Mortgages, pension plans, joint filings -it’s a whole new world out there. Are you prepared for it? If you are like most Americans, chances are the answer is no.

Advice on being financially savvy varies, but most professionals agree on one thing: Americans need a financial reality check. Check out this brief introduction to seven important financial topics that you need to know to be money smart.

• Credit- Credit is a necessary evil, so you better understand it. You have a credit score. This score tells lenders how likely you are to pay back your debt. The higher the score the more likely it is the banks will take mercy on you when it comes to interest rates and programs. A score too low and they might not loan you any money at all. The easiest way to build good credit is to use and pay off your credit card every month. Never carry a balance!

• Saving – Putting away a tenth of your pay check is a great way to start saving. What made saving easy for me was having the tenth of my paycheck automatically deducted. I got used to living without that money. Since I never had it, I never missed it. I would also look into getting an online, high yield savings account to put that money into. It is also a good idea to have an emergency fund with six months worth of expenses in it. That way if something unforeseen happens, you are ready.

• Budgeting – Budgeting in and of itself is not hard at all. It’s sticking to the budget that is tough. First, you have to figure what it is that you’re buying. Luckily, if you are reading this you probably have a Thrive account, so you are aware of the amazing job it does categorizing where you spend your money. The next part of creating a budget is finding out where you are needlessly spending cash and resolving to cut back. I was shocked when Thrive told me that I had spent $100 on breakfast in March. I decided to cut it back to $50, and I used Thrive to monitor my spending and make sure I met my goal. The result? I met my goal and saved $50 this month, which I used to pay off my $50 electric bill.

• Investing – Investing is scary if you don’t know what you are doing. The easiest way to start is to have a good understanding of stocks and bonds. Bonds are a lock for making you money. Stocks, on the other hand, are riskier, but they regularly outperform all other investments. The keys to investing are to diversify your portfolio and understand that investing takes years, not months.

• Debt Management – If you find yourself in debt there is only one way out. It is not through debt consolidators, nor the credit counselors. To save your credit score and retain the hope of living a normal life, you must repay your debt. It doesn’t really matter how you repay it –though the best practice is to pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first and work down from there— the only thing that matters is that you make a commitment to yourself to get out of debt. Like most things in life, there is no “Get Out of Jail Free” card when it comes to debt. It takes commitment and sacrifice.

• Building Equity – Equity is the value of your house minus your mortgage. To build equity make as much of a down payment on the house as you can afford, keep your home in good shape and make improvements and renovations when possible, add more to your monthly mortgage payment to pay down the principle, and consider shortening the term of your mortgage to 10 or 15 years, if possible. For most people, if you buy a house in a good school district and make some nice improvements and renovations, equity should be easy to come by.

• Retirement – It is never too early to start to save for retirement. Social Security might not be around when we grow up, so it is up to you to look out for yourself. The earlier you start saving the more time your money has to grow. Chances are, now that you have that real job, your employer offers some type of retirement plan, usually a 401(k). Start putting money into your 401(k) as soon as possible. You will save on your taxes, and if your company matches your contributions, it is like getting free money! If your employer offers a 403(b) start early as well, but look very closely at the associated fees. Nothing will hurt you more when saving for retirement than fees. In the event that you don’t have access to a 401(k) or 403(b), look into starting an Individual Retirement Account, or an IRA. The Roth IRA is the most popular type of IRA, and a great place to start your research.

Becoming financially savvy takes some time and hard work, but is of the utmost importance. I have only given you the briefest of outlines on these seven topics, but they provide a great place to start understanding personal finance. I will spare you the scary financial statistics and say this: take an hour a day, or even an hour a week, and devote it to learning something about these seven topics above and you will be a financial wizard in no time!