With American households spending about 106% of what they are earning we need to be honest about our financial situation and plan ahead for the unexpected.

The debt-ceiling crisis is a great example of how not to deal with financial matters. With U.S. household debt totaling $13.4 trillion at the end of 2010 (107 percent of total household income), it’s time to be honest about our financial situation and plan ahead for the unexpected.

We reap what we sow. It’s astounding that even in the middle of one of our country’s worst economic downturns, we still don’t prioritize teaching about money, be it in schools, our families, our workplace. I’m all for learning via the school of hard knocks, but at what cost?

Hear more of my thoughts on what you can learn from the current economic environment on my FOX 9 News interview.