Debt: Debunking the Myths (Parts 1-7)

Answer the following questions you watch the videos by Dave Ramsey on the myths about Debt:
Note: Don't print until we complete the "Myths" section.

Myth 1

• Myth: If I ____________ money to a friend or relative, I will be helping them.
• Truth: The relationship will be strained or ________ .

Myth 2

• Myth: By ______________ a loan, I am helping out a friend or relative.
• Truth: The bank requires a cosigner because the person isn't likely to ___________.  Be ready to pay the loan and have your credit damaged.

Myth 3

• Myth: ___________ ____________, rent-to-own, title pawning, and tote-the-note lots are needed _______________ for lower income people to help them get ahead.
• Truth: These are horrible, greedy rip-offs that aren't needed and benefit no one but the owners of these companies.

Myth 4

• Myth: The ___________ and other forms of gambling will make me ____________.
• Truth: The lottery is a _______ on the poor and on the people who can't do math.

Note:  Texas Tech University did a study on the Texas Lottery and found that people without a high school diploma spent an average of _________ a month playing the lottery.  College graduates spent _________ a month on average.  When studies are done on the lottery, it's always the lower-income ZIP codes that generate the highest revenue on sales.

Myth 5:

• Myth: ____________ payments are a way of life and you'll always have one.
• Truth: Staying away from car payments by driving reliable used cars is what the typical ____________ does.  That is how they became millionaires.

Myth 6:

• Myth: ____________ your car is what sophisticated financial people do.  You should always lease things that go down in value.  There are tax advantages.
• Truth: Consumer Reports, Smart Money magazine and a good calculator will tell you that the car _______ is the most ________ way to finance and operate a vehicle.

Myth 7:

• Myth: You can get a good deal on a _____________ car.
• Truth: A new car loses _________ of its value in the first four years.  This is the largest purchase most consumers make that goes down in value.

On average, a $28,000 car will be worth $8,400 in four years.

Myth 8:

• Myth: I'll take out a 30-year mortgage and pay ______________.
• Truth: Life happens and something else will always seem more important.  Never take out more than a _________ year fixed-rate mortgage.

Myth 9:

• Myth: It's wise to take out an ________ or a ___________ mortgage if "I know I'll be moving."
• Truth: You will be moving when they _______________.

The adjustable-rate mortgage is here to keep the _____________ from losing money.  It transfers the ____________ of higher interest rates to you.

Myth 10: 

• Myth: You need a __________  __________ to rent a car or make ____________ online or by phone.
• Truth: A __________ card does all of that.

Myth 11:

• Myth: I pay my __________ _______ off every month with no annual payment or fee.  I get brownie points, air miles and a free hat.
• Truth: When you use cash instead of plastic, you spend ___________ less because spending cash hurts.

According to carddata.com, U.S. consumers racked up an estimated $51 billion worth of fast food on their personal credit and debit cards in 2006, compared to $33.2 billion one year ago.

Myth 12:

• Myth: I'll make sure my ___________ gets a credit card so he or she can learn to be responsible with money.
• Truth: Teens are a huge ___________ of credit card companies today.

As soon as you get to college, you will receive offers from credit card companies.  About 80% of college graduates have credit card debt before they even get a job.

Myth 13:

• Myth: The home equity loan is good for __________ and is a substitute for the emergency fund.
• Truth: You don't go into ____________ for emergencies.

Myth 14:

• Myth: Debt _____________ saves interest and you get a smaller ________________.
• Truth: Debt consolidation is a _______________.

Debt consolidation saves little or no _______________ because you will throw your low interest loans into the deal.
You cannot ____________ your way out of debt!  _____________ payments equal more _________ in debt.

Myth 15:

• Myth: Debt is a _________________.  It should be used to create prosperity.
• Truth: The _______________ is slave to the lender.

When surveyed, the Forbes 400 were asked, "What is the most important key to building wealth?"  _____________ replied that becoming and staying ________ free was the number one key to wealth building.

Career Zone Reality Check

Today we will continue thinking about the next step after high school.  Where will you live?  What type of lifestyle will you have?  What is your long term outlook?

