“Beliefs are tools, not truths.” That is the core of Nir Eyal’s most recent book, Beyond Belief, and has strong implications for how students consider financial decisions of the present and future. In this episode, we dive deeper into the book and how a student’s financial beliefs can shape their behavior.

Nir says our beliefs influence what we notice, how we feel, and what we do with the information. He mentions that if students compare themselves to wealthier peers or adopt a defeatist mindset, it holds them back from taking opportunities.

It is more than just knowledge; they need to have persistence as well. It will not guarantee anything, but quitting guarantees letting go of that possibility. He encourages students to believe despite failing and to think ahead of what they will do when something goes wrong.

See the full transcript and listen to the episode to dive deep into the relationship between belief and action.

Also Check Out: The Psychology Behind Financial Decision Making with Jake Cousineau

Before Jake Cousineau was educating others on personal finance, he was one of the students making the same financial mistakes. His experiences helped create an approach to financial education through storytelling, vulnerability, and allowing intense money topics to be more accessible.

Jake is a personal finance teacher at Viewpoint School and the author of How to Adult: Personal Finance for the Real World and Face Your Financial Fears. He originally did not consider himself a finance expert but, after teaching himself, became the teacher who expanded the program from a trimester course to one that reached thousands of students.

What sets him apart is not the success stories, but his candid stories of mistakes from maxing out credit cards to financial anxiety. That openness to share helps these lessons feel real and normalizes asking for help on this tough subject.

He emphasizes the dangers for young people of the present and of the future. He said, “The sports gambling—like, this to me is such a ticking time bomb.” Not only does he focus on what to avoid now, but also on how to prepare for mortgages and investing as well.

See the full transcript and listen to the episode on helping students get past the fear of money and the vulnerable methods in doing so.

Join Us for this Week’s LIVE Event with NGPF Team Member Amanda Volz on Coming Full Circle in Financial Education

Join us for a special back-to-school conversation with Amanda Volz, Director of Professional Development at Next Gen Personal Finance, and the first teacher to create a free NGPF account in 2014. Amanda shares the story behind that milestone and how the NGPF community helped shape her growth as an educator. 

Register to join us tonight (Thursday, Aug. 27) at 4pm PT (7pm ET). 

About the Author

Zach Mann

Zach recently graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a degree in Sociology. Zach is a Communications Intern for NGPF, assisting with content creation for NGPF's various platforms. He enjoys contributing to communications that support a mission with a tangible impact.