Stop whining and give us your money

One of the things that young people seem to want in large amounts is money. But with the media telling them exclusively about millions of ways to spend money, few young people have any idea how to accumulate it.

Here at Praxiomatic we are happy to reveal to you the magic secret of accumulating lots of money. And we will do it in only four words. Brace yourself: Save and invest regularly.

But you need money to make money, right? Fear not, investment-ready young people! Now comes a flock of investment firms who suddenly realized en masse that you may be young and beautiful but you can't necessarily can't pony up a $10,000 account minimum (Eleanor Laise in WSJ, sub. req'd):

Mutual-fund firms have a new message for young investors: Stop whining and give us your money.

In an attempt to attract the next generation of customers, Wall Street is rolling out a host of new offerings designed to squelch the excuses that keep many 20- and 30-somethings from investing outside of their 401(k) plans.

Can't afford the hefty four- and five-figure minimums required by many mutual funds? They'll slash the minimum investment below the cost of an iPod. Not sure which funds to buy, and in what amounts? They're launching all-in-one products that take much of that work off your hands. Don't know how to save for a car, a house and that far-off mirage called retirement? They'll deluge you with online tools and easy-to-enroll individual retirement accounts.

Now you can invest with Schwab for a hundred bucks — that's fifty bucks less than a measly 2GB iPod nano.

You want to be rich when you're old? Then be smart when you're young.