The Money Lessons They Don't Teach in School

"I can't believe they don't teach the kids this stuff!" That was the exclamation of an irate father, appalled when learning it was not the public school system's responsibility to educate our sprogs in the mysterious ways of money management at a recent financial aid night. 

The cold, hard truth is that it is not the school's responsibility. Personal finances are personal for a reason. Instructing our kids in that arena falls to us. I recognized this early on, and started instructing my own children in the ways of finance awhile back. 

The art of budgeting

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6 Simple Life Hacks Made Me $3,700 Richer

Last year, I got to thinking about the state of my riches (I use this term loosely) and decided to try a few experiments or "life hacks" to see if I could save just a little bit more money each month. From here, I came up with six useful solutions designed to help me add just a few more pennies from heaven into my earthbound piggy banks.

I stopped spending my dollars -- bills that is.

On the first of every month, I take out my already budgeted for dining out and clothing allowances in cash. Then, each time I spend some of that money, I take my change (both coins and dollars) and put the leftovers in a piggy bank. At the end of the month, I total up my cash. I average $20 to $30 a month in change that finds its way to my savings account, earning me even more. 

I automated my savings.

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10 Easy Budget Cuts Saved Me $30,000 a Year

Several years ago, I was making mistakes with my money that wound up costing me more than a pretty penny. In fact, my blunders cost me three million pretty pennies each year. I cut the frivolities and now live a fruitful, frugal life and it's all thanks to 10 uncommonly common sense solutions. 

I nixed the frivolous purchases.

I had a Starbucks habit and I was a heavy impulse buyer. I spent $5 a day on coffee and an additional $1 or $2 a day on candy, granola bars or other at-the-register purchases. Then, I did the math. I started bringing my coffee from home and I gave up making those little, everyday buys. Now, I pocket $2,000 a year. 

I cut unhealthy habits.

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My 15-Minute Budget Saved Me $19,200

Originally, I penned my budget like everyone else, backwards. Except I did not know it was backwards. I looked at what I was spending each month and then reused those numbers month after month to predict my future spending. That is, until I realized how hideously inefficient that was. 

Just because something has been done a certain way for as long as you can remember does not mean it cannot be done better, smarter and faster. Now that we have that weirdness out of the way, I found three reasons my backward budget was, well, backwards. 

- I have variable expenses, just like everyone else. Accounting for and tracking these expenses took up far too much of my time. 

- I have unexpected bills pop up from time to time, just like everyone else. Again, tracking and accounting was becoming like a second job. 

- A backward budget did not conform to my financial health; my financial health conformed to my budget.

All of these things meant I was managing my money and my time inefficiently. Therefore, instead of spending hours working on my budget, I spent a few hours conjuring up an epiphany. 

The Answer

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The 6 Credit Card Mistakes I Will Never Make Again

When I was 19 years old I remember feeling 10 feet tall, bulletproof and knowing everything under the sun. However, nothing could have been further from the truth. My youthful exuberance, arrogance and lack of financial savvy landed me in a world of hurt with my credit, ultimately teaching me seven hellish life lessons. Lessons I vowed never to repeat. 

Accepting every credit card offer I received

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