Finance and Family Archives

Student Test Scores Show That ‘Grit’ Is More Important Than IQ

June 4, 2013
David S. Chang

Aimee Groth What’s the best predictor of success? IQ, talent, luck? Nope. It’s ‘grit,’ more than anything else. Through her research at the University of Pennsylvania — and firsthand experience teaching in New York City’s public schools —psychologist Angela Duckworth has found that the ability to withstand stress and move past failures to achieve a goal is […]

May 29, 2013
David S. Chang

by Mandi Woodruff As if the promise of a $27,000 student debt load wasn’t enough to have college kids sweating in their cargo shorts, research shows that younger generations are becoming the most stressed out people in the country. In a telling infographic based on data from the American Psychological Association, the folks over at CollegeDegreeSearch.net take a look […]

April 3, 2013
David S. Chang

A middle-income family will spend roughly $250,000 to raise a child. For higher earners, it shoots up to $500,000! This is a large investment for anyone, but as any parent will tell you, an important one. A recent survey showed that 75 percent of parents believe their kids are “a little spoiled.” It is easy […]

February 27, 2013
David S. Chang

For years, people planning for retirement have used the 4 percent rule of thumb to determine if there is enough money saved to retire. To use the rule, you take the total value of your retirement accounts and calculate 4 percent of it. That amount is how much you can withdraw the first year and […]

January 9, 2013
David S. Chang

About a year ago I wrote an article about the importance of setting goals, using the term S.M.A.R.T. as a handy acronym for five important components for well-designed goals. The simple mnemonic stands for: Specific: Create goals that are clear and well-defined. This helps you understand the why, what, when, where, who and how […]