Heroes in Business - Experian Identity Report with Rod Griffin, Lifes Big Moments Graduation

Episode Date: May 14, 2023

Experian Identity Report with Rod Griffin, Lifes Big Moments Graduation. Rod Griffin is the Sr Director of Public Education for Experian. Extremely valuable information for making sure you know what to do when graduating and heading out into the world of adulthood. Listen as David Cogan, Host of the Heroes Show and Founder of Eliances entrepreneur community.   

Up in the sky, look, it's captivating, it's energizing, it's Eliance's Heroes. Eliance's is the destination for entrepreneurs, investors, CEOs, inventors, leaders, celebrities, and startups, where our heroes in business align. Now, here's your host flying in, David Kogan, founder of Eliance's. And we're back again. Now, you all have just requested these Experian Identity Reports because I know you share with me how much you learn from it. And that's why we're doing it each week. That's right. We have with us Rod Griffin, back by popular demand. He's the Senior Director of Public Education for Experian. Make sure that you go to Experian.com, E-X-P-E-R-I-A-N.com,

because you're watching, listening to me, David Kogan, host of the E-Alliances Hero Show. So make sure that you go to E-Alliances.com. You can check out many various interviews, including ones when I had the NASA administrator on. So make sure you go to Experian.com. Life's big moments. Rod, we've got to talk today about graduating. Why? Because it's a weekly Experian Identity Report. Rod Griffin, he's the one that's going to be interviewed.

He's part of the show, and leads experience national consumer education programs and works with consumer advocates and their financial educators to help consumers increase their ability to understand and manage their personal finances and protect themselves from fraud and identity theft. All right, this segment is going to be extremely valuable for people who are graduating. We're going to discuss what you need to do regarding managing your identity after you graduate. So it just doesn't end right when you graduate. What do you do next? So, Rod, what is the first thing regarding protecting your identity and preparing for life after graduating? Sure. And when you graduate, and there are two things we should probably address when we talk about graduating. Sure. And when you graduate, and there are two things we should probably address

when we talk about graduating. Think about college graduation and you're entering your new life and you have a new college degree and a new career, we hope, and you have probably student loans. So the first thing you need to think about is what do you need to do to start repaying those student loans and how do you manage your credit? Because that credit report is going to be critical as you enter your adult independent life. You know, it can play a part in getting an apartment, in getting a cell phone, in getting utility service, in potentially getting a job. All those credit scores have nothing to do with getting a job. Employers never get scores. That's a common myth.

But your report can be a piece of that decision if it's really a financial job. So get your credit report. Know what's in there. Consider monitoring it. Make sure that you're taking care of it. Don't get too carried away with applying for new credit because you need to have the credit you need, but not more than you want. And you will be inundated likely with offers to apply for new credit.

Make sure you know why you're applying for credit, what you're going to do with it, how you're going to repay it, and by what date you're going to repay it so that you don't get yourself into debt trouble. Credit's a financial tool. Debt can be a financial problem. So for college graduates, I think those are kind of the things to start thinking about. graduates, I think those are kind of the things to start thinking about. The thing to know is that most of us aren't college, well, I am, but you and I probably are college graduates, but the majority of the population is not. I mean, we think of college graduation and we sort of,

well, that's everybody, but it's not. Only about 25% of students who graduate from high school get a college degree. So somewhere between 70 and 80% of students and adults do not have college degrees, and that's not a bad thing. They have other things to think about. Are they going to go get a professional certificate? Are they going to get a professional license of some sort? Are they going to get training? Because there's still education and still things that they'll need to do. And, you know, that's going to involve finance and spending some money.

So think about what those costs are going to be. Check your credit report because you're going to need that report to work for you just like anyone else. Just like that college graduate, the high school graduate is going to want their finances in order because they're going to start looking for a job. You're going to need to have a bank account. You're going to need to have credit accounts. So check your credit report. Know what's in that report. Consider subscribing to a monitoring service.

