One of my favorite things I had the opportunity to do at the NYSE was talk to student groups and young guests. I never took it for granted that this trip was special for them. I’d gladly welcome them to, as I called it, the “Yankee Stadium of Finance”.
If they were from Chicago, I’d play nice and refer to the NYSE as the “Wrigley Field of Finance”. If they were from Boston, I made sure to emphasize it was the “Yankee Stadium of Finance” and then rail on their garbage stadium. But I digress…
The reason I did this was quite simple—I was once in their shoes. I visited the NYSE when I was 9 years old. The people there and its iconic floor captivated me. I learned about trading, got to throw paper on the floor, and even looked over a few charts.
Who knew I would spend over half my life working on those hallowed grounds? Certainly, not me. That visit made an impact on me. Now, whenever I have the chance, I pay it forward.
While things have changed thanks to the pandemic, I now spend quality time on Zoom calls with a variety of student groups.
This past week I got to talk to a great group of students from the University of Buffalo. Our Zoom call was supposed to be my typical presentation. I’d basically teach them a few things about finance and my career, but it turned into an interactive discussion about current events and how they were seeing things.
On this call, I asked most of the questions.
I had to know… Who was actively trading, and was anyone trading GameStop? A bunch of hands went up and I got to hear their thoughts. I was pleasantly surprised at the replies and results of their trading.
Some traded options, others like myself, dabbled in just the underlying equity trade. We discussed what their game plan was upon entering—were you aware of the risk, and more importantly, did you escape with a profit? Thankfully, each answer was well thought out and responsible. They seemed to know their risk and their goals. Sure, they were in the stock because of the buzz, but they didn’t get too caught up in it. Yes, they even turned a small profit.
The other thing that got my attention was the diversity amongst the group. Each time I meet with students I continue to notice this positive trend. The financial word is changing. It’s getting younger, smarter and much more diverse. It’s not just about trading, but money management, having useful financial skills and helping others.
The interactions kept flowing. I could see I was dealing with future wealth managers, entrepreneurs and traders. Instead of me lecturing them about risk management or trading rules for different time frames, we had a constructive back and forth discussion.
Like most of my student interactions, I came away impressed. Every year students are more informed, more inquisitive and more diverse. While I am supposed to be the one teaching them, I come away enlightened.
That being said, there is so much more that needs to be done to promote financial literacy at an early age. We leaders in the industry need to reach out to communities that don’t have the resources to learn, and teach the importance of saving and investing. These are the core building blocks in the real world needed to survive and thrive.
Things are moving in the right direction - not necessarily with the alacrity needed to change overnight, but it’s happening. I see it when I talk to the students. I am very bullish on the future leaders of the financial industry, and the responsible paths on which they may lead us.
Follow up to prior posts…
$EXPI announced a 2-for-1 stock split in late January and immediately rallied. I wrote about it here. Since that article, the stock continued its meteoric rise. $EXPI officially splits February 16th, but as of the close on February 9th it has doubled. If this holds, then the resulting split price will be the same as the day they announced. INSANE!
After spending time blogging about $GME and $AMC here and here, I decided to go to the mall this week to see what all the fuss was about. My results…
The Kids are Alright...
I think AMC should have opened up months ago. I know I am the outliner, but I live in South Dakota. I know I personally would have gone to a movie. I . Yes, I know the risks too. I am a first responder. Financial education absolutely needs to be increased. We should start teaching it in middle-school. I started working at age 12, and I wish someone had told me about the stock market when I was 18. Thanks for your excitement for educating the next generation.