Hahahahah, Mid-June.

I demand to see this "diploma" you speak of.....

Ahahahaha

Crayon on a restaurant menu doesn't count.

iPhone didn't graduate HS??...

Hey Wilson - congrats!

I wasn't much of a student either. For me, I don't reflect on high school as being the “best years of my life” – in fact I’ve only seen 2 people from school since I graduated in 1984 (yeah, I’m old).

I remember really struggling with what I wanted to do, choosing a career. I met with counselors for advice; "you can do anything" was always the answer, but not the direction I was looking for. I wanted some direction from friends, counselors, my parents, which never came. I had to figure it out on my own.

My advice - find a passion, follow it, pursue it with reckless abandon and hard work. If you love your work, money will come, and the work won't seem like "work".

A little debt is okay, because it keeps you hungry and motivated - but avoid it if you can. Start saving a little bit of money now and build up a good savings. Once you get a little saved up, you can start investing. If I had done that early in life, I wouldn't need to work today. :)

Honesty, integrity, follow-through on commitments, passion, and hard work will take you a long way in life.

Best wishes for this next phase in your life.

Take care!

Great advice, thank you very much for it.

Excellent advice right there. Debt is slavery. Financial stability is freedom. Congratulations on the graduation, OP!

EDIT TO ADD: But using credit is not objectively bad, and developing a good credit history is important. In fact, don't be afraid to use credit, but use it responsibly, and you'll develop creditworthiness that will help you later.

Learned about that in 7th grade, been sticking with me ever since. Thanks again for the kind words!

I can argue that using credit is bad in all ways based on personal experience. But if you do use cation and be wise.

Edit: I'd rather be able to buy the apartment complex then have the credit to be able to rent an apartment there. And it's totally possible

I won't argue with you that paying cash is always preferred, but for those times when it's really not a practical option, such as buying your first house, having access to meaningful credit with good terms can be very valuable. 15% of your credit score is based upon the length of your credit history, and 10% is based upon the types of credit you use. Another 35% is based upon your payment history to creditors. Without ever using any credit, the credit bureaus won't have any data with which to evaluate your creditworthiness. That's going to make it harder to get the best loan terms. Leveraging your limited resources can be a way to create money-making opportunities for yourself. The key is knowing what is feasible and sustainable, and what is not.

Anyway, I don't want to derail the OP's thread any further. The key to sound financial management is discipline. Exercise it religiously, and you'll do just fine.

Sorry I should of asked earlier...


If you are serious at looking at military service.

Have you taken the ASVAB test? The test is free.


http://www.military.com/join-armed-forces/asvab/

The score will determine what level of "choices" you may have when entering a specific branch of the military. Other factors of what they may offer you will be need of the branch at the time you enter MEPS.




So if you do choose to seek out military service. I would strongly recommend you check out the branches of the military that will suit your needs and lifestyle. Check them all out - you'll get "wined and dinned" by the recruitors. So don't be fooled. Just hold out and check them all out before you "sign" anything!

Each service will have different "jobs" (aka MOS) available and they will each push what they need to "fill" Just remember recruitors are told what jobs are open and what they need to fill those jobs at the time you ask. Some will have "bonuses" for you to sign up... of course, it's always "only if you sign up now" Some are very nice "bonuses" $40,000+ but hold out for the best MOS you can with the most bonuses if any.


The ASVAB score will determine what MOS you qualify to choose from. If you score high... the sky's the limit. If you score low... then you know. Bonuses are given for highly needed to fill positions... so the more the military needs you in that role... the more they will pay.

There's quite a bit of benefits from joining. If you don't know what you want to do... it'll give you life experience you just can't buy. I'm not saying it's all good. But if you take it the right way and learn from it... it can be a good thing. You get a solid paycheck for the next "few" years with room and board, clothes and travel all included. It's not fun but it can be fun sometimes. Again it's all in how you look at it.

If you go into it knowing it's going to suck... but you know you'll make the best of it. Then you are 5 steps ahead of everyone else.

Get paid, pay for your education, get life experiences and travel to boot!


Yes, I'm biased

Good Job!

I'll mostly echo what others have said. Stay out of debt. Try to save as much of your income as you can. Live WAY WAY below your means. Success is a function of hard work and the right imcome producing vehicle. You won't get rich (if you want to be) turning wrenches, so hard work isn't everything. Find yourself a mentor or mentors in whatever parts of life you want to be successful in. Business mentor, Spiritual mentor, etc...whatever is important to you. Start to think about how you want your life to look....all of it. A mistake I made was just focusing on getting to college and going into the Army that I didn't goal set beyond that. Do you want to leave a legacy for anyone who bears your name when you are gone? Think about how to make that a reality now.

Work hard, and most of all work consistently (every day) towards your goals. Remember the tortoise and the hare? The tortois won not because he was slow, but because he was consistent/persistent.

Remember, the one thing you can invest in that has a zero chance of loss during your lifetime is yourself. Would you bet on yourself?

Congratulations! You've worked hard. Now take some time to enjoy the rewards for a bit before you get too wrapped up in life. :)

Lots of good advice in this thread. Remember: Most truly successful people have taken some big, bold risks (even though they didn't always pan out). Don't be afraid to do that now and then. And you can always make more money, but you can't make more time.

Thank you, I`ve been thinking very hard about all that`s been said while out and about today.