The Squid Game TV show has recently become the number one television show on Netflix in over 90 countries! The hype made its way to us, and we ended up watching the entire series. While watching Squid Game, we realized there are many important lessons to be learned on personal finance.
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As for a rough summary of the TV show, a secret group of rich people invited 456 people to participate in a series of six deadly games.
Those selected had serious money problems and many other issues. The main character was in massive debt and could have used some personal finance wisdom!
Although the Squid Game story is fiction, we can all learn valuable lessons regarding debt and personal finance.
So let’s jump in!
Here are the six key takeaways we would like to share with each of you.
Table of Contents
1. Be Prepared With an Emergency Fund
When my wife and I first married, we did not know the importance of having an emergency fund. We had never even heard of this word!
Later we were fortunate enough to find Dave Ramsey and found out the importance of having an emergency fund!
Many people lost their jobs during times like the 2008 economic recession and COVID-19.
An emergency fund isn’t just in case of losing a job, applies to other big and sudden things that happen in life, like your car engine breaking down.
Just imagine having enough money in a specific account for all types of emergencies.
We highly recommend starting with a 3-6 months emergency fund.
We prefer six months. For retired people, two years of an emergency fund should sufficient.
Because when the next recession or stock market crash hits, there will be enough money in the emergency fund so that no money needs to be taken out of retirement investment accounts.
Instead, you will be able to wait until the stock market recovers. 🙂
My wife and I started our Emergency Fund and put it into a high-yield savings account to give us more peace of mind.
We recommend not putting your emergency fund into a high-yield savings account and NOT into the stock market since you will need quick access to the money.
A great place to get started with your savings account is CIT Bank. They offer very competitive saving rates with no monthly maintenance fees.
With their Saving Connect Account, you can earn 12x the national average! There are no ATM fees, and you have the convenience of online banking.
Rest assured, CIT Bank is also FDIC insured!
2. Get Out of Debt – Fast!
“ Every time you borrow money, you’re robbing your future self” –
Nathan Morris
An important financial lesson from the Squid Game show is to stay away from bad debt! Which to us means debt doesn’t make you money, don’t hold onto it.
I made the mistake in my early 20s to buy a luxury car with a car loan.
For many reasons, the car became a nightmare. Looking back, I’m so glad I sold it and have zero car loan debt; it feels free!
After a lot of hard work, I could graduate from college (with bachelor’s and master’s degrees) debt-free!
If you want to know how we make that happen and have desires like us, you can read 11 Money Tips That Helped Me Graduate Student Debt Free for more details.
We can proudly say: We are completely debt-free except for the mortgage. We feel the freedom! It’s so good for our mental health and relationship!
We are not trying to boast but want to share our process and hope everyone can feel the freedom that comes from becoming debt-free.
3. Live the Budget Life (it’s worth it)
Buying things in cash is worth it, even though it takes patience and time to save up the needed cash.
Make sure to know if the thing you are thinking about buying is truly a ‘need’ or just a ‘want’. Give yourself time to think it over or cool down before purchasing.
It’s also okay to use a credit card, but make sure to pay it off immediately.
Instead of eating out a lot, my wife and I would cook at home. We would meal plan for the week and put any leftovers in the freezer. Doing this is convenient, especially when you’re constantly on the go.
We buy a lot of things second-hand and save a lot of money by not buying something brand new.
There are many free things through the Facebook marketplace, such as baby items, household items, etc.!
Mint Mobile has helped us save tons of money, especially during college! We all know how phone plans can get pricy with long, frustrating contracts.
Our friends told us about Mint Mobile many years ago. For many reasons, we are still using them today!
Mint Mobile offers amazing plans at incredible prices, with plans as low as only $15 a month! My wife and I pay only $15 monthly for our phone plans. Check out how you can save money with them today!
4. Have Health Insurance
In the squid game series, the main character made a huge mistake- he canceled his mom’s health insurance plan.
In the USA, hospital bills can be very expensive.
If we didn’t have health insurance, then the delivery cost for our baby would have been $12,000 out of pocket. If there would have been complications or other issues, then that bill would have been higher.
Health insurance is a big blessing for us; we cannot imagine without it!
5. Invest Smart, Avoid Gambling
In one of the Squid Game episodes, one guy taught the lesson to “don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” We agree! We need to invest more and invest more wisely.
Regarding funds, we love the Total Market Fund and S&P 500 fund. If you don’t know what to invest in, they both can be a good starting point!
Gambling can become a scary addiction. We know recently how cryptocurrency, Game Stop stock, and other things have been crazy.
For us, it is more like gambling. Someone with much extra money could invest in these things but must be willing to lose it all.
90% of our stock market investments are in a regular mutual fund, index fund, or ETF. 9% of our investments are in single stocks. Less than 1% is in cryptocurrency.
6. Spend Quality Time With Your Family.
We know how life can get busy. We need to work and make money for family needs. No matter how busy life gets, it’s important to remember FAMILY TIME.
Time needs to be spent building important relationships with family.
We enjoy going on dates and spending time with our little kiddo away from work and distractions. Relationships are the spice of life!
When I was doing work and school full time, my schedule was pretty crazy, but I always did my homework after my baby was sleeping because I wanted to help my wife and spend time with our baby.
I don’t want to miss any special moments of fatherhood and raising a kid.
For a recap, below are six finance and life lessons we took away from the squid game series.
- Save up an emergency fund
- Get off of debt fast
- Live the budget life
- Have health insurance
- Invest smart: avoid gambling (don’t put one egg in one basket)
- Spend quality time with your family
Thanks for reading! We’d love to hear your thoughts on the tv series and personal finance lessons; drop a comment below!
Disclaimer:
We hope the information in this article provides valuable insights to every reader but we, the Biesingers, are not financial advisors. When making your personal finance decisions, research multiple sources and/or receive advice from a licensed professional. As always, we wish you the best in your pursuit of financial independence!
