Advice for the younger generation a la “We’re In Debt”
We’re In Debt is holding a book giveaway and to enter, you have to give advice to teenagers on your blog.
Well, I’m not qualified to give any advice, but, in the frame of mind I’ve been recently, I’ll say what I wish I had known back then.
My tidbit of advice is, don’t be embarrassed if you don’t understand something that relates to your finances and just go with the flow. Be it student loans, retirement funds, life insurance policies, savings accounts, credit cards, whatever it might be… if you don’t understand, ask. Go to the library and read some books, research on the internet, talk to your parents or another trusted adult, but don’t be in the dark about your future because you didn’t know what you were signing up for.
It never hurts to ask. And understanding the long term implications of financial decisions can really help your future self get ahead.
Oh and the corollary to this advice is don’t sign up for a credit card just to get a free t-shirt. 
~J
August 3rd, 2007 at 6:19 am
Unfortunately, we can give all the advice we want to teenagers – and adults, too – but it won’t make any difference until they’ve experienced the ‘pain’ of being in debt for themselves.
Simply believing that being in debt is not the way to go is not enough. You have to know it for yourself. Even then, you’ve got to be brave enough to wake up, decide to change your behaviour and then do it…
Having said that, these three words can be quite magical when dealing with ‘financial service providers’ and their tempting offers:
NO THANK-YOU!
Russell