Drugs, Alcohol, Sex and Credit Cards

When each of my kids heads to college they get the DASC (drugs, alcohol, sex and credit card) speech.  They know the first three well and have given me the rolling-eye-yawn response years before.  The focus, though is the last and to make sure they understand that college debt, like each of the first three has a similar characteristic.  It can have multi-year impact on their life and how they get to enjoy post college life.

So many kids graduate college with a fantastic understanding of what life can offer but with crushing debts that take years to pay off.  They get no education about the downside of debt, that leverage is a two edged sword and that debt is financial servitude.  Don’t get me wrong, debt has its place and for most of my adult life I have had a mortgage and borrowed money when appropriate, but like alcohol moderation is key, and only in the right circumstances.