Without any formal personal finance instruction in our high school or college curricula, many college seniors who graduate in the red will continue to make common financial mistakes that only exacerbate their debt burdens.

Get up, dress up, and show up.

As a wife, daughter, friend, and the founder and CEO of LearnVest, my schedule is anything but simple. But I learned early on how to meticulously manage my time.

Flowers make me irrationally happy.

I always encourage people to pay themselves first, so I really advocate setting up direct deposit for your paycheck and establishing an automatic transfer so that part of each paycheck goes straight into your savings account.

The best advice that I can offer is that being proactive and a careful planner is key. Think about the major things that could shake up your financial life, and Ill bet there are some great ways to protect yourself.

You should go to work every day a little bit nervous.