GENERATION INDEBTED

We have never had access to so much information. We have never had so many opportunities. We have never had so many things. And we have never been so in debt. We are the generation that grew up with the internet. That saw Google, Amazon, Netflix, Spotify born. That carries in its pocket a device with more power than the computers that took man to the moon. We are the generation that travels more, consumes more, expresses itself more, connects more. And we are also the generation that has less savings, more debt, and more uncertainty about the future than any previous generation.

It’s not our fault. We were sold a wrong idea of success. We were told to live in the present, that money is for spending, that the future will take care of itself. We were bombarded with “buy now, pay later” ads, with influencers showing lives of luxury without showing the debt behind them, with algorithms that push us to consume what we don’t need. And meanwhile, no one taught us the basics. No one explained compound interest. No one told us that paying the minimum on a credit card is the most expensive way to borrow. No one taught us how to budget. No one talked to us about investing.

This book is written for you. In your language. With your problems. With your examples. Because you deserve to have the same opportunities your parents and grandparents had. And with today’s rules, that’s only possible if you learn to play well.

📊 The Economy We Inherited (And the One We Got)

When your parents were your age, the world was different. Not better or worse. Different. And that difference matters, because the rules of the game have changed, and if you don’t understand them, you’ll play at a disadvantage.

What our parents had (and we don’t): In 1985, a college degree cost a fraction of what it costs now. Average annual tuition at a public university was $2,000. Today, it exceeds $10,000. Student debt in the United States has gone from zero to $1.7 trillion in two decades. 45% of young people graduate with an average debt of $37,000.

Housing: In 1985, the average home price was 3.5 times the annual salary. Today, in cities like New York, it’s 13 times. In San Francisco, 17 times. The down payment that used to be saved in two years now takes a decade.

The job market: In 1985, 80% of contracts were permanent. Today, the gig economy has exploded. 36% of US workers are in the gig economy. Job turnover has tripled. And with it, uncertainty.

What we have (and they didn’t): Access to infinite information (YouTube, podcasts, forums, all free). Tools to invest from $5 (fractional shares, no-commission brokers). Online communities to share knowledge (Reddit’s r/personalfinance has 20 million users). A generation more aware of financial education (searches for “how to invest” have grown 300% in the last five years among under-30s).

⚠️ The 5 Financial Problems of Our Generation

Problem #1: Invisible student debt. Student debt doesn’t hurt at the moment. You take it out when you’re young, when the future seems distant. Then you graduate, start working, and one day you realize that part of your salary goes every month to pay for something you already consumed years ago. In the US, average student debt is $37,000. 45% of young people graduate with debt.

Problem #2: The subscription trap. Subscriptions are the invisible problem par excellence. $10 here, $15 there. But they add up. 74% of consumers pay for at least one subscription they don’t use. 84% underestimate how much they spend on subscriptions. On average, people think they spend $100/month. The reality is $180-240.

Problem #3: “Buy now, pay later” (BNPL). “Buy now, pay later” sounds like freedom. It’s the smartest trap in the modern financial system. In 2023, the global BNPL market reached $150 billion in transactions. In the US, 45% of young people between 18 and 34 have used this type of financing. The trap: small installments ($15 seems like nothing, but 10 purchases of $15 are $150). Hidden interest (0% is only if you pay on time; one late payment and you pay 20% APR). The vicious cycle where one debt leads to another.

Problem #4: Financial FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). Your friends go on trips. Your coworkers have the latest iPhone. Everyone’s investing in cryptocurrency. Your brain tells you: “if you don’t do the same, you’ll be left out.” And you buy. And travel. And go into debt. And buy crypto at the peak. What you see on social media is a selection. A fiction. No one shows their failures.

Problem #5: The illusion of micro-investing. Micro-investing is great to start. But it has a danger: that you stay in micro-investing forever. The danger: staying at $5 a day forever without scaling. The solution: increase savings with every raise, when you finish paying a debt, when you get extra income. Goal: save 20% of your income.

🧠 The Psychology of Money (Why We Make Bad Decisions)

Before talking about numbers, we need to talk about your brain. Because the problem isn’t that you don’t know what to do. The problem is that your brain is designed to make bad financial decisions. It’s not your fault. It’s biology.