If you are just graduating high school or college and you do not have a credit history, enroll in our app on your phone or your mobile device, and you can create a credit report with Experian. Having a credit report is the first step in establishing a path toward financial health. You need to have a credit history so that you can access other financial tools. So we have something called Experian Go that will help you do that. And then from there, enroll in Experian Boost. And then from there, enroll in Experian Boost. Use your cell phone payments, your utility payments, your streaming service payments, and even your rent payments to increase your credit scores and to add account information,

positive account information to your report so that you can build that credit score a bit faster and so that you can then have a better financial footing to get started. So use the tools that are available to you today that aren't taught in school. That's right. That's right. And it's all about graduating. What do you do? What should you be doing regarding when you graduate? Because you're listening and watching to me, David Kogan, host of the Alliances Hero Show. Make sure you go to alliances calm e L I a n CS calm once again that's e L I a n CS calm the only place where entrepreneurs align because we've got with us rod Griffin senior director of public education for experience he's part of the weekly identity report by experience go to experience calm ecom, E-X-P-E-R-I-A-N.com. So, Rod, we're talking again about graduating and

that. How do you manage your identity, though, going forward? What's, I mean, you know, you graduate, and now you're out and, quote, what, the real world and that. How do you, how do you manage, how do you manage the identity? Yeah, adulting begins and it's so much fun. Usually it is, but not always. You have to make sure that your identity is used appropriately and that, one, you are using your identity responsibly. So start with social media. We're all active there.

We want to overshare. We want to tell people, hey, we just graduated. This is where I am. This is what I'm doing. I'm getting a job. I'm going to school. I'm going to overshare. We want to tell people, hey, we just graduated. This is where I am. This is what I'm doing. I'm getting a job. I'm going to school. I'm going to go to college. This is where I'm going to go. And all of a sudden, all of your identifying information is open to theft by identity thieves and potential misuse. So don't overshare. I know you're excited. You should be. You should be celebrating, but you should also be cautious about oversharing your identity, which is easy to do.

That's the first thing. You will be asked for your identifying information at just about every turn. So every time you stand in a line, which we all do all the time, you will be asked for your identity. Make sure you know why and what identity elements they need. If they are asking for something they don't need, don't give it to them. So be careful about what you're sharing and when. If you're applying for credit, be sure that you're consistent, that you're accurate, that you're complete in the applications, but that when you're applying, you're doing so in a safe,

secure way with companies that are taking the right measures to protect your identity and to use it appropriately. It's really critical that you own and control your identity and how it's used and where it's shared. Well, Rod, you shared such valuable information in regards to graduating and that, and the show too, because we've just got time for one more here. When somebody goes to Experian.com, what again should they be clicking, should they be looking for regarding the graduating part? Sure.

Visit our website, Experian.com, as you said. We have a ton of free education resources. You can search for what do I do when I graduate. You'll find lots of information to explain steps you might consider or things to think about. Consider reviewing your credit report. So enroll in our monitoring service and you can get free reports once a month, free credit scores, as well as monitoring for misuse of your information. as monitoring for misuse of your information.

And you don't have to pay at all for that. And it will help you create more security for your identity. And at the same time, if you're building credit, we can help you identify the kinds of accounts that might be best for you. So we match what you tell us you need to offers that would be best for you. You can always say no, the most powerful word in credit. But if there's a right account, the right interest rates, the right fees, it's a great way to help you to build credit when you're young, which will then work for you as you get older. So take in all of the information you get and be careful about what information you're sharing out.

Thank you again to Rod Griffin, Senior Director of Public Education for Experian. Make sure that you go to Experian.com. This has been the Weekly Experian Identity Report with David Kogan, host of the Alliances Hero Show. Go to Alliances.com, E-L-I-A-N-C-E-S.com. And you can also check out past episodes of the Experian Weekly Identity Report. Thank you again, Rod, for your time today. Thanks, David.