* Just 54 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24 currently have jobs. This is the lowest employment rate we’ve seen for this age ever.

* These numbers suggest that the recession is killing job prospects for many of the younger generation who — keep in mind — were still in high school or college when the downturn began.

I’m $50,000 in debt from student loans and finally found a job. Should I start paying off my loans right away?

Many financial experts will tell you to start throwing money at your student loans before you move on to other big “life” purchases. The thought is that the earlier you can pay them off, the better. But if your student loans operate on a sliding scale, you might want to put on the breaks. It’s a snowball effect: the faster you start paying them off, the faster your monthly payment can ramp up.

Paying off your student loans too aggressively can also damage your credit score, making your creditors take notice if you slow down again too quickly. Don’t bite off more than you can chew, as you never know what curveballs (or pink slips) might come your way down the road. Before getting too aggressive with your student loans payments, you should always tackle the highest interest rate expense you have first, which — especially if you’ve been out of work for a while — is most likely your credit card. These high rates will get you in the long term; get them under control before moving on to student loans.

In this tight job market, what can I do to make myself stand out?

It helps to always be a step ahead, and in this economy most companies are looking for creative ways to make money. Subscribe to a trade magazine, invest some time — and whatever extra funds you might have, if possible — in yourself. Enroll in a class online or at a local university to improve your skills or learn a new one.

Already have a special skill? Offer your services on elance.com or odesk.com, where companies look for freelancers to take on projects on everything from writing to web design to administrative work.

I graduated last May and am still looking for a job  — what are some alternative ways for me to make money?

If you’re looking to make some dough while you wait — or even on the side once you find a full-time job — just remember: play to your work weaknesses, those things you do most often.

Have a twitter addiction?  Seek out a company you can be brand ambassador for and get paid to promote their tweets online. Painstakingly retouch your photos before posting them to Facebook? Offer your services to an online retouching service and make some cash by tweaking other people’s photos. Sucker for the latest apps on your iPhone? Sign up to be a beta tester for apps that haven’t even hit the market yet.

You might already be “that” guy or girl who’s always online – and you’re probably online job searching anyway — now be the smart guy or girl who’s getting paid for it.

In case you missed the answers to YOUR money questions, here you go…and keep ‘em coming @nicolelapin…answering them every week.

Christina Evriviades @cevriviades Hey @NicoleLapin ! I have a $$ Q: if my employer doesn’t match 401k contributions, should I still invest or are there better alternatives?

Think twice, Christina. There are 3 types of people who should rethink their 401k…and you fall into category 3:

1) If you don’t have a personal savings account that covers 6-9 months of bills and expenses. You need to have liquid, readily available cash to cover expenses if you lose your job or are in a pinch. Contribute here first before your 401k.

2) If you have a lot of debt. Don’t forget that your debt’s interest is compounding just as much as money that’s sitting in savings. If you have a substantial amount of debt with icky interest rates you’re better off chiseling away at it early than investing it in the market.

3) If your company doesn’t match your contributions. Since your 401k is directly connected to the market conditions in 30-40 years, which is completely unpredictable, choose more conservative saving vehicles if your employer isn’t helping you double down.

Graison Foster-Stemper Are u an overall fan of mutual funds?

Yes, Graison. But: Fees, Fees, Fees. Watch your fund expenses. Look for mutual funds that have expenses below 1.33 percent for stock funds and 0.89 percent for bond funds; study after study shows that keeping investment costs low is the best way to increase your odds of earning a high return. The cheapest of the cheap are index funds from Vanguard or Fidelity.

Candice Chan @canchan @NicoleLapin I have a bunch of gift cards from the holidays that I probably won’t use. What can I do with them?

Oh, Candice, we’ve all been there. I think I have a random Shake Shack card in my drawer somewhere. Here are some smart options:

1) Swap it. Sites like giftcardrescue.com and swap-a-gift.com let you trade gift cards for one of the same value.

