SIXTY-THREE PERCENT OF AMERICANS don’t have enough money in savings to cover a $500 emergency, according to Forbes. It’s time to admit it: America has a financial literacy problem. Overall, we lack the financial know-how to prepare for worst-case scenarios and bounce back. This problem became critical when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March and workers were furloughed or fired and millions of people were left without a safety net to rely on. There’s an urgent need for better budget management in America, and the solution lies with young people. Providing millennials with personal financial education is a must if they are to build their wealth wisely and be better prepared for the next macro or micro financial crisis.

George Kroustalis has a passion for spreading financial literacy among youth. As a principal and financial advisor at CAPTRUST, George works daily with clients preparing for or enjoying retirement and sees first-hand the importance of savings and the rewards it brings. Early in his career, he led hundreds of 401k enrollment seminars teaching people how dollars saved today can multiply into thousands in the long run. One day, when a former seminar attendee approached George and told him that he followed George’s advice over a decade ago and today had more money than he ever imagined, George was inspired. He knew he had to reach young people and teach them the basics of finance so they could take advantage of the greatest asset they had: time. That was the beginning of his mission to spread the word.

His book, Secrets to Becoming a Financial Badass , keeps it simple. There are three main things millennials should focus on and master to stay financially healthy: Save, Spend, and Invest. Save first—whenever the paycheck arrives, immediately put some aside. Pay yourself first…it’s a time-honored system. Next, spend wisely in order to invest more. Spending smartly means more money to save, which means more money to invest, which maximizes future spending potential. Lastly, investing is the key to growing wealth. Compound interest is a magical thing that can take a single penny doubled every day and turn it into five million dollars by the thirtieth day. All three pillars are crucial for financial success, any way you measure it.

We sat down with George and asked him the primary questions he gets as an expert financial badass.

1. How did the COVID-19 pandemic highlight your book’s principles?

There’s an old adage that goes, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” My book gives readers the tools to not only prepare for inevitable crises but also to come out on top. Good financial planning and preparation for emergencies are actions that help weather the storm and can turn what may seem a dark and bad environment today into opportunity.

1. What do you feel is the biggest financial challenge for career-bound millennials?

There are so many more ways to spend money now, primarily through technology. Apps and games, money transfer services (Venmo, Cash App, PayPal), and subscription services like Spotify, Netflix, and Hulu give us more options to burn $10 here and $20 there—they take a chunk out of our pockets every month and add up without us realizing it. Combined with the rapidly increasing cost of higher education, it can be difficult for those entering the workforce to balance long term financial commitments and short term spends.

1. Financial literacy can be overwhelming. How does Financial Badass take the stress out of learning these critical skills and what are you hoping your readers will get from your book?

Financial anything can be overwhelming. The word alone makes most people cringe. My desire is to change that by making financial literacy more accessible and prove that this stuff isn’t as complicated as people think. Financial Badass uses a simple formula that’s worked well over time by focusing on what you can do with money rather than bogging you down with theory: save, spend, and invest. It’s that simple. You don’t need to major in economics and to read The Wall Street Journal to get comfortable with money. You just need to build a few good habits and prioritize savings.

1. We always hear that it’s “never too early to start saving for retirement.” In an economy where cost of living can be astronomically expensive, is this still the truth?

Absolutely! The earlier you start to save the better, because the more years you have in front of you, the less you need to save every month. A person with an income in their 20’s is WILDLY powerful, and yet, very few twenty-somethings know this: they have the most control over how big their retirement nest egg will be later in life. Getting into those habits when you get your first paycheck is much easier than trying to retrain yourself later in life when you have other financial commitments (a house, family, etc.).

1. In terms of building wealth, which do you feel is the more valuable skillset for younger adults who are still building their careers: saving or investing?

To invest, you need to have money saved. They go hand in hand: you can’t do one without the other. Saving is great and the first step, but if you don’t invest seeking the highest rate of return, then you’re selling yourself short. Investing and letting compounding work its magic is the other half—the more you can earn, the better. More time + investing = nailed it.

In the end, being “rich” or financially successful means different things to all of us. Maybe it’s buying a house, a spur-of-the-moment vacation, or tickets to a playoff game. The common denominator is that, no matter what you do in life, you need to have money for the day you don’t or can’t work anymore. You can’t predict everything life will throw at you (AKA 2020), but you can make a plan of positive action that keeps your financial future secure.