The 5 biases that make you poorer:

• Loss aversion: Losing $100 hurts twice as much as gaining $100 makes you happy. You don’t sell when you should, you don’t invest out of fear.
• Hyperbolic discounting: We value immediate rewards more than future ones. You prefer to spend today than save for the future.
• Confirmation bias: We seek information that confirms what we already believe. If you believe Bitcoin will rise, you only read positive news.
• Overconfidence bias: We think we’re better than we are. 90% of investors think they’ll get better results than the market.
• Herd effect: We do what others do. You see your friends investing in crypto, you invest too, even though you don’t understand it.

The antidote: systems, not willpower. Willpower is limited. It runs out. Systems, on the other hand, don’t run out. Once set up, they run on their own. The invisible account, automatic transfers, subscription audits, the 24-hour rule for purchases.

💳 The Traps of the 21st Century

The true cost of “buy now, pay later”: The trap mechanism: small installments don’t hurt ($15 seems like nothing, but 10 purchases of $15 are $150). Hidden interest (0% is only if you pay on time; one late payment and you pay 20% APR). The vicious cycle where one debt leads to another. The golden rule: if you can’t pay cash, don’t buy it.

The subscription economy: Subscriptions are designed to be invisible. Small, automatic charges that get lost among other transactions. 74% of consumers pay for at least one subscription they don’t use. 84% underestimate how much they spend on subscriptions. The solution: quarterly subscription audit. The one-subscription rule (only one entertainment subscription at a time).

Credit cards are not free money: The minimum payment trap: paying only the minimum on a $1,200 debt at 20% takes 6 years and pays $840 in interest. The same debt paid at $120/month takes 11 months and pays $120 in interest. The golden rule: pay the full balance each month. If you can’t, don’t use the card.

Financial influencers (how to know who to listen to): Red flags: impossible returns, artificial urgency, luxury cars, expensive courses, don’t talk about risk. Green flags: show failures, talk about risk, have real experience, don’t sell you anything (or sell cheap things), recommend boring passive products. The golden rule: if someone promises to make you rich quick, ask yourself: do they want to make you rich or make themselves rich? Probably themselves.

📈 How Young People Who Invest Well Think

Micro-investing (start with $5 a day): The myth of “I need a lot of money” is one of the most damaging myths in personal finance. You can start with $5. The amount doesn’t matter as much as the habit. The 5-second rule: before spending $5 on something you don’t need, ask yourself: do I prefer this or $5 for my future?

The invisible account (the trick that works without willpower): An account you don’t see. No app on your phone. No card. Automatic transfer on payday. If you don’t see the money, you don’t spend it. Money you don’t see, you don’t spend. It’s that simple.

Fractional shares (why you don’t need $500 to buy Amazon): A few years ago, to buy one share of Amazon you needed $3,000. Now you can buy fractions. From $1. The simplest alternative: a global ETF (VT). 9,600+ companies from 47 countries. 0.07% annual fee. You buy the world with one trade.

Crowdlending for young people: Lend money to other people or businesses through an online platform. Return: 8-12% annually. Risks: defaults, platform bankruptcy, illiquidity. Golden rules: don’t put more than 10-20% of your portfolio in crowdlending. Start with established platforms. Diversify a lot. Don’t invest money you might need soon.

Cryptocurrencies (our generation’s casino): Bitcoin can go up 100% in a month and drop 50% in a week. It’s not an investment. It’s high-risk speculation. Most people lose money. The 5 rules: maximum 5% of your net worth. Only Bitcoin (and maybe Ethereum). Buy on regulated exchanges. Move to a cold wallet. Don’t do staking, yield farming, or anything you don’t understand.

🏠 Beyond Investing: Real Life Decisions

How to pay off student debt without dying in the process: Step 1: understand your debt (total owed, interest rate, type). Step 2: classify (cheap debt <4%, medium 4-7%, expensive >7%). Step 3: strategies (pay more than minimum, use extra income, avalanche or snowball method, consider refinancing). Pay quickly if interest is high (>7%) or the debt gives you anxiety. Don’t pay quickly if interest is low (<4%) and you can invest the money at higher returns.

Renting vs. buying (the decision that defines your decade): Buy if: you’ll live in the same city for at least 5-7 years, you have 20% down payment, monthly payment doesn’t exceed 30-35% of your income. Rent if: you don’t know where you’ll be in the next few years, you don’t have enough down payment, rent is cheaper than mortgage + expenses. Don’t buy because of social pressure. Buy only if the numbers and your personal situation justify it.

