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Comment by carusooneliner | Hacker News Reader

Financial markets by Robert Shiller: https://www.coursera.org/learn/financial-markets-global

I wanted to invest better so I took this course to learn the basics of financial markets (I'm a software guy and have zero training in finance). After taking it, not only do I have the basics nailed down but have gained a massive appreciation of finance as a technology that, at its best, mitigates risk and advances society.

Shiller is an authority on the topic, having won a Nobel Prize in Economics no less. His penchant for financial market history and human behavior angle on things is a massive plus for this course. I'd say the course is useful education for entrepreneurs and curious folks alike.

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It's kind of crazy that, at least in the US, personal finance is not taught so much in grade school. I had to do a lot of reading and research now in my late twenties to figure out the best way to manage the RSUs I get at work and how to plan for a home purchase and retirement. It turns out (surprise) that most financial institutions don't have regular investors' best interest in mind. Instead, they see us as customers with value to siphon out over long periods of time.

Understanding how economies work[1], how financial service companies sell products, theories behind volatility and market forces, and how simple portfolio management can be goes a long way to improving an individuals ability to efficiently self-manage their finances.

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHe0bXAIuk0

The video gives a really good explanation but i loved the book he released freely along with that but maybe I have a preference for that. I am awed at by the knowledge this guy has ... If you haven't already read the book "Principles" by Dalio ( same guy)

I actually just finished this course and loved it! It covered all the financial ground that I was looking for... stock, options, brokers, financial planning, insurance, and financial theory.

+1 I loved this class

I was about to disagree, but it seems that course was redesigned in 2017 and the new syllabus looks like a real course.

So I'll just say the pre-2017 version I took was clearly created by bad PR-people.

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