Listen to the 10-minute TEDx Talk about the personal finance crisis in the USA, study the vocabulary, and answer the questions below. This timely talk discusses the current struggle of many to make ends meet and the reasons for that, so if you’re interested in finances, retirement, or current events, it can be an eye-opening way to practice your English. 

This is a difficult podcast lesson, and is better for upper-intermediate or advanced learners.

If you’re a teacher using this in class, then review the vocabulary first, then give students the questions, and play the podcast out loud. You can also have students listen to the podcast at home for homework and then do the class discussion during class.

Vocabulary you can preview

Listen to the podcast from TEDx Talks

Comprehension questions

1. According to the opening of the podcast, what is humiliating and isolating? 
2. What are some examples that Elizabeth White gives that demonstrate her personal finance crisis?
3. What do her friends wonder?
4. Where does she feel that her online work applications go?
5. What type of people catch her eye now?
6. How much money (according to experts) should we set aside to maintain our standard of living?
7. What is the “three-legged retirement income stool?”
8. What does Elizabeth White want people to do to help combat this crisis?

Discussion questions

1. How is retirement handled where you live?
2. Do you think retirement is easier or more difficult than it was for previous generations? Why?
3. Whose job is it to improve the financial situation for older people? Why?
4. Do you think retirement is going to become easier or more difficult in the future? Why?
5. Are there ways in which people can help one another save money, get jobs, or overcome personal financial challenges? If yes, what are they? If not, why not?
6. Elizabeth White mentions her opinion on online job applications. What do you think about online job applications? Why?
7. In what ways do you try to save money?
8. Are there things worth splurging on in life? Why or why not?

Answers (to the comprehension questions)

1. Financial trouble is humiliating and isolating.
2. That her electricity was cut off, she meets the eligibility requirements for food stamps, and that she buys the small size of detergent. Other answers are possible.
3. They wonder how someone so well-educated could be struggling financially.
4. She feels that they go into a black hole, meaning that no one ever really looks at them.
5. She pays attention to homeless women now.
6. 15-20%
7. It’s a metaphor for savings, pension, and social security.
8. She wants people to share their stories and help one another think of ways to change the world to help put a stop to this personal finance crisis.

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