Finance

1. Thou shalt only go into debt for a home or a higher education, and not for a car.
2. Thou shalt buy a house if thee want to live in a house and can afford it after conducting appropriate due diligence.
3. Thou shalt always pay thy credit card balances in full each month.
4. Thou shalt keep six months worth of expenses in a holding with low-cost liquidity.
5. Thou shalt live below thy means (budget) and know where thy hard-earned money goes.
6. Thou shalt marry wisely (if thee marries at all) and be financially prudent with thy offspring (if any).
7. Thou shalt only buy term life insurance if thee have heirs, love them, and thy assets cannot provide them with the financial security thee want them to have.
8. Thou shalt make a will as a part of a succession plan.
9. Thou shalt not judge others who choose different paths.

10. Thou Shalt Be Responsible for Thy Investing:

    1. Thou shalt pay thyself first by saving and investing 10-20% of thy annual income.
    2. Thou shalt invest 7% of thy earnings in a stock index fund and 3% in a bond fund through a discount broker and never touch it until retirement.
    3. Thou shalt minimize thy Management Expense Ratios
    4. Thou shalt maintain a well-balanced and diversified portfolio.
    5. Thou shalt fund thy tax-deferred investments to the maximum.
    6. Thou shalt dollar cost average and capture the match of thy employer’s retirement plan.
    7. Thou shalt regularly evaluate thy risk profile and rebalance thy portfolio accordingly.
    8. Thou shalt not allocate more than 10% of thy portfolio to "alternative investments" (e.g. speculative companies, hedge funds, venture capital or "art")
    9. Thou shalt not be influenced by the fear and greed that drive the markets.
    10. Thou shalt hire a fee-based financial planner (not one who charges a percentage of thy portfolio) as needed to deal with college planning, retirement, or tax issues.

Humor by FinanceDude

1. Thou shalt not invest as if thee are going to die tomorrow.
2. Thou shalt remain single and childless.
3. Thou shalt not buy life insurance with the sole purpose of faking one's death to collect the proceeds.
4. Thou shalt not follow the financial advice of Robert Kowalski?
5. Thou shalt not hire any advisor named "Guido", "Lucky", or "Slick".
6. Thou shalt not respond to e-mails from Nigerian Oil Ministers, or offshore rentals or car sales.
7. Thou shalt not tell thy boss he/she would look better if they went to the gym.
8. Thou shalt not think of Pizza Hut as "mom's home cooking".
9. Thou shalt not use thy house deed as collateral in a poker game with thy buddies.