A birthday present taught me how to be financially independent. Financial independence is the status of having enough income to pay one’s living expenses without having to be employed or dependant on others. In other words, it is the 21st century definition of retirement.

I had never known about all this. I had no knowledge about creating income without being an employee. My mother always taught me to go to school, get good marks, obtain a qualification and get a good job.

Of course, it is a good thing to get education, but at the same time, to make it in life, one needs to be financially literate. I learnt all that from Rich Dad Poor Dad, a financial literacy book that I received as a birthday present and I am grateful to have read it. That book by Robert T. Kiyosaki elevates humanity financial well-being. I now know what it takes to be financial free. The most important thing I learned is to invent money and to think the way rich people do.

After reading it, I decided to go on and read other books so that I could have more knowledge on personal finance and that paid off because I realised what I had been doing wrong. I then decided to change the way I had been doing things and put all the knowledge I acquired into effect by keeping track of my goals, paying off debt and looking at money in a positive way.

I then decided to take half of my salary and invest it in forex trading. It was a risky step but I had learned that winners are people who are not afraid of losing so I gave it a try. I would be lying if I said I started making profits on my first trades. I made huge losses to the point that I blew my account but I never gave up.

Now I can say that I am financially independent. I have started making consistent profits and I no longer rely on my job to pay all my expenses, and it all started with reading a small book.

I have realised that I don’t have to be employed in order to generate sufficient income. I can do my own thing and achieve my dreams. Having that book as a present was the best thing that happened me and reading it changed my perspective and my life. I am now financially literate and confident. I now know that I can achieve great things through determination, dedication and thinking out of the box.

I encourage everyone to stand up and fight for their dreams. One must learn to overcome obstacles such as fear, cynicism, laziness and begin taking initiative. One can be an entrepreneur, an investor or a forex trader. What matters the most is standing up and fighting for one’s dreams and financial independence. In that way, we can tackle poverty and excel as black youth.

Tell us: What do you think financial independence is?