Although some aspect of the economy are on the mend, the White House is nevertheless predicting that unemployment will remain at or above 9% until 2012. With unemployment now at 9.5%, all Americans -- those working and those seeking jobs -- should be safeguarding their finances and preparing for "what if" scenarios.

When considering a "what if" scenario, evaluate what could go wrong in your life. Could your health decline? Could your investments go south? Could you go through a divorce? Running a few "what if" scenarios in your head (or on paper) isn't meant to turn you into a Negative Nellie. Instead, it's simply a way for you to better plan for unexpected events that can happen to anyone.

Amid periods of high unemployment, the most pressing "what if" scenario you should think about is: "What if I lose my job or suffer a big reduction in income?" The loss of income can be emotionally and financially trying for anyone. I know, I've been through a downsizing -- and it wasn't particularly pleasant. So even if you think your job is relatively secure, it wouldn't hurt to take some precautionary measures that will shore up your personal finances and reduce your stress in the event of an unforeseen layoff.

I guess this should come as no surprise, but a lot of our tax dollars were recently wasted on executive compensation. According to the Treasury Department's pay czar, 17 banks that received hundreds of billions of federal bailout dollars overpaid their CEOs and top executives.

How much excess cash was lavished on these execs? Try $1.6 billion. Mind you, this was just from the period of October 2008 to February 2009. The reason I say "overpaid" is because under new rules, those payments wouldn't have been allowed to go to these executives.

The single best investment you can make is something most people wouldn't guess: It's investing in yourself. Investing in yourself can make you a millionaire – without having to worry about what the stock market is doing.

How do you invest in yourself? It's S.I.M.P.L.E.:

S – Strive for Perfect Credit
As I explain in my book, 'Perfect Credit: 7 Steps to a Great Credit Rating,' having pristine credit is often better than cash in the bank. With A-1 credit, you get the best rates on car loans, credit cards and mortgages. You also position yourself for good jobs and promotions, since employers are increasingly conducting employment-related credit checks when deciding whom to hire and promote. For loans and career opportunities, having outstanding credit will help you save or earn hundreds of thousands of dollars during your life.

I – Improve your education
Consider earning a degree if you don't have one, because U.S. Labor Department statistics show that college graduates earn 62% more money than high school graduates. Over a lifetime, that translates into a $1 million earnings gap.

M – Make it a lifelong endeavor to increase your knowledge, training and skills
Constantly upgrading your skills makes you more marketable and attractive to employers. Focus on a variety of areas: communication skills, job skills, and technical skills, along with leadership and management skills, too.

Forget about lying, sexual incompatibility or infidelity. The real threat to your relationship may be your (or your partner's) tendency to splurge on things that are outside your budget. As I often explain on Facebook, Twitter and in my financial seminars, the consequences of rampant over-spending -- especially when using credit -- are enormous. Not only are credit card delinquencies, bankruptcies and foreclosures on the rise, debt is even a huge factor in families being split apart.

Studies show that seven out of 10 couples who divorce say that financial strife played a big part in the breakup. If you're married, be honest with yourself for a minute. Have your partner's spending habits or financial patterns ever driven you crazy? Or perhaps you actually need to look in the mirror. Does your way of handling money – maybe buying things that the two of you can't afford – cause friction in the relationship?

It seems like a cruel joke of the universe that so many couples are financial mismatches, with one person being a care-free spender and the other a staunch saver. Perhaps that's why, in a study of 50,000 couples who went through its marriage preparation course, Life Innovations found that 72% of the 100,000 individuals polled said they wished their partners were more careful about spending. Also, 56% said major debts were a problem in the relationship.

I'm a big believer in home ownership. Having your own house can help you build wealth, get tax breaks that aren't available to renters, and create a great financial legacy for generations to come. And with record-low interest rates and real estate prices having fallen in many parts of the country, buying a home is now within reach for millions of people who were previously priced out of the housing market.

