You can't time the market.

The sad thing is many people learn how to manage money after they've made a lot of financial mistakes, some that take decades to fix.

My grandmother's grandparents were slaves. My grandmother Big Mama would tell me about the stories she heard as a child growing up in the shadows of a North Carolina plantation. It's only been in my lifetime that blacks have had the right to vote, live in certain areas or hold certain jobs. It is with this black history that I write about the financial challenges African-Americans still have.

Kids can and are a blessing. But plenty of people without kids live and die just as happy.

I've decided to keep working until my last kid is thu college.

You can't time the market.

A smart couple with a healthy financial relationship is always talking about money and how they're handling it. If there's a medical emergency or a job loss, talk about it. If there's a windfall, talk about it. Your financial situation is a constantly changing thing.