1. Go to the California Career Zone Reality Check web site
2. Choose the living situation that works best for you and click "Next"
3. Select as many services as you will use and click "Next"
4. Choose your eating style and click "Next"
5. Choose your mode of transportation and click "Next"
6. Select your clothing allowance and click "Next"
7. Select your health care and click "Next"
8. Choose your entertainment style and click "Next"
9. Choose your "personal upkeep" style and click "Next"
10. Select as many miscellaneous items as you like and click "Next"
11. Choose the amount you would like to put into savings and click "Next"
12. Now you can click the "Find occupations that match this annual salary" button
13. Select the amount of education you plan to have
14. Select an "occupation cluster" that mosts interest you and click "Find Occupations"
15. See if any occupations meet your selections (you may have to click "Back" and change choices)

• Open a Microsoft Word document and add your name and period
• Copy your city, necessary salary, and career results and paste them to the Word document
• Write a paragraph discussing your careers and whether any of them match the careers from your previous two personality / interest surveys.

REMINDER: Tomorrow we will type up the results of the "Ask Someone Who's Been There" survey.

Homework: Interview Someone Who Has Been There

About this project:

I think it’s important for high school juniors and seniors who are getting ready to start out on their own [whether it’s at college or in a job or both] to begin thinking about money and credit.  I also feel that it’s important to ask people who have really “been there.”  As an adult, if I want to know who has the best cell phone plans or the cheapest texting, I ask a teenager.  If I want to know the best new video games, I ask a teenager.  I do that because they have the experience to help me make a smart decision.  As a teenager, you should seriously consider who has the most experience getting out on their own, getting credit, saving money, being successful, getting in financial trouble, etc. 

That’s why for this project I want you to interview “those who have been there.”  You will choose people whose opinions you respect, and ask them a series of questions.  You will use the answers to these questions to write about what you have learned.

Instructions:

        

You will choose four people (men or women from different age groups) and interview them.

• Take notes as they answer the questions – especially on things for which they offer advice.
• Try to ask follow-up questions if you want to know more about a certain subject.
• After each interview, summarize your experience (what was interesting, what were their reactions to the questions, what was surprising, etc.) in a paragraph.
• Next week we will begin typing our results in an essay and posting them to our blog.

LEARN FROM THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN THERE

#1: A person between ages 18‐23 who has been on his own for over two years:

• What kind of things did you buy before you started out on your own?
• How did your spending patterns change when you were really on your own?
• What do you wish you had known about spending or saving money when you started out?
• How do you feel about using credit?
• What were your parents/caretakers attitudes about borrowing money and being in debt?
• What would you have done differently with your spending patterns if you started over again?
• What advice can you offer a person starting out?

#2: A person between ages 24‐30 who has a family:

• What kind of things did you buy before you started out on your own?
• How did your spending patterns change when you were really on your own?
• What do you wish you had known about spending or saving money when you started out on your own?
• Now that you have a family, have your spending patterns changed?
• How do you feel about using credit?
• What were your parents/caretakers attitudes about borrowing money and being in debt?
• What would you have done differently with your spending patterns if you started over again?
• What advice can you offer a person starting out?

#3: A person between ages 35‐60:

• What kind of things did you buy before you started out on your own?
• How did your spending patterns change when you were really on your own?
• How have your spending patterns changed since you were 35 years old?
• What do you wish you had known about spending or saving money when you started out?
• If you have a family, have your spending patterns changed?
• How do you feel about using credit?
• What were your parents/caretakers attitudes about borrowing money and being in debt?
• What would you have done differently with your spending patterns if you started over again?
• What advice can you offer a person starting out?

#4: A person older than 65:

• What kind of things did you buy before you started out on your own?
• How did your spending patterns change when you were really on your own?
• How did your spending patterns change during your child rearing years?
• How have your spending patterns changed since you were 60 years old?
• What do you wish you had known about spending or saving money when you started out?
• Did you use credit during your younger years?
• What were your parents/caretakers attitudes about borrowing money and being in debt?
• What do you wish you had known about spending or saving money when you started out on your own?
• What would you have done differently with your spending patterns if you started over again?
• What advice can you offer a person starting out?