I'd be remiss, however, in my duties as a Money Coach if I didn't express one cold, hard reality about homeownership: it's not necessarily for everyone. As a matter of fact, there are some groups of people who probably shouldn't become homeowners – at least not anytime soon.

That might sound odd coming from a proponent of home ownership and the author of a book called Your First Home: The Smart Way to Get It and Keep It, which is designed to help you prepare for, find and finance the home of your dreams. But the fact is, I've also seen people get themselves into trouble unnecessarily by biting off more than they could chew and buying a home before they were truly ready. Read on to discover if you fall into any of the following groups of people. If so, you're probably better off renting, instead of buying a home prematurely.

• You are Mr. or Ms. Entitlement
Do you think the world owes you something? Are you convinced that you could "get ahead in life" if only someone – the government, your boss, and yes, your local banker – just gave you a break? If you have that mentality, chances are you're not ready to become a homeowner. Owning a house is not an automatic right. It's a privilege that is chock full of benefits as well as responsibilities.

Black farmers across the United States have been the victims of systematic discrimination for several decades. This has been proven in court, and the United States Department of Agriculture has agreed to pay a $1.25 billion dollar settlement to the black farmers who brought the suit. What is saddest about the settlement, however, is that Congress has not yet approved the funds. This is another form of racism that the farmers must face, because their justice is being consistently denied by government officials who are insistent upon remaining stubborn.

I was happy to hear the other day that President Barack Obama is toying with the idea of letting his daughters get babysitting jobs in the not-too-distant future. The President's daughters, Malia and Sasha, are now 12 and 9, respectively.

In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" program, President Obama said: "What I'm doing now with Malia and Sasha is they're getting an allowance. They're starting to get old enough where they may be able earn some money babysitting," the President noted, adding: "They've got their own savings accounts."

One advantage of being the President of the United States is that you've got a huge platform from which you can not only help set the national agenda, you can also set a good example for Americans -- and indeed citizens everywhere.

By talking to his daughters -- and to the public at large -- about Malia and Sasha getting jobs, the President reinforces to everyone that money should be earned, not simply doled out, even in well-to-do families. Kids especially need to understand that money doesn't just magically appear. Sure, some people might inherit money, or marry into it. But most of us have to acquire money the old-fashioned way: by working to earn it.

British Petroleum CEO Tony Hayward is reportedly going to step down this week to be replaced by another man who has been running the day-to-day operations of the oil spill. CNN's Anderson Cooper has reported that the announcement is set to take place in England, which is five hours ahead of the U.S. The greatest shock has come from the announcement that Hayward will allegedly receive a pay package of roughly $18 million dollars, which is shocking in light of the fact that many of the victims in the Gulf oil spill have not yet been paid.

A group of black Southern California Edison (SCE) employees recently filed a class action lawsuit against the company, alleging racial discrimination dating back to the '70s. The plaintiffs claim that SCE has routinely passed over black employees for promotion, and discriminates based on race in hiring. The plaintiffs also allege that they contend with a racially-hostile work environment, in addition to unequal pay and job assignments.

This is not the first time that SCE has been accused of racial discrimination, having faced discrimination class action suits in 1974 and 1994. Consent decrees from both lawsuits required the company to make "good faith efforts to increase the employee population and improve the opportunities for African-Americans ." However, as reported by Southern California Public Radio, the numbers of black employees at SCE has decreased by approximately forty percent since the most recent suit in 1994.

Although we should not jump to conclusions or presume guilt based on previous behavior, the allegations made by the plaintiffs in the SCE class action suit are disturbing. If true, these allegations show a pattern of racial discrimination against black employees embedded so deeply in the culture of SCE that two previous lawsuits weren't enough to get the company to change its management style. It appears that SCE does not even want to make the slightest attempt at treating black employees fairly.

Geithner went onto national television to argue that with the economy slumping and deficit rising, it only makes sense for the rich to increase their contribution to the nation's coffers.