Yeah. That Arnold Schwarzenegger.

So do Codie Sanchez, Scott Galloway, Colin & Samir, Shaan Puri, and Jay Shetty. And none of them are doing it for fun. They're doing it because a list you own compounds in ways that social media never will.

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Every parent knows the feeling: you want to give your children every advantage possible, and for many families, that means sending them to college without a mountain of debt. It's a noble instinct. But when retirement savings and college savings compete for the same limited dollars, most financial planners agree on a counterintuitive answer…and it might make you feel guilty until you understand the math behind it.

The principle is simple, even if emotionally complicated: fund your retirement first. This isn't selfishness. It's the most loving financial move you can make for your whole family.

The financial case for prioritizing retirement is rooted in a reality that no amount of parental love can override: the structure of available financing. Student loans exist precisely because young people have decades of future earnings to repay them. Retirement loans do not exist, because retirees have no such runway.

Think about the compounding math. A dollar invested in your 401(k) at age 35 has roughly 30 years to grow before a typical retirement at 65. At a 7% average annual return, that dollar becomes approximately $7.60. A dollar invested in a 529 college savings plan when your child is five has perhaps 13 years to grow — turning into roughly $2.41. The retirement dollar isn't just slightly more valuable; it's more than three times more powerful.

There's also the matter of tax advantages. Contributions to a traditional 401(k) or IRA reduce your taxable income today, while the money grows tax-deferred. Employer matches (free money) are forfeited when you skip contributions. Leaving that match on the table to fund a 529 is, in almost every scenario, a losing trade.

Parents who deplete their retirement savings or forego contributions to pay for college often face a brutal second chapter: becoming financially dependent on the very children they sacrificed for. Adult children supporting aging parents is a real and growing phenomenon, and it places enormous strain on young families who are simultaneously raising their own children and building their own retirement nest eggs.

In other words, the most generous thing you can do for your child's financial future may be to ensure you never become a burden to it.

College has many funding pathways that retirement simply does not. Before assuming your savings must cover every dollar of tuition, consider the full landscape available to students.

Scholarships and grants. Merit-based and need-based aid can dramatically reduce the sticker price of a degree. Families who save aggressively in their own names can actually reduce their child's eligibility for need-based aid — worth discussing with a financial aid advisor.

Federal student loans. Subsidized federal loans offer reasonable interest rates and income-driven repayment options. A general rule of thumb: borrow no more than your expected first-year salary.

Work-study and part-time employment. Students who work during college often graduate with better professional networks, stronger time-management skills, and less debt.

Community college and transfer pathways. The first two years of a four-year degree cost a fraction of the price at a community college, and the diploma from the ultimate institution is the same.

Prioritizing retirement doesn't mean abandoning college savings, it means establishing a sequence. Most financial planners recommend this order of operations:

If you still feel a knot in your stomach, that's understandable. The cultural pressure on parents to sacrifice everything for their children is immense. But reframe it this way: you are choosing your child's middle-aged financial security over their early-20s financial comfort. A student with $30,000 in loans and two financially independent parents is in a far better position than a student with zero loans and two parents who will need financial support in their 70s.

Have the honest conversation with your children early. Let them know what you're able to contribute and what they'll need to plan for themselves. That conversation is itself an invaluable financial education.

Retirement savings and college savings are both worthy goals, and with planning, most families can pursue both. But when resources are limited, the math, the financing options, and the long-term family dynamics all point the same direction: secure your own future first.

The ‘thank you’ from your kids will come in the form of a phone call they never have to make, asking if you're going to be okay.