Nikita Gibson says she is prepared for monetary literacy to be added to the nation’s college curriculums.
Nikita, who’s an affiliate actuary and the Vice President of Readability Life Insurance coverage Ltd, believes that instructing college students monetary literacy and different sensible life expertise is of profit to all Bajans.
Nikita stated: “We have to add monetary literacy to the curriculum for college kids. And truthfully, we will most likely identify it one thing like Life Hacks. In order that means it is not simply monetary literacy, you cowl different issues as effectively.”
Of the idea that the challenges that individuals face as adults right now have modified as society has advanced, she stated that she can provide real-world examples of why life hacks being taught in colleges can higher put together tomorrow’s youngsters for the challenges of maturity.
She stated: “Everybody would not perceive how issues work or what the processes are or what the steps are. No person defined to me after I go to the physician or go to get surgical procedure, or if I must get my medicine that I’m to get a claims kind. Except you’re employed within the space as an grownup otherwise you’ve seen it occurring you do not know what the method is.”
She stated many adults take as a right that each one individuals are aware of tips on how to correctly use Automated Teller/Banking Machines (ATM/ABM) or perceive tips on how to accurately, learn, write, and money cheques, and that’s unfaithful. With some people taking quarter-hour to do one transaction on the ABM, it’s apparent that it is not a talent everybody has or simply develops rapidly.
Giving yet one more situation, Nikita stated: “I got here throughout an grownup just lately that didn’t know what the 2 traces throughout a cheque meant. They didn’t know that meant do not money that cheque straight away, this cheque wants to take a seat. And that was just because he had by no means owned a checkbook.”
She has been working for over a decade within the fields of finance and insurance coverage, amassing a wealth of data and superior analytical and problem-solving expertise.
Past her love for the world of numbers and finance, she’s additionally devoted herself to giving again to the folks of Barbados nonetheless she will.
With roles in a number of charities akin to Soroptomist Worldwide, Rotary Barbados, The Oistins Fish Competition planning committee, and sitting on the Board of the Princess Margaret Secondary Faculty, Nikita tries to balances her tireless work ethic with an immensely giving coronary heart.
And this stuff have absolutely culminated in her Instagram web page MyTwoCents.bb that she launched late in January of this yr.
“The Mytwocents.bb is a web page I simply wished to concentrate on sharing the monetary data that I’ve gained whether or not that was by means of skilled means or private means. And that is what that web page mainly envelopes. All of the completely different monetary areas and sectors, all of the completely different tidbits of data that we take as a right…The web page simply focuses in on the issues that influence us financially in Barbados and the way we will navigate the area inside our island,” Nikita stated.
She says the web page makes an attempt to distill as a lot monetary data associated to points she sees many Bajans fighting akin to paying taxes, understanding well being/life insurance coverage, dealing with day-to-day monetary planning, budgeting, managing side-hustles, and managing financial savings.
Nikita identified that many adults have hassle within the space of economic planning, and this is actually because they’re afraid to see what their true monetary place is or they’re afraid to see how lengthy it is going to take for them to succeed in explicit objectives.
However utilizing infographics and concise breakdowns to compress her years of data permits Nikita to succeed in as many individuals as potential. However she encourages folks to at all times do their unbiased analysis as effectively.
Nikita stated: “I usually do not name it recommendation. What I’m doing is simply sharing my data base and I at all times encourage individuals who comply with the web page to talk to a monetary advisor, converse to your accountant, you may converse to a lawyer about any of the issues, or simply attain out to folks to seek out out.”
She additionally absolutely embraces the monetary actuality associated to COVID-19 and has made it a basic a part of how she tries to elucidate a lot of what folks should plan for when it comes to funds, even inside this Nationwide Pause.
“The COVID pandemic has really made issues worse with individuals dropping their jobs or working shorter hours. For people and companies, COVID-19 has taught us many issues however one factor that stands out is, we weren’t ready for a monetary burden/emergency. Sure, the pandemic was an unexpected occasion however emergencies are by nature unknowns. What we do know is, whatever the how and why, we’d like cash to outlive,” Nikita stated.
For now, Nikita has no plans of utilizing every other web platforms or web sites except for the MyTwoCents.bb Instagram web page to unfold monetary consciousness, however she says she remains to be dedicated to working to carry this information to Bajans offline by means of her charity work, in workshops and through lectures.
She hopes the curiosity she is seeing on the web page up to now is an indication of Bajans monetary consciousness and literacy rising, as she continues to assist Bajans on their monetary journeys nonetheless she will.
