Save Yourself: Getting a Jump on Financial Savings

LEARNING TO SAVE

➤ Financial security isn’t just for older people

➤ The success of your funds depends on how early you start

LEARNING TO SAVE CAN BE HARD FOR SEVERAL REASONS

➤ Financial responsibility wasn’t talked about when you were a kid

➤ A lower wage or salary may make it harder to start saving

➤ Like others, bad spending habits are hard to break!

AND THAT’S OK.

THE PERCENTAGE PLAN

So, how can we go from saving nothing to stowing a solid bit away each month? The key lies in incremental saving.

Here’s how it works.

First figure out your most basic, or fixed, expenses. This includes costs like rent or mortgages, food, and utility bills. It can also

include credit card or student debt, if necessary.

Next, set aside five percent of your income and place it into a high yield savings account, an index fund, or wherever you

please.

Learn to live with that five percent decrease in take home pay.

After you’ve comfortably adjusted to 5% savings, up it to 7%. Repeat in these small increments until you’ve reached 20%!

“Frugality includes all the other virtues.

– Cicero