Real side hustles (not the ones they sell on TikTok): What doesn’t work (for most): dropshipping, Amazon FBA, affiliate marketing without an audience, crypto as passive income. What does work: monetize a skill you already have (tutoring, freelance, lessons) — $25-100/hour. Create digital assets with AI (online courses, books on Amazon KDP, digital templates, guides). The 5-hour rule: 5 hours a week is 260 hours a year. Enough to create a course, write a book, launch a template shop.

Retirement isn’t just for old people: If you start saving $240 a month at 25, with 7% return, you’ll have $600,000 at 65. If you wait until 35, you need $540 a month. Time does the heavy lifting. Not savings. The 4% rule: capital needed = annual expenses / 0.04. If your annual expenses are $40,000, you need $1,000,000.

📋 The Action Plan: From 0 to $10,000 in 3 Years

Year 1: The foundation. Open invisible account. Automatic transfer of $60-120 on payday. Subscription audit. Emergency fund: 3-6 months of essential expenses. If you have expensive debt (>8%), prioritize paying it. Then start investing in a global ETF (VT). Expected result: emergency fund $1,800-3,600, investments $720-1,440, expensive debt $0.

Year 2: The habit. Increase automatic savings. 50/50 rule for raises. Try crowdlending with $120-240. Portfolio: 70% global ETF, 20% crowdlending, 10% cash. Expected result: emergency fund $3,600-7,200, investments $3,000-6,000, monthly savings $180-300.

Year 3: Acceleration. Increase savings to 20% of income. Use tax-advantaged accounts (401(k), IRA, Roth IRA). If employer offers 401(k) match, contribute enough to get full match. Review allocation. Calculate net worth. Expected result: emergency fund $6,000-12,000, investments $12,000-18,000, net worth $18,000-30,000.

📘 What You’ll Learn Inside Generation Indebted

• Part I: The diagnosis — Where are we? The economy we inherited (and the one we got): college costs, housing crisis, job precarity, technology overabundance. The 5 financial problems of our generation: invisible student debt ($37,000 average), subscription trap (84% underestimate spending), BNPL trap ($150 billion market), financial FOMO, micro-investing illusion. The psychology of money: 5 biases that make you poorer (loss aversion, hyperbolic discounting, confirmation bias, overconfidence, herd effect).
• Part II: The traps of the 21st century The true cost of BNPL: small installments, hidden interest (20% APR on late payments), vicious cycle. The subscription economy: 74% pay for unused subscriptions, quarterly audit, one-subscription rule. Credit cards: minimum payment trap ($1,200 at 20% takes 6 years, $840 interest), pay full balance each month. Financial influencers: how to identify smoke sellers (red flags and green flags).
• Part III: How young people who invest well think Micro-investing: start with $5/day, the 5-second rule, scale with every raise. The invisible account: no app, no card, automatic transfer, don’t look at it. Fractional shares: buy Amazon from $1, global ETF (VT, 0.07% fee). Crowdlending: 8-12% returns, risks, golden rules. Cryptocurrencies: 5% max, only Bitcoin/Ethereum, regulated exchanges, cold wallet, no DeFi.
• Part IV: Beyond investing Student debt: refinancing, income-driven repayment, PSLF, avalanche vs snowball. Renting vs buying: 5% rule, 5-7 year minimum stay. Real side hustles: monetize existing skills ($25-100/hour), digital assets with AI, 5-hour rule. Retirement planning: start at 25 vs 35, 4% rule, 20% savings goal, tax-advantaged accounts.
• Part V: The action plan From 0 to $10,000 in 3 years: Year 1 (foundation), Year 2 (habit), Year 3 (acceleration). The 10 financial commandments for under 35. Budget template for young people. How to choose your first investment. Recommended resources (books, podcasts, YouTube, communities).

📘 Generation Indebted

$8 / €8 — PDF / EPUB

Includes: 20 chapters, 5 financial problems of our generation, 5 cognitive biases explained, BNPL trap analysis, subscription audit guide, credit card minimum payment trap math, how to identify scam influencers, micro-investing strategy, invisible account setup, fractional shares guide, crowdlending for beginners, cryptocurrency 5 golden rules, student debt payoff strategies, rent vs buy calculator, real side hustles (not TikTok scams), retirement planning for young people, 3-year action plan from 0 to $10,000, 10 financial commandments, budget template, recommended resources (books, podcasts, YouTube, Reddit communities).

 

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