A new session of each course opens each month, allowing you to enroll whenever your busy schedule permits!
How does it work? Once a session starts, two lessons will be released each week, for the six-week duration of your course. You will have access to all previously released lessons until the course ends.
Keep in mind that the interactive discussion area for each lesson automatically closes 2 weeks after each lesson is released, so you’re encouraged to complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.
The Final Exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the Final Exam has been released, you will have 2 weeks plus 10 days to complete the Final and finish any remaining lessons in your course. No further extensions can be provided beyond these 10 days.
Week One
Lesson 01 - Why Know Where All Your Money Goes?
Wednesday
Why know where all your money goes? This lesson will inspire you to take this course and find out the answer! This lesson will talk about why someone would want to set up a Spending Plan. It will discuss the difference between the Planning Mindset and the "I Want It Now" Mindset, as well as the ways that either mindset affects your everyday life. You'll look at lifestyles and how people usually choose them subconsciously. Then, you'll find out how to examine yours, and whether you want to make any changes. The lesson will also discuss The Black Hole of Monthly Payments: what it is, how it works, and why you'll want to learn how to avoid it. This lesson is the foundation of all of the ones that follow, because it will get you excited to learn why to get control of your own money.
Lesson 02 - Looking Back Then Planning Ahead
Friday
In this lesson, you'll begin the work of tracking your money by learning how to create a Net Worth Statement. You'll look at how your personality affects your attitude towards money, and how to manage money in marriage and relationships. Then, you'll learn about why you should set some goals for yourself and work on writing your own financial Wish List.
Week Two
Lesson 03 - Checkbook and Record Keeping
Wednesday
This lesson begins with a discussion about the importance of your checkbook. It will discuss various banking topics like ATM transactions and debit cards and how to choose the right bank account. Then, you'll delve into how to create a Mail Station and a Bill Paying Station as a place to organize yourself for paying your bills. The lesson will also cover how to keep all of your paperwork—from what to save to how to create a filing system.
Lesson 04 - How to Balance Your Checkbook and Credit Cards
Friday
This lesson is the backbone of good money management. You'll learn how to balance your checkbook and how this task affects all of your money issues. You'll also take a look at keeping track of your credit card statements.
Week Three
Lesson 05 - Debt Is a Four-Letter Word
Wednesday
In this lesson, you'll examine that enemy to financial freedom: debt. You'll look at how to know if you're in debt trouble and compile your own personal debt list. The lesson will also discuss tax debt and explain the best ways to pay debt off in general. Finally, you'll work on prioritizing your debt so that you know what to pay off first.
Lesson 06 - Looking Back: Assembling Data and Historical Costs
Friday
In this lesson, you'll look at your spending habits and where you've been spending your money. You'll create a list of expense categories, and then create a Historical Costs Worksheet to examine where your money has been going. The lesson will also discuss how to keep a cash log to track where your cash gets spent. Very few people know the answer to this! But you will after completing this lesson and its assignments.
Week Four
Lesson 07 - Planning Ahead: Drafting Your First Spending Plan
Wednesday
In this lesson, you'll learn to change the way you manage your money, which begins with drafting your first Spending Plan. The lesson will discuss how a Spending Plan works, and you'll look at how to create one using your Historical Costs Worksheet as a base. Then, you'll compare your figures with standard guideline percentages to see where your Spending Plan might be off.
Lesson 08 - Paying Bills With a Bill Paying Plan
Friday
Now it's time to set up some detail about how to work your Spending Plan. You'll start by learning how to create a Bill Paying Plan. This will show you what bills to pay when. The lesson will also discuss getting an allowance and how this will help you manage your spending.
Week Five
Lesson 09 - Keeping Your Spending Plan on Track, Part One
Wednesday
In this lesson, you'll go to the heart of how to really use your Spending Plan with the Envelope System. You'll examine what it is, how it works, and why it's superior to other methods of budgeting. All of the other lessons build up to this one.
Lesson 10 - Keeping Your Spending Plan on Track, Part Two
Friday
In this lesson, you'll look at the guts of the Envelope System and examine it in detail. This is the nitty-gritty, how-to lesson that pulls together everything you've done so far.
Week Six
Lesson 11 - Avoiding Temptations to Get Off Track
Wednesday
This lesson will discuss common temptations to overspending, including your personal spending weaknesses, keeping up with the Joneses, housing and transportation issues, and teaching kids about money. If you're not careful, these things can pull you off track.
Lesson 12 - Saving, Investing, and Conclusion
Friday
In this last lesson, you'll look at why and how to save, and how to best use your savings account. You'll explore stocks, bonds, mutual funds, retirement accounts, and saving for college. You'll also review your Wish List now that you've learned how to better handle your money. At the end of this lesson and this course, you'll be able to confidently answer the question "Where Does All My Money Go?" and experience the freedom that comes from not worrying about money any more!