Poor money management is just one of the basic skills graduates are missing. This inability may lead to a person’s long-term failure, both in life and career. In my opinion, this problem is caused by both the lopsided education system and overprotective parents.

Firstly, schools are aiming at a over-specific target, which is academic achievement. Unarguably, the mission of school is to pass on fruits of human wisdom rather than everyday tips, but the one-dimensional pursuit tends to neglect other aspects in life. Students have to mold themselves through the slot called college entrance and develop habitual tastes only for textbook knowledge.

Secondly, according to a study, a significant amount of parents give out allowances on a weekly basis because children spend money irresponsibly. And this appears problematic to me because parents are acting like control freaks. What they are doing is indeed keep kids from minor financial failures. Painful lessons are indispensable when it comes to money management. Children are more likely to suffer from bankruptcy afterwards if the lesson was not offered at an early stage.

To create school graduates with adequate knowledge in money management and other life-essential skills, we shall reshape our mindset on teenager education. The youth of today need not just scientific literacy. While being simply asked to reach high and dream big, they are actually in desperate need of preparation for adulthood. In school, it would be awesome if bank clerks can be invited and give lectures on financial must-knows. At home, parents should carry out some experiments on children’s attitude towards money, so they can work on risky signs their children financially exhibit.

To begin with, the evaluation system of students has evolved to a lopsided monster, on the one hand, it demands a high level of academic performance, on the other hand, it belittles anything that does not appear on transcriptions. There are significant elements of life that are neglected as well, such as the art to maintain long-term relations, the management of one’s subliminal feelings, etc. Uncatchable speed the society hurtles forward and ever-rising bar of professional tracks make the academic pressure extremely high and render remaining aspects of life trivial and trifling.

And when it comes to money management, many view it only as a reflection of the personality, rather than a technique that takes training. Or some may argue that the way one allocated his/her money is just another inclination inherited from one’s family. Both perspectives underestimate the importance of money management education. And money management is not an isolated area, it binds tightly with other life essentials, such as knowledge of law and politics, career trajectories choice, etc. Those, as well as scientific common sense, should be conveyed by some professionals at an early stage in life.

The solution I may propose for the first reason discussed above is that we should adopt a panoramic view when estimating our lives. We should take stock of our situations not only by grades but by the degree we take control of our lives. Lopsided focus results in neglect of the whole picture. Secondly, I believe that money management should not be reduced to a mere inclination decided by personality, and knowledge should be passed on in classes. And a practical way to set a course on not only financial skills but also other must-knows that contribute to becoming a responsible adult.