I'm not a fan of this "dump a whole crap ton of semi-relevant information at once with no context" style. Personal finance should have discrete steps that compl

I'm not a fan of this "dump a whole crap ton of semi-relevant information at once with no context" style. Personal finance should have discrete steps that complete newbies can master and you shouldn't move onto the next step until you've mastered the previous step(s) and shouldn't assume you have any prior knowledge. This article deal with specifics of trading ETFs yet doesn't contain the words "debt" and "emergency fund." This is my personal opinion coming from a background where my personal finance knowledge started out as "I have a bank account" and is now more advanced than most people. I also came from a poor family. IMO the very basic first steps anyone needs to take when getting the foundation of personal finance down are: 1) Either increase income or reduce spending so the money coming in is greater than the money going out. This can come with serious lifestyle changes, maybe you have to sell or downgrade a car, for example. 2) Aggressively pay off any high interest debt (credit card, subprime auto loans, etc.). 3) Build emergency fund. Use only for emergencies, not planned expenses. 4) From here, do everything in your power to not end up with high interest debt. After you get the foundation then there's a lot of flexibility based on your goals and life situations and this is where the "personal" comes in. Many people haven't mastered foundational steps, and mastering those steps are more important than meandering around about CDs, charitable giving being tax exempt, micromanaging credit scores, and tax loss harvesting. Not to mention it doesn't have the important caveat that you have to itemize to take advantage of the specific tax deductions mentioned. I actually know a guy who is trading individual stocks while also paying 20%+ interest on thousands of dollars in credit cards.