2) Sell it on cardhub.com or plastic jungle.com — these are both great sites for auctioning off unwanted gift cards. You probably won’t get the exact face value back, but it’s better than collecting unused gift cards in your desk drawer, like my Shake Shack one.

3) Donate it. Some charities, especially those that offer donations in-kind (clothing and homeware, for example) will even accept gift cards as a donation. Contact your favorite charity and ask if they will accept your gift card. If they do, you can write off its value on your taxes as a charitable donation.

1. Never be intimidated to talk to anyone.

2. Never hesitate to ask someone’s age.

3. Never (ever) ask a woman if she’s pregnant.

4. Call someone out when they offend you.

5. Be classy and they’ll usually apologize.

6. Class and charm are the only must-have accessories.

7. You should only wear jewelry that has meaning.

8. Change if you’re wearing dangly jewelry or white around kids.

9. Sometimes, you change for the better.

10. Sometimes, everything must change.

1. Be more easy-going than you think you are.
2. Write more than you think you do.
3. When in doubt, push “save as draft.”
4. When in doubt, overdress.
5. It takes just as long to put on jeans as it does a dress.
6. It takes less time to go commando than it does to wear Spanx.
7. If you eat too much, you will gain weight.
8. If you eat too little, you will not lose weight.
9. If you just eat when you are hungry and stop when you are full, you will be fine.
10. And, for godsakes, take a bite if it’s awesomely delicious.

(Unfortunately) yes, I was the girl who found out that saying “bullocks” on the air is not appropriate if your show airs in London.

My west coast friends would only catch me on MSNBC when they woke up.

And yes, I have a girl crush on Chris Jansing. More so after I joined her show as a regular this year.

Yes, I was also the CNBC anchor who lusted for more. Did I believe in myself enough to stand on my own? Yes.

Yes, I finally found my voice.

And my balance.

Financial expert Nicole Lapin answers viewers’ money questions on CNN’s “Newsroom.”

From Rainer Saad: @NicoleLapin @CNN Are dollar and treasuries the only safe havens beside gold?

Maybe in the “traditional” sense — but the status of gold, treasuries and the dollar is a little precarious based on the wackiness of world markets.
Let’s go through them: gold isn’t really a sure thing in the short term because it’s ridiculously expensive after sovereign debt fears. US treasuries — besides having laughable returns — are also met with fears of a US downgrade which is also affect the dollar which is not as strong as we’d like.

Ah — so where to hide? Look to municipal bonds: high quality munis, 2 1.2% tax free versus nothing in the bank.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — the safest havens include some sweat equity…yeah, sweat like off your brow. Seed money in a friend’s company or maybe even your own. Investing in yourself is the best investment of all.

From Zach Russell: @NicoleLapin @CNN why hasn’t China become more vocal/involved in the EU debt crises? #helpcalmthemarkets

Ah, the China factor — it’s the only country with deep enough pockets to buy a sizeable portion of European government debt and help pull the continent together.
And a lot of folks, like Zach, are saying it would help Europe obviously and the rest of us but also China because Europe is China’s biggest export market.

But, yes — they have been cool about the whole thing. They haven’t committed anything even though there’s a big courtship process happening.
Why? Most of the Chinese are living on one dollar a day — so while it has the largest foreign reserves, they continue to say they have their own domestic problems before they come to Europe’s rescue.

From Jeffrey Marr: @NicoleLapin @CNN I’m unemployed and may be forced to take early retirement. I won’t be 59 1/2 years old until next August so am I not able to touch my 401k until I reach that age, unless I incur a tax penalty?

Remember if you borrow money from your 401k you can’t contribute anything else until the balance is repaid — so you are missing out on any growth and compounding interest of everything you put in there. Also, if you can’t pay it back you’re going to have to pay tax on the remaining balance on top of the 10% withdrawal penalty. But, there are some upsides: typically, they are lower than commercial loan rates. And when you borrow from yourself — you pay yourself back.