This week’s money Question

When it comes to money decisions, it can be hard to figure out the right thing to do. Money is about power, emotion, morality, and security, among other things.So in this space, we gather personal finance luminaries to weigh in on a financial quandary. This week’s question Should you start looking for a job immediately after university or spend some money on travelling? Barry Choi, budget travel expert at MoneyWeHave.com Assuming you have no outstanding debt you should definitely go see the world or at least a small part of it. Travel is a life experience and you’ll learn more about yourself and other cultures than you ever will on the job.Of course that being said you should only travel if it fits in your budget; travelling on credit should be avoided at all stages of life. Teaching English abroad is a great way to get paid to see the world; any money you earn will probably be spent on more travel but at least you won’t be in debt. Preet Banerjee, personal finance guru and author of Stop Overthinking Your Money! The idea of bumming around Europe after graduating from post-secondary school is romantic, but it’s not very pragmatic.The competition for jobs after school is tougher than ever. Recent graduates are finding it tough to find their first job, and seem to be even more hard-pressed to find one in their ideal role or even field.Add on to that higher student debt, higher down payments to save for, and pricier weddings, and something has got to give. The ability to earn an income for the rest of your life is your largest asset and studies have indicated that your starting salary could largely influence your lifetime earnings.In other words, earn more today and your earnings trajectory shifts up accordingly. Focus on finding the best job you can as soon as you can, and you’ll be enjoying plenty of vacations when you’re on surer footing. Finally, the early years of your post-grad life are critical to developing your money personality for life. Welcome to the real world. Kyle Prevost, personal finance writer at YoungandThrifty.ca and co-author of More Money for Beer and Textbooks If you have student debt it borders on the insane to add to that debt load by going travelling after you finish university. We are witnessing the “Yolo-ization” of society when we are seriously considering that going into high-interest debt for a trip immediately after taking on debt for several years is a good idea. Here’s a less extreme option: work as you travel! This allows you to see the world, experience what life is really like in other cultures and add some skill sets to your résumé – all while remaining debt-free. I should also point out that contrary to popular belief, airplanes and the world will still exist after you turn 30.