The Stress of Being Young, Broke, and Confused About a Career Path
November 15, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Careers, College, Entrepreneurship and Business, Random, Spending and Saving
I have a great wife, a cool dog, plenty of deep friendships, and a supportive extended family. However, I am young, broke, and I don’t enjoy the work that I am currently involved with. My favorite hobby right now is managing and writing for this blog. My thoughts about money and finance changed dramatically during my last year of college. I found myself drowning in debt with no career path. Now, I am working to pay bills, and struggling to pay down debt. I have to be honest when I tell you that I don’t have it all together when it comes to my finances. When I write posts, it reflects my goals, aspirations, and convictions towards how to handle money. Please don’t mistake me for someone who has experienced a ton of financial success at a young age. Basically, I learned from my financial mistakes a young age, whereas some people don’t learn from them until the later years of their life.ÂÂ
Generation Next Faces More Stress, More Costs of Education and Living
August 21, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Careers, College, Random
There have been numerous newspaper and magazine articles lately about Generation Next and the things they face and will face as they enter college and the working environment. I am intrigued by this generation because I am a part of the last half of it. We are deemed as the technology generation, the ipod generation, the MTV generation, and there are many other names floating out there. While this generation may be known for its technological prowess, it is undeniable that young people between the ages of 18 - 30 are hard working, motivated, and dedicated to replacing our baby-boomer parents in the working world. However, Generation Next faces many challenges in the years to come with the cost of education rising, more pressure to succeed and follow in the footsteps of their over-achieving parents, and trying to keep up with the rising costs of living.ÂÂ
A Degree Is Worthless. An Education Is Priceless.
July 10, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under Careers, College, Random
My generation has fallen into a huge trap when it comes to our philosophy about higher learning. We have created a society of young people whom think that having a college degree will automatically make them successful in the marketplace. Young people will spend anything and everything to get a so-called “prestigious” degree, and most young people look to Uncle Sam to help them fit the bill. The end product is a young and broke twenty-something whom is working at a decent job making $30,000 a year with $25 – 50 grand in student loans.ÂÂ
Student Loan Debt is Overwhelming For Young People
June 13, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Credit and Debt
Yesterday, the USA Today had an article on the front page about overwhelming student loan debt. The meat of this article dealt with the rising percentage of young people whom leave college with 75k to 125k in student loan debt! This troubled me when I thought about twentysomethings starting their working career that far in the hole with virtually unsecured debt, because let’s face it, the government is not going to come and repossess your college degree if you do not pay back your loans. They will simply make your life a living hell until you pay them back.ÂÂ
Sticking to a Budget is Harder Than I Thought
May 25, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Random, Spending and Saving
I am fairly new out of college. I got married straight out of finishing my undergraduate degree. I was fired up to start saving money and buying wisely with my new found income which about tripled after I finished school. This post is all about me being real with myself and those of you that read my blog. This is not a surprise to any of you, but it was a lot tougher than I thought it would be to stick to a strict budget and save up for big ticket items.ÂÂ
Don’t Forget to Consolidate Your Loans!
April 18, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Credit and Debt
This is a reminder for all soon-to-be college graduates: CONSOLIDATE YOUR STUDENT LOANS! It may seem hard to do since you are being bombarded with direct mailings from 100 different student loan consolidation companies. However, many students forget to do the consolidation before they graduate, and this can be a very costly lapse of memory. Find a reputable company and consolidate all of your loans into one large loan. If you do so before you graduate, many companies are offering a fixed interest rate of 4.75%. If you wait until after July 1st, the interest rate will be variable and it could rise past 7%!ÂÂ
Debt Consolidation: Is It Right For You?
February 23, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Credit and Debt
With millions of Americans taking on debt that they cannot handle, numerous non-profit debt consolidation and credit counseling companies have popped up all across the country. Many people think that consolidating debt is a magical way to reduce payments and interest rates, but it comes with implications. You need to know the truth about debt consolidation before you make the decision to hand over your finances to a stranger
Relieving, not Curing
College: A big decision
February 2, 2006 by Erik Folgate
Filed under College, Random
Going to college is a big step in a young person’s life. For the first time, that young person goes off on his or her own to conquer life without mom and dad standing over his or her shoulder. The problem is that too many college bound seniors in high school are ill prepared to manage their money while in college. Some college students are still fully supported by their parent while going through college which delays the realities of managing money even further.
