Last week, I had the chance to spend time with my 3 not so young children and we all agreed to go for a Barbie movie date. Since the movie has been on the theaters for more than 2 weeks now, I am so sure that you’ve heard and read a lot about this movie, but for someone in the financial planning profession it is hard to just simply enjoy the movie and not to notice those moments in the film where the character is in a situation that for sure resonates with many moviegoers when it comes to finances. Barbie lives the ultimate dream of financial freedom and when you don’t live in Barbie Land, it won’t be easy to live a luxurious life like her and just work whenever you feel like it
I thought I’d share a few financial lessons that I noted from this movie (if you haven’t seen the movie yet, just read this after you’ve seen it, there might be minor spoilers below:
Lesson No 1: INVEST IN YOUR EDUCATION
According to Mattel, Barbie has had over 200 careers. Wow! I wish I was a smart as her, but to be able to do that there’s an important thing that you should do – invest in your education. It will help you lay a foundation that you can build upon throughout your career that will give you the power to earn. With all thing being equal, an education can be that one thing that will set you apart from your competition when you are trying to land in a job of your dream. Never get tired of creating opportunity for yourself through learning, whether it’s to develop a new skill, earn a different certification, or even change careers, it is one of the best investments that you can make.
I just realized, with all that jobs that Barbie had, what happened to all her pension contributions? She could have 200+ pension money sitting around eh. If I am Barbie’s financial planner, I’ll recommend that she put all her pensions into a single scheme so she can have easier control and oversight of all the monies she had invested. It will not just cut down the charges but it will also make it easier for her to draw her funds come on her retirement.
Lesson No 2: RECOGNIZE THE VALUE OF INVESTMENT
There’s a scene in the movie where Barbie said that she has all her money in a savings account and Ken responded something like “That’s totally wrong. You need treasury bonds, corporate bonds, CDs…” Though I keep telling my kids that I don’t like Ryan Gosling to be the Ken (it’s just my opinion don’t hate me), I couldn’t agree more with him on this part. This is true, CDs and other types of investments could earn you much more than simply putting your money in a traditional savings account.
And that long term investment is VALUABLE. Mattel discontinued certain dolls (pregnant Midge, Stacie, Video Girl Barbie, Growing Up Skipper, Magic Earring Ken, Sugar Daddy Ken and Allan) because of different reason. But today, these dolls kept in their original boxes are considered rare collectibles that hold greater value. This reminds us to recognize the potential value of assets and to be open to long-term strategies that might pay off significantly in the future.
Lesson No. 3: HAVE A FINANCIAL PLAN & GOAL
The movie also showed Barbie’s quest to find her purpose in life. This resonates to you, doesn’t it? For sure, most of us could relate to this. Regardless if it’s building a career, spending quality time with your loved ones or to travel the world, we all have our priorities. And these priorities can be your guide to have a clear direction for your financial plan and goal. Your priorities will tell you how you want to save, invest and spend your money and why it is important that you have financial independence. You need to identify what your goals are depending what truly matters to you and your ability to use your financial resources will be your weapon in reaching those goals. Just like Barbie, her financial independence gave her the ability to explore different careers that best suit her personality, her desires and goals in life.
Barbie lives a dream life, including a dream financial situation, though we cannot live in a Barbie world, these 3 financial lessons that I shared is not just about having money, this is also similar to what Barbie is trying to find out about herself and what matters the most for you. So, no matter where you are right now in your financial journey, accept where and what you are right now and align your savings and spending with your financial goals, they might just lead you towards a financially-secure life