---

(I will get you a copy of these questions so you don't have to copy/print)

Dreams of Flying

Today we're watching a movie called "Dreams of Flying."  It's a cheesy, 90's movie about careers, college, family expectations and peer pressure.  While some of the acting is horrible, it makes a valid point about who is really "flying your plane."

Open Microsoft Word and put your name and title ("Dreams of Flying") on the top.

Before we watch the movie, spend 5 or 6 minutes answering these questions:

1. Are there any careers that should only be performed by a man or woman?
2. Do you have any family pressure to pick a certain career -- or to avoid a career?
3. Do you have pressure from friends about your life choices -- or future goals?

After we watch the movie, answer these questions:

1. Summarize the movie and give me some feedback about whether or not it's applicable to high school students today.

Begin Personality Survey

Last week we completed an "interest survey" which helped point us toward jobs that we may be interested in.  Today we are going to take a personality test based on Carl Jung's theory of psychological types and the personality research of Isabel Briggs Myers and Katherine Cook Briggs.

• Please go to: http://www.mypersonality.info/
• Sign up for an account and then click "Current Page"
  Use your school-related email address
• Click Take the Personality Test (then click Basic Personality Type Test)
• Take the test by answering the questions as best as you can.  If you aren't sure about an answer, choose the one that feels most correct.
• Click "Finish Test" to view results.
• Click on "____ Overview" (mine says "INFJ Overview")
• Create a new Microsoft Word document
• Type your name and a title (I used "INFJ - The Confidant" from the top of the page)
• Copy the top paragraph explaining your personality type and paste into your Word document
• Copy your "Details" [found at the left side of the page] and paste into your Word document
• Copy your "Career Matches" and paste into your Word document
• Copy three quotes from the "About the ____" section and paste into your Word document
• Format your document so that it looks nice and is well organized
• Save your document as "Personality Types"
• Print and turn in your document

After you have completed your Personality Assessment, please work on your typing.

Career Assessment / Microsoft Word

Today we are going to begin exploring some of our Interests by completing a computerized interest profiler.  We will be using the results to create a Microsoft Word document with a bulleted list, a numbered list, formatting, and saving/printing.

The difficult thing about this project is that you will be switching back and forth between three windows:

• This page (GriffsClass.com)
• The Career Interest Profiler page
• Microsoft Word

Instructions:

• Go to California Career Zone and click on "Sign In" at the top of the page... then click the "Create an account" tab.  Fill in the required information and click "Create Account".
• Go back to the main California Career Zone page and click "Go" next to "Start a new Interest Profiler:"
• Answer questions 1-180 [(L : Like), (? : Unsure), or (D : Dislike)] -- there are 12 questions per page.
• Open Microsoft Word and add your name, period, and a title ("California Career Zone Survey").
• Type your top three interest areas (and your score for each) in a numbered list.
• Move your mouse over your top three interests and see what it says about your choices.
• Add a brief summary for each of your three job types.
• Click "View Occupations" on the bottom of the screen.
• Look at the occupations that are suggested for you. Note that the occupations with a TV/monitor symbol have movie clips that you can watch -- but you will need headphones.
• Type your top 10 occupations in a numbered list (in order).
• Write one paragraph about what you think about these results. Do you agree or disagree? Are there any surprises? Are there any jobs that interest you which you never considered before?
• Insert a clip art showing a career that fits your results [or your desired career].
• Select 2-4 occupations that interest you by clicking in the boxes then click "Compare Selected" at the bottom of the list.
• Write a brief paragraph about how they compare to each other: salary, projected openings, etc.
• Save your Microsoft Word document to your ThawSpace, print it, and turn it in.
• Click the "Logout" button at the top of California Career Zone. We can return to our results later by using our Login information.

Remember, this is just an indicator of what sorts of occupations you might be interested in.  If you are positive about the direction you want to go in your life, follow that goal.

Note: When you have completed this project, please focus on any typing lessons that you are missing.  Several students are finished with all 20 lessons, most are about half way (on lesson 11-14), and several have only done 1 or 2.  Please get these completed so that we can take our final typing test.