Alternate view: Early life is the best time to save because of compounding interest. A dollar saved in your 20s has far more lifetime value than a dollar saved in your 30s, 40s or 50s. A year spent horsing around in Nepal "finding yourself" could easily mean having to delay retirement 5 years. I'd rather goof off and enjoy 20 carefree years when I'm old than 4 years when I'm young and have to work until I die.