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Think back to those early days in life when it seemed like everything in the candy aisle was free if you begged your parents hard enough. Not a fleeting thought was given to the expenses of a vacation or the copay costs at the doctor. There’s something beautifully unburdened in the way which children experience the world: recklessly present and innocently ambivalent.

If you are at the point where you are asking how to buy a life insurance policy, then you have already made the most important financial decision, which is to take the steps to  insure your family’s or loved one’s financial security.  For many people, that is most likely a critical decision that has long been procrastinated.

Ask anyone and even if they don’t know a thing about investing they’ll say, “oh, real estate is a great investment!” Well, it can be if you approach it in a smart way that works for you and your financial situation.

When people warn you that having kids is expensive, it’s no joke. From diapers to food, braces to sports activities the costs add up quick. For a middle-income family in the U.S. raising a child up until age 18, costs an estimated average of $245,340 (or $304,480, adjusted for projected inflation), according to the 2013 “Cost of Raising a Child” report from the U.S.

The term “smart home” sounds like something out of a movie on Syfy or a place where intelligent people go to converge. Yet, the concept isn’t new by any means. John Chambers, CEO of Cisco, referenced the concept at the Consumer Electronics Show in 1999.

The prospect of suddenly having to face life with a disability that limits your ability to work in the way you’re used always seems unlikely. Disability is something other people face, maybe in old age, but not you. While disability insurance may seem unnecessary right now the facts give cause for the preemptive action.

Typically, younger people don’t make retirement savings a priority. Living expenses, student debt, rent or house payments, and other day-to-day expenses mean that retirement savings take a back seat.

Retirement plan sponsors who have millennial employees are often told that student loan debt prevents those employees from participating in a retirement plan. However, some research suggests that millennials may be better served by prioritizing retirement savings over student debt.

Have you made up your mind on just about everything, even before you know what it is? For instance, when you meet someone, is your opinion of the person formed from the first impression? Or, when you hear a political argument from the other side, is your mind opened or closed? Are you able to concede the “good points” the other side make, or do you dismiss the whole argument?

One of the first lessons of finance we are taught, by our parents or through some basic personal finance course, is to make creating an emergency fund our top priority. Having a reserve of cash equivalent to six to 12 month’s worth of living expenses is considered the most fundamental principal of financial security.