Did the first of two classes Monday on taxes in my Personal Financial Planning course at @RowanUniversity's new School of Financial Planning. Monday was devoted to reducing taxable income. Almost all of my 38 students work part-time as W-2 workers, but none of them have filed a 1040 yet. I explained such ideas as deferring income and accelerating deductions, but the biggest item they struggled to digest pertained to W-9 withholdings. They all listed zero dependents, and I explained that, as a result, they are likely to have far too much money withheld from each paycheck. To fix it, I said, they should file a new W-9 and claim far more dependents. They didn't understand how they could do this since they are unmarried with no children. I explained that the form has nothing to do with truth, and instead is focused on accuracy; the goal is to not get a big refund in April (and not to owe money, either) - and you achieve this goal by claiming the "right" (meaning, accurate) number of dependents. Falsify a federal tax form? They struggled with this notion. I told them that they won't be falsifying anything, and that this is a standard tactic. Go visit a CPA, their HR department at work, or even an IRS office, for help on this, I told them. Just a small example of how bizarre our tax system is, and how ordinary consumers struggle to manage their tax planning effectively. Millions of Americans give the IRS an interest-free loan because of this! Tomorrow, I'll give them strategies to lower taxes on their investments (yeah, I know, they don't have any investments yet, but they will one day - and their parents already do). So, tomorrow will be a great conversation. #CFP #taxes #CPA #college #financialplanning