I will not mince words. Gold is a terrible investment. Historically, the price of gold matches inflation (plus or minus short-term variation). It doesn't do

I will not mince words. Gold is a terrible investment. Historically, the price of gold matches inflation (plus or minus short-term variation). It doesn't do anything. Your lump of gold just sits there and is worth no more in a "real" sense 40 years from today. Any reasonable portfolio should be comprised almost entirely of stocks, bonds, and real estate, all of which have in common that they're actively working for you in the interim. Life insurance should only be purchased if you have dependents who depend on your income (not assets) and even then you only ever need term. This is definitely situationally dependent. The years of 18-35 are essentially what form the adult version of "you". The mathematics of the value of saving early is quite clear, but I argue that cultivating the best version of yourself during these years is vastly more important. Money is nice, but there's pleny of problems it doesn't solve. Why would you advocate getting married and having kids before 30? Women probably need to before about 35, when it starts getting increasingly difficult, and men can even reasonably wait another decade after that.