Balancing Work and Fun in Senior Year of High School

Landon can find balance between enjoying his senior year and maintaining a work ethic for future success.

### Balancing Work and Fun: A Guide for High School Seniors
* 💰 Landon, a 17-year-old with about **$4,700 saved**, is contemplating quitting his job to enjoy his senior year of high school, reflecting on the balance between **work and fun**.
* 📈 With a wealth multiplier of **119 for his age**, Landon’s savings could potentially grow to **$1.7 million by retirement**, highlighting the **power of early financial planning**.
* 🤔 It's important for Landon to assess whether his savings are a result of his own **hard work** or if he has had significant **parental support**, as this will influence his decision on whether to **continue working**.
* ⚖ The advice given emphasizes the need for balance; while **enjoying high school is vital**, understanding the **value of hard work** is equally important for **personal growth and future success**.
* 🎓 Reflecting on personal experiences, the speakers discuss the importance of **maximizing both high school and college years**, ensuring that **memories and relationships are cherished** alongside financial goals.
* 🕰 Ultimately, the conversation encourages Landon to find a middle ground where he can **maintain some work hours** while still enjoying his senior year, ensuring a **well-rounded experience**.
* 👥 The importance of social connections and memories made during these formative years is emphasized, suggesting that **financial success should not come at the cost of personal happiness and relationships**.

[Music] All right, Landon's question is up next. He said, Landon, Landon, okay. He says, I am a 17-year-old with about $4,700 saved up, about $4,700, just about, that's just about specifically. Um, that is a great, I mean, shoot, 17 years old. So, he says, Would it be okay if I quit my job to have fun for my senior year of high school? Would it be okay if I quit my job to have fun because I am at a place where I've done good so far and I can take a break. Um, well, okay, let's start at the beginning. Lon, 17 years old with $14,700. It's a wealth multiplier, by the way. If you go to money.com/resources, you too can pull up your wealth multip to see what your um multiple is by your age. And for a 17-year-old, it's 119. So, for every dollar that you put to work when you retire, it has the potential to become $119. So, I

just did the math. I did 14,700 times that wealth multiplier. It's $1.7 million that you are on track just for that money you've saved so far to turn into by the time you get to retirement, which is awesome. Now, Brian, I struggle and I suffer from the fact of recognizing how powerful that math is, and oh man, I just love so because then I think about, well, that's just the first 14,700. If I can save another $144,700, then that's going to be another 1.7 million, and I can stack, and I can stack, and I can stack, and I can stack. But you are so good at saying, Hey guys, listen, stop and smell the roses. It's okay to enjoy this season. You don't have to be hard charging. You don't have to be pushing. And you have recently counseled your daughter getting through like having early jobs and then going off into graduating high school and going off into college and working. How did you educate her around how to strike the

balance. Was it okay to like enjoy your senior year, or should you be working in building because the money is so powerful? How do you navigate that? Well, Landon, that's why this is going to be a kind of know thyself moment in the fact that where did at 17 years of age, way ahead of the curve of having close to $15,000. I want to know the source of the funds. Is this one of those things where you found our content and other personal finance content, you've just been on fire reading everything you could and actually putting it to work? You know, you're a hard worker, you've started working side jobs, you started saving this money, and that's where we've landed. If that's how you got here, then yeah, I think that I'm okay. I think there's probably a balance approach. I don't know that I'd go cold turkey on just not doing anything, but I do want to make sure you're maximizing this one season of life that you're a senior.

in high school. But if the other way you got this money is that you maybe have a financial mutant as a parent, and they've been in the background loading it up, you know, getting you to do matching funds to a Roth, and you've done some part of the work, but they've also been part of, they've been your training wheels. I'll just say it, they're your training wheels. And the fact that they're helping enable and build this process, and it's kind of taking, and the fact that you're getting, you're building, and building these assets. But if the behavioral stuff doesn't keep on without the training wheels, then we've got a problem. And that's why I say you got to know thyself. So if you feel like it's more of you are the driving engine of what got this, but maybe you're the driving engine, is going to be burned out because you're thinking only about the goal and not the maximizing life, then yes, let's figure

