Here's some wisdom from Jonathan Clements, an excellent financial author I started following this year. Here's a link to a recent MarketWatch article, and here's a link to an 18-minute podcast where the Wall Street Journal's "Money, Markets, & More" staff interview Clements. The article provides the list but with only limited comments. So don't stop with the article; please find the time to listen to the podcast.

Here's an example of additional insight in the podcast: the closer the couple's credit scores are to each other, the more likely they'll stay married.

To further whet your interest, here is Clement's list of the ten most important Financial Decisions Ever:

1. How much you borrow for college.
2. What career you pursue.
3. How early in life you start saving.
4. How big a house you buy relative to your income.
5. Whether you marry the right person. (I'd rephrase this to "Who you marry.")
6. How often you replace your car.
7. Whether you make a lifetime commitment to stocks.
8. Whether you have children. (I'd add "... and how many.")
9. Whether you waste time and money on the foolish pursuit of market-beating gains.
10. When you claim Social Security.