Cole Tretheway

Cole Tretheway is a self-taught financial writer. He spent three years teaching himself how money worked, from credit cards to investing. He later took on responsibility for investigating financial products for The Motley Fool Money, a widely-read personal finance publication.

Cole believes anyone can learn how to make good financial decisions by paying attention to the stuff that really matters. He leans into his English background to communicate how money works simply, drawing upon lessons taught by some of the best minds in personal finance. 

“You don’t need a four-year degree to get good results. You can do so with an internet connection and a well-written book. A good place to start is with The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. Once you know how people think about money, it all clicks.”

Areas of financial expertise

• Brokerages

• Banks

• Personal finance

• Credit cards

• Loans

• Budgeting

Education

Bachelor's, English, California Polytechnic State University

Licenses and certifications

Professional and Technical Communication, California Polytechnic State University

You should know

Cole spends most of his time writing or reading, fiction and nonfiction. His top recommendations for learning how people think about money generally are The Psychology of Money, Atomic Habits, and Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger.