How To: Make a Mountain from a Mole Hill

One lesson I have definitely learned while being an Almost Adult is to surround myself with people that have different skills than me. Today's article was written with the assistance of my long-time bestie, Brad, who happens to be a financial advisor. Brad is stepping in this week to help advise you (and me) with some money-saving tips.

DISCLAIMER: I am by no means an expert on any topic I choose to write about from here on out, but maybe the things that I've gone through or are going through currently relate to you and can help you in some way. At the very least, you can laugh at/with me, remembering that one time that maybe you too felt like a complete moron, as I go through the many Mishaps of an Almost Adult.

Okay, so I have a confession to make. I have a new obsession with house hunting. Its a problem. Every time I hear the dogs barking upstairs and the fire trucks go blazing down my street at night, I flip on HGTV and end up daydreaming of the house that I will one day own and refinish room by room. It. Will. Be. Awesome. Sorry, Dad, for all of the emails you get about all of the houses I have fallen in love with in the meantime.

One teensy weensy, itty bitty hiccup. Houses are really freaking expensive. And I don't have any money.

Has anyone else realized how unbelievably hard it is to be disciplined about saving money? Maybe I just have a shopping problem (Fact. I definitely do.) and eat out too much, but man, it is hard to convince myself each month to make that transfer of funds to my savings after all of my bills are paid and my bank account continues to dwindle all on its own without my assisting it by saving even just a little.

This weekend I drove around and was looking at neighborhoods that I might be interested in purchasing a home in (I told you I have a problem) and decided it was time to start working on this dream becoming a reality. I needed to work a little harder on saving some money.

I quickly decided that one of the better resources I had available to me was my best friend Brad and decided to ask his advice on how to make a mountain from a mole hill. Although my savings is more like an ant hill than a mole hill.

Here's what I learned:

1. Every penny counts. $50 a pay check will turn into $1,300 over the course of a year without severely impacting your quality of life in the meantime. Start small by setting your bank account to automatically transfer a reasonable amount of money from your paycheck.
2. Always have an "emergency fund". Try to save for a cushion account in case you would lose your job or transfer jobs and be without your usual paycheck for the month. Brad suggested six months worth of expenses. I suggest putting your head between your knees or breathing into a paper bag. And not losing your job.
3. Don't tempt yourself. A lot of banking websites have a feature that allows you to "hide" your savings account from yourself so that you don't see the money in there. Better yet, open a separate savings or investment account dedicated towards making large purchases that you don't have every day access to. Out of sight, out of mind.
4. Set yourself up with a realistic budget with help from Mishaps' How To: Pay your Bills Bills Bills. Figure out how much you REALLY need a month and then set up your saving goal accordingly. Mint.com is both a miracle-worker and a chop-buster. If you're embarrassed to look at your finances and your Pie Chart of Shame, well, its never too late to start over and try again.
5. Check out your 401(k) benefits if you have them through your company (or 403(b) for those of you that work for schools/non-profits). Figure out what the max is that your company will match your contribution and if that is not some absurdly high number, consider making the full payment towards it. Its like free money from your company. Plus, Brad claims that, on average, every 7 years you wait to start saving money, you are cutting your retirement in half. He said something about the rule of 72. If you have no idea what that is, me neither. Google it if you need some proof or help with insomnia.
6. Don't count on bonuses, tax returns or any sort of extra income. Use it to pay down debts or put it directly into your savings account instead. You don't really need that new (fill in the blank with whatever you're interested in), do you? Its a great way to put yourself ahead of Your Plan and stay on track.
7. If you're having a full blown Nervy B bordering on a Complete Ditherspaz, me too. Saving is a gradual process; it doesn't happen overnight. Work on living your life on a budget and save what you can. Anything is better than nothing. Plus, you're an Almost Adult. Part of being an Almost Adult is being broke for a bit.

Think of how awesome it will feel when you aren't embarrassed to look at your bank account. Especially when I'm sitting on my cutely decorated and landscaped back porch looking at the house that I paid for with my own money. 'Til then, if you live above me, please figure out a way for your dog to stop barking so I can stop having to drown you out with HGTV.