밑 빠진 독에 물 붓기

사업을 하면서 잊지 말아야 할 것이 비용의 최소화입니다. 수익과 비용을 따져 수익이 많을 때 건실한 회사가 됩니다. 수익보다 지출이 많을 때 회사가 어려워지는 건 당연한 일이지요.

불경기를 맞아 소비자들은 지갑을 열지 않으려는 반면 경쟁은 더 치열합니다. 경쟁업체끼리 서로 많은 고객을 확보하기 위해 가격을 떨어트립니다. 마진도 자연히 줄어들지요. 이윤은 떨어지는데 사무실 임대료나 직원 월급 등 고정비는 그대로니 가랑비에 옷 젖는 식으로 자본이 고갈되어 결국엔 파산에 이릅니다.

모든 것을 바쳐 만든 회사를 닫을 수 없다는 생각에 집 등 자산을 담보하여 돈을 빌립니다. 수혈을 한 후 기대대로 회생이 되면 좋은 데 좀 나아지나 싶다가 다시 수렁으로 빠지는 일이 반복됩니다. 밑 빠진 독에 물붓기지요. 

회사를 운영하던 중 형편이 어려워진 친구들의 소식을 듣곤 합니다. 능력 있고 성실한 친구인데 또 어려움을 당하는구나싶어 안타깝습니다. 본인의 어려움도 어려움이려니와 힘들어 할 가족을 생각하면 더 가슴이 아픕니다. 

개인도 예외는 아닐 것입니다. 수입은 고려하지 않고 무분별하게 쓰다보면 낭패를 당합니다. 어릴 때부터 돈을 쓰고 관리하는 요령에 대해 배울 수 있으면 좋겠습니다.

<Learning how to avoid the debt trap>

Adam Goodman has a master's degree in business and a good job in financial services.

But he's made mistakes in handling his own money and still lives in his mother's basement.

He hopes to be out by his 30th birthday next month.

"My dad is a successful accountant and my mother has been in finance for as long as I can remember," he says. "My parents just never taught me about the subject of money, nor did I think to ask."

He spent frivolously, having owned six cars by the time he got his first university degree.

Then, he borrowed $60,000 to pay for his MBA studies and moved to China for two years. He found a job there, but racked up another $10,000 in consumer debt.

Goodman likes the idea of teaching young people about personal finances in school – as long as they learn why they need to care about their money.

"Sometime in your life, something will change. And if you're not prepared for the unexpected, you can get into trouble," he tells me.

"I never learned why it was important to save money until it was too late. I could have paid my debts faster and not had to move back home."

He tries to help others avoid the same plight in his book, Following the Goods: Financial Management for the Young and Ambitious, which he published himself and sells at his website, www.followingthegoods.com.

What if schools started teaching money skills to all students? What would be on the curriculum?

Compound interest is a good place to start, says high school teacher Mike Gentile, who has taught Grade 12 economics.

"Most students are completely shocked to understand how debt functions," he says. "The greatest consternation stems from the basic concept of amortization, where the lender is paid the bulk of the interest costs up front."

He shows students how they can pay up to twice the original amount borrowed if they spread the interest over many years.

The shorter the better when it comes to loan repayments: That one lesson can help them save thousands of dollars once they start buying cars and homes.

Gary Rabbior, president of the Canadian Foundation for Economic Education, has three simple concepts he'd teach youngsters:

- Opportunity cost. When you make a decision, take time to consider the next best alternative, both now and in the future.

- Scarcity. You can't have everything you want in life. There are finite limits that must be acknowledged.

- Trade-offs. Think about what you're giving up when you pick one option over another.

Students can go through school without ever being taught how to make decisions, he says.

They need a rational, step-by-step model to guide their future decisions on working, spending, borrowing, saving and investing.

They also need to consider the impact their decisions have on other people.

Rabbior thinks there's too much focus on preparing budgets in money management courses.

"Almost no one works with a budget. Out of 100 people, maybe three will do it," he says.

"We're pushing people into the details of something they're likely never to use."

It's better to focus on the big picture, he says. Are you saving enough to pay for what you want? Are you taking on more debt than you can handle?

(You can find a free 125-page book, Money and Youth, and help for parents and teachers at www.moneyandyouth.cfee.org.)

(Source: Toronto Star Sunday, Aug 9, 2009 page A11 by Ellen Roseman)

 

* scarcity: a: scant, sparse, rare, uncommon, unusal

            ant: abundant, common

            n: 1.부족(lack), 결핍

               2.기근(dearth), 식량부족

               3.드문 일(rarity)

                  job scarcity(취직난)