- What's the worst financial advice you've ever gotten?

- Hmm.

Does "buy whatever mysterious cryptocurrency the bots are advertising down in the comments" count?

- Getting financial advice on the internet is a mixed bag.

There's thoughtful, well-researched information from credible professionals.

And then there's this.

- [Philip] If you are looking for information on how to manage money, you might run into the many podc AI chatbots, and video influence who are more interested in your than your financial future.

- And no matter how good you are at sorting out the scams and the grifters, sometimes even the most sensible sounding advice may not help you reach your financial goals.

So, let's talk about some of the worst financial misi we hear all the time.

- Because some of it is bad advi you might already be following.

(exciting upbeat music) Do you remember those Reddit pos that went viral encouraging peop to buy stock in movi theaters and video game stores and hold onto it for a potential huge payout?

Or is your feed flooded with day trading influencers going on about the top three stocks to buy this week?

When an influencer tells you that a specific investment is going to be the next best thi it's usually a red flag because they may just be trying to deliver the new sensational c that the algorithm demands.

Sure, you'd be in a pretty good if you bought shares in a big, buzzy company like Apple or Nvidia before it w but influencers oversell the fantasy of overnight success and undersell the risk involved in guessing which individual stock will rise to the top.

Instead, you could invest in an that covers hundreds of individu and you'll benefit from those superstars anyway, even if that's not the kind of a that inspires millions of clicks and views.

- And while you're better off no to outsmart the market, you can also be skeptical of peo who tell you there is no way you can successfully manage your money yourself and that you need to pay someone to do it for you.

But research shows time and agai that actively managed funds, where investment managers choose which stocks to invest in, don't perform better than index the kind where you're investing in the market as a whole in the long term.

Plus, actively managed funds can the kind of steep fees that eat into your investments o - Here's some more dubiou advice that sounds good at first Never use a credit card.

The whole genre of creators tryi to pay off their credit cards might make you want to steer clear of credit en especially if you don't want to the 40% of American adults who have credit card debt.

But avoiding credit cards altogether makes it difficult to build a good credit score.

And without one, you may have to pay higher interest rates on car loans or mortgages or find it hard to rent an apart or even be hired for a job.

- But if you do open that credit be smart about it because some people online will tell you to just pay the minimum payment every month and not even worry about credit because money isn't real.

Financial nihilism aside, that minimum payment avoids late and APR hikes from your bank, but it's usually only a small pe of the amount you actually owe.

Ideally, you're paying your credit card statement balance in full every single month.

That would prevent a thousand dollar bill this month from taking more than five years and 700 extra dollars to pay off - And if you're part of the avocado toast generation, you've probably heard this one b the reason you're not rich is because you're throwing away money on lattes.

While it's true that taking that $7 indulgence and investing it instead could c into a more impressive pile of c cutting out a small luxury like isn't likely to totally change y Say you buy a coffee out every single day of the year, but switch to investing the money in an account that gives you an admirable 10% It would still take 10 to 15 years of foregoing your latte to compound into a down payment on a house.

So, yes, make sure your fun spen doesn't eat up your whole budget But if you're trying to make big you're probably better off asking for a raise than trying to squeeze every bit of joy out of your life.

- But be careful, because while every budget should have room for some nice-to-haves, you should be wary of advice that tells you to maximize on fun at th expense of financial security.

You know, the, "You'll make your money back, but you'll never have another ch to have a Euro summer in your 20 Trends like these make sense to us emotionally.

As an increasing number of Gen Zers and Millennials have been priced out of home own they're turning to smaller luxuries like travel instead.

But even those splurges are becoming more difficult to a A recent survey found that 26% of participants planned to take on credit card debt to pay for their summer travel, making these emotionally satisfying experiences more expensive than they need to Instead of boarding a flight to sky-high interest rates, you can include a travel sinking as part of your monthly budget.

That way, you're always planning for your next vacation and your memories can last longe than your credit card payments d - So, now you can live lik you're young and wild and free, but if someone tells you that you have plenty of time to save for retirement later, you are old enough to know bette If you contribute to retirement account like a 401k or an IRA starting at the age of you may end up with nearly double the retirement savings of someone who starts savin the same amount 10 years later, thanks to compound interest.

So, even if you can only make a small start, thinking about your retirement in your 20s seriously pays.

- And while it's good to invest in your future early, don't let that urgency rush you into a bad decision.

Most of the time, when you hear that you have to act immediately or you'll get left behind, it's actually a good sign to slo When you're seeking advice from influencers online, they often stand to benefit fina when you do what they tell you, whether that's through brand deals or commissions, and they don't always disclose when their advice is actually an So, buying that cryptocurrency or signing up for that investing or opening that credit card may be better for them than it i - A survey by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards found that 29% of people who looked for financial advice regretted making rash money deci - So, it's probably worth taking and approaching any finfluencer with a little bit of skepticism because you're the one who will have to live with the o - And that's our two cents.

- And that's our two cents.