Let me ask you a few questions that are very easy for Class X students.
1. What is the common name of Sodium Carbonate decahydrate? Write the formula and it’s uses.
2. Find out the discriminant of the quadratic equation x2 + 2x +4.
Let me know if you want to try more.
Don’t worry if you don’t have the answers because they are Class X questions and you are not required to reappear for your Xth exams!! 
Infact if you ask me my graduation subject I will not fail to mention that I topped the University in Physics Honours. I may not add the fact that the only thing I remember about Physics is it’s spelling.
Well, the things I am talking about are all academic skills. Academic skills have a limited shelf life and have a short expiry period.
While academic skills help you in opening doors to success. They also help you with your analytical and thinking skills. But I am afraid that our education system actually encourages rote learning instead of developing analytical skills.
What about Life Skills?
Life skills do not have an expiry date and they serve you life long. Life skills have practical applications and you don’t need to remember a lot of theory.
Like driving a car. You do not become a good driver by mugging up all the theoretical aspects of driving a car. An automobile engineer does not become a car driver just because he knows how the car works.
Infact I know a good friend of mine who is an active trader but doesn’t manage his personal finances effectively!
How do you learn life skills?
You don’t learn swimming by reading up books and websites. (Are there any blogs that teach you swimming? )
You wade into the waters and the instructor guides you with the correct hand and leg movements. It’s you who have the move the legs and hands. Unless you want to drown!!
What about money management skills?
Well, it’s not an academic skill and that’s why it is not part of the school/college syllabus. In fact I am happy that it is not part of the academic syllabus because the teachers could easily ruin the common sense/intelligence of their students by giving them bookish knowledge.
Remember the quote, “I was born intelligent, Education ruined me” ?
Money management is not about winning brownie points by knowing everything about security analysis, types of mutual funds, insurance schemes, etc.
It’s a life skill where you must use your common sense/intelligence to handle your money. It’s just like driving a car.
Money management is about running your money car where you know how to handle the wheel/steering (Maximize Income), change gears (Optimize savings), be alert on the brakes (Optimize expenses) and be able to step on the gas/accelerator (Maximize Investments) when you get good roads!
Simple, no? You don’t need to spend hours glued to TV/Newspaper to get all the details of the Union Budget to handle your personal finances. A few minutes to understand the tax implications and the impact on the industry that you are in would suffice.
If you are interested in improving your skill regarding money management, RupeeCamp would definitely interest you. Please Join the mailing list for RupeeCamps. Thankyou.
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This is a very interesting comparison. I like the way it is presented.
Mukundhan