Suze Orman

Many people are in the dark when it comes to money, and I'm going to turn on the lights.

Bad debt is sacrificing your future day needs for your present day desires.

We are all powerless as children, and money looms so powerfully... we don't grow up to claim our financial power until we look money directly in the eye, face our fears, and claim that power back.

Owning a home is a keystone of wealth - both financial affluence and emotional security.

Believing you are worthy of love means that you believe I deserve to be treated well - with respect and dignity. I deserve to be cherished and adored by someone. I am worthy of an intimate and fulfilling relationship. I won't settle for less than I deserve. I will do whatever it takes to create that for myself.

So many financial dreams are thwarted by the failure to act upon good intentions.

A big part of financial freedom is having your heart and mind free from worry about the what-ifs of life.

Abundance is about being rich, with or without money.

You can never solve a financial problem with money. The only way for you to have a larger net worth is for you to go within to see why you are going without.

It's fine to seek professional help, but I urge everyone - no matter how big their portfolio - to truly understand every suggestion they're given before acting.

You must remember the value that you add to others and not just what others have added to you. That's how we build self-worth, which, in my opinion, is just as important as net worth.

The new American dream is one of responsibility. What is the bottom-line number that you're going to be able to pay back toward a student loan responsibly if you're doing it yourself after you have a job? That dictates the amount of money you can borrow. That dictates the school you can go to, if you can even go to a four-year college at all.

True generosity is an offering; given freely and out of pure love. No strings attached. No expectations. Time and love are the most valuable possession you can share.

What's keeping you from being rich? In most cases it's simply a lack of belief. In order to become rich, you must believe you can do it, and you must take the actions necessary to achieve your goal.

It wasn't until I stood in my truth and told everybody that I had $250,000 in credit card debt. At that point, everything turned around for me. I had to reveal the truth about what I didn't have, more than pretend about what I did. That was interesting.

Prenups are so unromantic - a sign of distrust, not love. Time for a reality check, my friends. First, drawing up a prenuptial agreement together is a sign of incredible trust and financial openness - you're fooling yourself if you think you can achieve complete intimacy without it.

I'm a big advocate of a work-for-pay setup rather than an allowance that isn't attached to chores - it's a great way to impart the value of money to your children.

Never, ever invest money that you will need prior to three to five years - minimum.

Stop saying yes out of fear about what others will think about you and say NO out of love for yourself!

If you make time each month to give your money some attention, you'll start the next year in fabulous financial shape.

The foundation of a financial fresh start actually has nothing to do with money or specific financial dos and don'ts.