From a young age, my parents ingrained in me the importance of saving and investing. My dad, ever the CPA, stressed the importance of capturing those tax-free dollars in my company’s 401(k) plan, even when I could barely make ends meet in my first job out of college. For the most part, my friends also understand the value of saving and investing, as we every once in a while compare debit card savings perks when we split the bill at brunch or compare notes on the latest financial software. A recent survey finds that my fellow millennials and I are doing some things right and some things wrong when it comes to our investments.
Paved With Good Intentions
BlackRock’s latest Global Investor Pulse Survey uncovered some positive and negative truths about my generation. Let’s mix it up and begin with the good news:
Millennials are more confident about their financial futures than other generations. 65 percent of those of us surveyed said so, versus 52 percent of Gen X, 50 percent of Boomers and 59 percent of the Silent Generation.
Millennials are most likely to feel “investing is for people like me.” 48 percent of millennials answered this way, versus 45 percent of Gen X, 40 percent of Boomers and 43 percent of the Silent Generation.