As a teenager, it took me about two seconds to figure out that money = freedom. That's why I went out and got a job as a 14 yr old (actually, I had a paper route at age 11, but that wasn't very serious). Never had to worry about begging my parents for cash, especially after I turned 16 and needed gas money. Having a paycheck that you worked for and can dispose of the money however you please is a great feeling. On top of that I picked up some pretty good management skills along the way that have helped me in my adult life a lot. I work in an industry where many people never had a real job until they got out of a billion years of college and sometimes it really shows. There's a reason I've been able to climb the ladder a lot quicker than many peers, even though I went to a small, unknown university, almost failed out of high school, and have a general lack of respect for authority. School is overrated.