I recently came into a small inheritance of about $15,000 from my grandmother, which is the most money I've ever had at once. I currently have $12,000 in credit card debt spread across three cards with interest rates hovering around 22%. My friends are telling me I should invest the money in a high-yield savings account or put it into the stock market since the market is down right now. However, the monthly interest charges on these cards are killing me and eating up a huge chunk of my paycheck. Is it financially smarter to wipe out the debt completely and start from zero, or should I pay half of it and invest the rest so I have some emergency savings? I’m 28 and really want to start building wealth, but this debt feels like a weight around my neck.

From An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

"Self-interest, properly understood, says: eliminate the 22% drain immediately"

The mathematics are clear. Your credit cards charge 22% interest. No savings account or stock market reliably returns 22%. Every dollar you do not put toward that debt costs you 22 cents per year. Pay it off entirely. Then take what you were paying in interest and invest it. Your grandmother would approve of such prudence.

From Seneca's Morals of a Happy Life, Benefits, Anger and Clemency

"Wealth is not about accumulation but about freedom from want"

Your friends speak of "building wealth" as if money were the goal. It is not. Peace of mind is the goal. That debt is a weight on your soul—you said so yourself. Eliminate it entirely. Starting from zero with no debt is not poverty; it is freedom. From freedom, true wealth can grow.