'What’s a financial mistake that can take years to recover from, even if you earn a decent salary?': People discuss what the biggest financial mistake they ever committed was

Have you ever encountered money problems due to a financial mistake you made? Did you learn anything from it?

Money problems are common, especially with the current state of the world. People get into debt more and more, whether it is to buy a house, a car, go to college, or for medical expenses. Almost everything can make you need a loan and put you in debt. I'm not here to demonize loans. They are a good way to go through life and do and have the things you want without having to save for your whole lifetime before acquiring them. But they only work out if you are extremely careful with your finances, you cannot trust them to just work out eventually; you need to plan, have stability, and have as your main goal to pay them out. 

Nobody learns how to manage their finances unless they studied something related to that in college; it's not common knowledge. In school, you don't learn about credit cards, debt, loans, or even budgeting. So the only two ways you actually learn what to do with your money are by getting some tips from your parents or family members, or by making mistakes. The last one is the most common. People learn how to manage after already committing the mistakes that put them in money issues, and recovering is hard. That's why it is important to listen to what others have gone through as a way to learn not only from their mistake, but also how to recover from them. It can be stressful to have issues with your finances, but it's important to remember that you are not alone. A lot of people go through the same things. In the U.S., according to National Debt Relief, more than 45% of citizens have credit card debt, more than 35% have car loans, and more than 20% have student loans. So it's not uncommon to have debt. On the contrary, it is not that common to be debt-free. They explained that according to their data, only 23% of Americans are completely debt-free. 

"Most Americans have long had some level of debt, and if you've taken on more due to the rapid rise in the cost of living"

What we should take from all this is that being in debt is not bad in itself. You can get into debt like most people in the U.S. and not be in financial trouble. That is how the economy of the country works. The problem is when you have debt but no way of paying, or too much debt in categories like credit cards that have insane interest rates. So, if you are in debt, you are not alone, not at all. A lot of people are in the same situation. The important thing isn't the debt, is to have a plan to pay it and be aware of the interests they have to prioritize what to pay first. Financial mistakes happen, but not everything has to be a tragedy. There is a way to solve the problems; we just need to learn how to manage money most constructively to avoid them happening again.