Interesting commentary going on in the UK about debt.
Charlotte Ross (20something) in the Evening Standard is talking about how her attitude toward debt is vastly different to her parents (who incidentally helped her out of debt).
She currently owes £34,000. She says that's about average for her peer group.
I can well believe it - I had a similar situation a few years ago.
What hope can we realistically offer 20somethings nowadays? Do they have any option other than debt?
I mean, apart from the top 0.5% who earn a decent wage straight out of university...
It's no wonder that people get trapped in the matrix. They walk out of university straight into it, already laden with debts and maxed out store and credit cards. What chance will they ever have to take a break and survey their life? Or start from square 1 again? Both these things are essential in breaking out. And debt keeps 20somethings from taking these risks.
20somethings are swimming in honey from day 1.
It's no wonder when I talk to some people about giving up their 'career' for some greater purpose I am met with snorts of derision. They can’t even afford to think that way. The first step on their path to fulfilment if they are not earning £50k+ by the time they are 30?
Bankruptcy and court orders.
It feels good to have reached 30 debt free. But let's face it; I am living in a wonderland. If my folks hadn't helped me out at certain stages, I would have been screwed. I would have had to sell things before the time is right to avoid going bankrupt.
Other than record my own rank experiences with debt, it is difficult to know how to advise a 20something on this subject. I mean, what should they do?
Drop out of life?
Drink cheap wine in the park?
Wear student clothes?
My parent’s generation are literally gob smacked at the debt problem. But they have no idea what it's like living somewhere like London.
Salaries are the same, but costs have quadrupled. Competition is the name of the game.
Sink or swim.
Take Virgin’s hideous new ad campaign to ‘Say Yes!’ to its Virgin Money loan and credit facility. The ads are clearly targeting the last remaining 20somethings out there who have not yet caved in to debt – it promises increased social status, and a kind of ‘style nirvana’ into which we will be transported once we ‘Say Yes’ to virgin credit.
I mean, ads like this should not be allowed. Plain and simple.
My only real advice for this journalist and her buddies is to step back from their life, and have a long hard look at what role they are playing.
Debt can be viewed as ‘an investment’.
Make sure the ‘investment’ is in a life that is worth it. A life in which you love what you are doing, you have a clearly defined purpose and that purpose is of help to other people.
And remember that one other thing that is as sure as debt in your 20's is the fact that they still have a choice.
20somethings can still pull back, make changes.
They are still in charge of their own destiny.
‘Turn on, tune in and drop out’?
Absolutely. I don’t mean this literally. I certainly don't mean drop out of life and smoke dope all day long. I mean opt in to a life worth living.
For most 20somethings, debt is an unavoidable fact of life.
And debt is bound to cause misery sooner or later. But it'll seem worse and it will last longer if you are trapped in a life without purpose than if you are fighting to get out of the matrix.
I get the feeling the Evening Standard journo is taking a stand for something…
That’s a very good place to start.
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I've been thinking about this "dilemma" quite a bit in the past year. I too know so many people that talk about wanting to leave their jobs and do something meaningful. But they are comfortable with the lifestyle that their (often corporate) job provides. The thought of abandoning the car, the apartment, etc. seems like stepping backwards and admitting failure. And many of these people realize that their possessions are just that, but they ultimately put off making a positive change and then they find themselves married and with kids...and that's when they really feel "stuck."
I've been there...several times. I've found myself in those jobs, where I'm compromising myself for a paycheck. And interestingly, now that I've committed to doing what I enjoy and what is meaningful, I don't find myself struggling by any means. I'm not rich and I have some debt, but I'm not starving and I don't want for nearly as much as I did before. It doesn't have to be either or: money or happiness. I think you just have to be focused on what truly matters: happiness. And often, the money will be sufficient enough.
I also find that when I talk to others faced with this dilemma, like my sister, they don't have a clear idea of what it is that they want to do. So, they seem to resign themselves to stay where they're at because they can't pinpoint a passion to follow.
Debt does contribute to all of this. I remember my early college experience with credit cards. My university campus was filled with people offering credit cards to students. At an early age, we are inundanted with "opportunities" to establish debt. And that really does confine our freedom considerably.
But no, that doesn't mean we drop out of life. There just needs to be better and more readily available/prominent resources for 20-somethings. Schools need better career/guidance counseling...helping students realize and cultivate their true interests/passions. Parents particularly need to personally educate their children about debt, as the system certainly will not do this. And there needs to be hope and inspiration. For me, I've always been motivated by the example of others. For example, my friend just quit his job at a pharmaceutical company as a chemist to join the Peace Corps for a couple of years and work in West Africa. His example inspires me tremendously and I think 20-somethings feel the same way. They don't want 40-something examples. They are influenced and inspired by their peers.
Of course, you have tremendous ability to bring these forces together and make a difference. It seems bleak, but when I read this post and think about it...the challenge is certainly worthwhile and I am thus, incredibly hopeful.
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