Last week, I had the distinct pleasure of spending a morning in Midtown with some very smart women, who know a lot more about money than I do. Lauren and I went to the Fidelity offices to interview Kristen Robinson, who is SVP of Women & Young Investors there. The truth is that both of us are very much babies in the world of investing, and are only just getting from the “learning basic terms” stage to the “learning how to implement strategies in our own lives” stage.
And Lauren has an even more complicated journey to investing, given that she and her soon-to-be husband face a significant amount of combined student debt, for which payment often takes priority in one’s monthly budget. The question of “paying down more debt” vs “investing more” is one that’s different for everybody, based on everything from interest rates to personal goals. And just the fact of having student debt, period, can feel like a mental and financial obstacle to many people when it comes to starting down the road to investment. Many people look at financial growth in steps: pay down debt, earn more money, invest, etc. But these things can all happen together, in different amounts and with different strategies.
In this video, Kristen breaks down the easiest paths to investment for post-grads, and how impactful even the smallest gestures can be. If you’ve ever wondered how to get into investing, but feel held back by a tight budget or student loans, you should definitely give this one a watch.
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