accepting responsibility

Why are so many people surprised and upset by the downturn in the housing and money markets? Didn't they see it coming? Probably not. How did so many people lose so much money with these ponzi scheme hedge funds?

I am astonished by the number of my smart lady friends and their significant others who really don't have a clue when it comes to their money. They all have a guy who takes care of it for them, so they can golf or whatever.

Many of the young adults of our acquaintance have grown up without ever worrying about money. Oh, sure, some other kid at school has a fancier car than they do, but that hardly qualifies as an important financial understanding. Many are under-employed and not worried about the long term consequences of frittering away their best earning years with no thoughts for the future.

What's all this? Not one of these folks is accepting responsibility of their personal financial management. Why not? What's missing? Most people believe that money and finance are hard - something that should be entrusted to "professionals" who get paid a significant percentage of your money for doing this.

How does one learn to take responsibility for anything? There are strategies and "tools" to guide individuals to recognizing the need to take responsibility for all aspects of their personal lives. Can these same tools be applied to accepting responsibility for personal finance and money management?
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