A conventional adult financial life requires comfort with risk. The majority of undergraduates have to borrow money to attend college; there is a risk that you might not be able to pay the money back. Buying a home requires an even larger loan, which comes with its own risks given the length of the commitment. Most adults cannot save enough money for retirement without investing at least some money in stocks, which come with the risk that the stocks may fall a fair bit in the short term and not have the kind of long-term returns that they have had historically. There is risk in the workplace
...more
