Helping and unconditionally giving to your family could be harmful in the long run

You have to hold on to your dreams, even if you support your family. You do this not by holding them as a fantasy, but by taking practical steps to make them a reality. (modified)

This is a gem I picked from Suze Orman's book The Laws of Money, The Lessons of Life, to which I owe my family's relative financial stability (as of 2013!). I hope more people, especially those with loving intentions to labor and send their siblings to school and pay for loans their relatives owe, wear around their neck.

Please do not think that you're becoming unselfish by giving and giving. The truth is, if you fail to protect and secure your self, you may just end up becoming another liability, if not a casualty, of your own good intentions.

A balancing act, then, is required.