By The Canadian Press on September 25, 2026 Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Personal finance pros reveal one thing they wish they knew when they were younger

By The Canadian Press on September 25, 2026 Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Financial experts reveal the money mistakes they made in their 20s and the lessons they wish they had learned sooner.

Kelley Keehn recalls a financial mistake she made in her 20s, when she bought a Mercedes sports car that was out of her budget. “I was doing well financially, but not well enough to try to keep up with my wealthy clients. And quite frankly, I had no idea what I was doing,” said Keehn, the CEO of Money Wise Institute.

She said things might have been different if she had a financial mentor in her life at the time, who would have encouraged her to examine why she was making some of the decisions she did. “I would have saved myself so much grief, so many bad investments, so many bad spending decisions,” Keehn said.

Unlearning inherited money beliefs

Occasional financial missteps, or even big mistakes, are common for many people as they grow and learn the ins and outs of money—including financial experts.

Keehn said that if she could go back, she would tell herself that beliefs about money are frequently inherited. Learning to question those beliefs can help people decide which ones to keep and what........

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