Is it really necessary?
If you look back at blog 5 where I discuss pay scales for me, you can see my argument for not needing to go to college. I make an awesome 6 figures and I have no college debt to pay back. I don’t ever wonder what my life would have been like had I been able to afford to go to college.
An expensive piece of paper
I was able to get a higher education from NOVA because work paid for me to go to medic school. NOVA is the Northern Virginia Community College. I attended classes for the paramedic program. Had I really wanted to finish my degree, I could have but why would I want to? In my earlier days, I took some general classes to get things started for a general diploma not knowing what I planned for in my life. I only needed a few classes to complete my degree in Fire Science. But why? So that I can have an expensive piece of paper on the wall that would later collect dust and later be taken down and put in a box? Who cares about that? I don’t care that I don’t have a degree. Where does that matter to me in my grand scheme of things?
You don’t need college to be a millionaire
It does not come up in my conversations whether I have a degree or not. Mostly, folks don’t care if I went to Stanford or NOVA when I run in the buildings to put out fires. Similarly no one cares when I’m pumping on their chest to bring them back to life whether I attend Yale or UVA? What about when I delivered the babies during my career span? Those ladies did not care that I did not attend Georgetown Medical. Not tooting my horn here at all. What I mean is, I love my career path. I fell in to it on accident really. The sheepskin doesn’t matter. I have always said if you do what you love, the money will come. I absolutely believe this. Never in my life did I think I could reach a million dollars in net worth. I can see it now.
College options
Now I know I spewed my opinions of college and to why bother going but don’t get me wrong. Some might not want to be FI (financial independent) early in life. Maybe some of you want to have a life of servitude and do great things well into your 60’s. Well go ahead, I won’t stop you but maybe you can look at college payments with open eyes and ears. You can join the military and have them pay for your college with the GI bill. You can go to college and then come out and work for one of those awesome jobs that has college debt forgiveness programs like being a school teacher or something like that. Is that even a thing anymore? You’d have to do the research but it’s never been my thing. Apparently 50% of the trillions of college loan debt is held by seniors. That is old people seniors, not graduate seniors. WTF. That is unfathomable to me. That debt will follow you to the grave. F that!!!
You can not take a loan out for your retirement
Now a word to the wise. The parents. Perhaps they aren’t the wise one’s and they just make decisions out of emotions or guilt or the sense of obligation. I mean really, did we give birth to children for the purpose of paying for their college debt to the very end? Seriously. So many parents forsake their own retirement to pay for their kid’s colleges. I have colleagues who are working well in to their years of service for the sake of having to pay for their children’s college bills. The children can take a loan out for college but you, my friend can not take a loan out on your retirement.
Will they take care of you
If you don’t prepare for your retirement, will your children put you up in their house and take care of you? Would you want them to struggle to take care of you? Would you want to even live with them, I mean really? Hell no, I want to be on an island, sipping cold beers and going fishing and sailing occasionally. They can come visit me if they want. It is up to you the adult to instill these types of money responsibilities and saving traits upon your children. Share the value of money, savings and the power of compounding interest. A little now will go far if you just make it automatic.