between marginal and effective rates, and why brackets alone never make a raise cost you.
2. 2

   Filing Your First Tax Return

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   Who needs to file, why filing can pay you back even on a small income, which forms to gather first, and where to find free filing help.

+5 more lessons coming

1. 1

   Time Is Still Your Superpower

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   How compound growth makes early dollars count, the rule of 72 for doubling, and why steady saving matters as much as the start date.
2. 2

   Stocks, Bonds and Funds in Plain English

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   Stocks, bonds, funds and cash explained in plain English: what each one is, how it can pay you, and the job it does in a mix.
3. 3

   Index Funds: Own a Little of Everything

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   What an index is, how index funds own a whole market at low cost, and why most stock pickers have trailed their index over time.
4. 4

   Retirement Accounts Are Wrappers

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   Why a 401(k), IRA or HSA is a tax-advantaged wrapper, not an investment, plus the yearly limits, the early-withdrawal penalty and what goes inside.
5. 5

   Roth or Traditional? Tax Now or Later

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   How traditional and Roth accounts differ on when you pay tax, which factors tip the choice, and why many people split between the two.
6. 6

   Which Dollar Goes Where?

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   A common order for your next dollar, from a starter emergency fund and the full match to high-rate debt, and what can change the order.

+8 more lessons coming

1. 1

   Freeze Your Credit, Guard Your Number

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   How a free credit freeze blocks new accounts in your name, how to lift it when you apply, and when your Social Security number is truly needed.
2. 2

   Scams Aimed at Young Adults

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   The scams that target young adults, from fake jobs and rentals to investment romance scams, and the three tells they nearly all share.
3. 3

   Your "If Something Happens" File

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   The few documents that spare the people you love a lot of pain: beneficiary forms, payable on death, a health care proxy and an account list.

+12 more lessons coming