Your education determines many aspects of your life. From whether you can afford health insurance for your family, or a new car or yearly vacations. It could also determine whether you you are lucky enough to able to own a home.

Then there are the many intangible benefits of a good education that many of us overlook.

The dynamics of what hours you will work. How many days of vacation time you will have and much, much more. It can also determine who your friends will be later in life. Many of your best friends will come from your educational experience, from kindergarten to College.

Now as a parent, I worry about my daughter and her education. As we all know, peer pressure is a major factor in human behavior. As a parent, I'd rather my daughter have peer pressure to join the local debate or tennis club than the local smoking club. How about you?

But of course as young people, many of us do not think of these things. Or we do not listen. I know I did not listen, if my parents had told me these things. My mother was even a school teacher, but I don't remember the story about why education was important. I had to learn the hard way after high school, that going to college was the easy way!I'm sure I knew deep down that my parents just assumed that I knew a good education was important, but I did not know why. As parents, we should never assume this! As young people, we should not let our parents assume this!

To the young people reading this report, this is your chance to listen to people who have been there, who have been though it all. For example, I have traveled all the roads, high and low. From working in high school to have a cool car and friends, to then working in a factory for 2 years after high school, then on to college from the encouragement and support of my mom. It only took a few months of working on an assembly line to know I wanted to get an education! Some 20 years later after owning a computer store, I am headed back to school again, working at nights to save money for school.

Back to money from your job. Money is not everything. A balanced life is everything. It's just that having a good income makes having a balanced life much easier to maintain. Click here for to view our view of a balanced life.

So, if you're in school, or thinking about going back to school, write it the following on your computer 50 times.

I DON'T WANT TO WORK AT A DEAD END JOB!
I WANT A GOOD EDUCATION!
I WILL WORK HARD!
I WILL BE REWARDED!

Print it out, put it on your walls, refrigerator and any other place you will see it every day. Then get to work and make every day and every hour count, whether it's time to study, exercise, pray or relax!

Just keep in mind where a good education can take you. Like money, you don't have to have it, but it sure makes life much easier.

Seriously, take the time to click here to understand what an education is all about and what it means to you. Then click on the links to the left for more resources!