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Money in, money out. Every month you play the number game. Your paycheck gets auto deposited in your bank account and goes out to the rent, utilities, credit card or student loans. If there is anything left over after everyone else has been paid, you might throw some extra into your savings account. Bills first, Fun next, Savings last. You might even have a savings goal: 6 months of expenses as a safety net or saving for long term goals like a down payment on a house or even early retirement. But what if I told you that you shouldn't pay your bills first every month? What if I told you that the order should be Me first, Bills next, Fun last? When asked, most people will agree that saving money is critically important. Emergency funds give peace of mind and if we ever want to retire someday we have a retirement goal. But very few save money. Saving money is hard when we want things NOW. Getting into the habit of saving is easy if you make a few simple changes. The fi...

I met my best friend the other day for a cup of coffee.  During our conversation, she confided that she was having trouble saving and wanted to know if I had any recommendations for her.  Here are my top pieces of advice for my best friend. Create a Simple Budget It's really hard to try to save when you don't know what you spend. But I recognize that setting up a budget can be intimidating.  Start simple. I set up a spreadsheet listing out all of my major expenses: mortgage, car insurance, student loans, daycare, utilities, food, gas, etc.  In the next column, list the expected or budgeted amount. I like to round up to the nearest 10.  In the final column, I do some homework and list the actual amount spent.  This gives me a rough idea where my money is going every month  I understand that a lot of people break down their spending in more detail, but for me it was too overwhelming to scrutinize every detail. I totaled up the budgeted amount and th...