as able to get out of the 〃proverbial rat race〃 of being an employee at an early age。 It was made possible because of the strong financial knowledge I had acquired through these lessons。 Without this financial knowledge； which I call financial IQ； my road to financial independence would have been much more difficult。 I now teach others through financial seminars in the hope that I may share my knowledge with them。 Whenever I do my talks； I remind people that financial IQ is made up of knowledge from four broad areas of expertise。
No。 1 is accounting。 What I call financial literacy。 A vital skill if you want to build an empire。 The more money you are responsible for； the more accuracy is required； or the house es tumbling down。 This is the left brain side； or the details。 Financial literacy is the ability to read and understand financial statements。 This ability allows you to identify the strengths and weaknesses of any business。
No。 2 is investing。 What I call the science of money making money。 This involves strategies and formulas。 This is the right brain side； or the creative side。
No。 3 is understanding markets。 The science of supply and demand。 There is a need to know the 〃technical〃 aspects of the market； which is emotion driven； the Tickle Me Elmo doll during Christmas 1996 is a case of a technical or emotion…driven market。 The other market factor is the 〃fundamental〃 or the economic sense of an investment。 Does an investment make sense or does it not make sense based on the current market conditions。
Many people think the concepts of investing and understanding the market are too plex for kids。 They fail to see that kids know those subjects intuitively。 For those not familiar with the Elmo doll； it was a Sesame Street character that wa