out how we balance, bring it back down to balance. But if you're in that Financial mutant household and just this has kind of just happened, and you still haven't, the work ethic and all the other stuff hasn't really taken traction, then that I'm not going to be as easy and say, Yeah, let's cut off and go have fun, because I do think there is something very valuable, especially for a 17-year-old, to learn the power of hard work. I mean, that's really why I tell, I'm so glad I got my oldest daughter to work in fast food, so she could see how crazy the general public is, but also the value of impressing people and exceeding expectations to where they kind of count on you. There is really a lot of value to working out in the workplace, but also I know that sometimes as hard-driving people who are trying to reach success at all costs, we sometimes neglect ourselves. So that's why I'm trying to give you the permission to

kind of take a self-assessment and then land in the healthy place where you maximize your teens, maximize your 20s, you maximize your 30s, but you're also very happy with all those decisions you made when you reach your 50s and 60s too. I'll tell you what I like too, and it's not, I feel like for landed, it's not an all-or-nothing, it's not a I have to stop working or I have to enjoy my senior year. I think that you can probably do both. I think there's some balance you can strike in there where you can do both and figure out what that looks like. Do you remember senior year like super distinctly? I remember, I mean, I should have probably worked more hours because I'd already took calculus, was like the only real class, and then I had like three PE classes. I really did. And then I, you know, so I had like calculus three, was great. You love senior year, right? I did with my buddies. I made a lot of great memories.

but it was kind of like I was just occupying space, like there was no... I don't think I was getting smarter. You, you, like if you could go back, so if you could go back in time, would you have done it differently, or would you have still done the same? No, because I, I now with modern school, you'd probably do where you'd be getting college credit, you know, like I could have taken more AP classes, like a lot of my friends, um, but I, I, I don't know. Then once you get to college, you're like, I graduated in four years, which I was pretty proud of, but I don't, I don't think I would have been super excited to leave at two and a half years, yeah, right, if I have taken a bunch of extra classes. So, I mean, there's a balance there on making sure you're maximizing life, and I was blessed that I had some scholarships and other things that made it where I didn't have a bunch of student loan debt, 'cause I do think if you go to college and you can...

be in your starting your sophomore year if you're if that's you not having to take student loan then that's a win. Everybody's got a personal situation you have to balance that but for me I loved all four years that I was at college and I loved my high school years. Well you did go to the greatest College in all the world so that's and I'm still friends with all my high school friends too. We we now we're old men that go to spring training every year. That is true that is very sweet I appreciate that you do that like very stereotypical of old men. I mean we're one step from putting tube socks on that go up to our knees with sand such a nice thing.

Work Life Balance...as a TEEN?

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The Money Guy Show

Landon, a 17-year-old with $4,700 saved, is considering quitting his job to enjoy his senior year.

The money he has saved has the potential to grow to $1.

7 million by retirement, highlighting the power of early savings.

It's important to find a balance between working and enjoying life, and taking a break to have fun is also valid.

Navigating Senior Year and Financial Success

A high school senior has accumulated close to $15,000, raising questions about the source of the funds and the balance between enjoying senior year and working.

If the money comes from personal effort and side jobs, a balanced approach is encouraged.

However, if a parent's support has been the main factor, it's important to ensure that the student can maintain their financial growth independently.

Learning the power of hard work is valuable for teenagers, and working in fast food can provide important life lessons.

It's possible to strike a balance between working and enjoying senior year, allowing for both personal growth and memorable experiences.

Taking a self-assessment can help individuals maximize their potential in their teens, 20s, and 30s while also ensuring happiness in later years.

The speaker feels they were just occupying space in school and not getting smarter.

They consider that with modern schooling, they could have taken more AP classes and earned college credit.

The speaker graduated college in four years and is proud of it, but they also acknowledge the importance of balancing extra classes and maximizing life.

Starting sophomore year without student loans is a win for some.

The speaker loved their college and high school years, maintaining friendships with classmates.

They now have a tradition of going to spring training together, embracing their "old man" stereotype.