Extra Credit: Why Good Money Habits Allow For Saving Money

What is considered “good habits” as far as money is concerned can be viewed upon by others as just average or, in some cases, not so great. But there are certain habits that universally are lauded, not panned, and they’ll always be viewed as the best options when it relates to saving money, spending accordingly and getting your credit under control. As far as credit goes, the easiest way to clean up your score is to eliminate your credit card debt. Saying goodbye to debt is going to save you money, plenty in fact, when you factor in that a balance of $10,000 at a very modest interest rate of 17% is going to cost you double that to pay off over time. That’s why consolidation often is the better option to get that rate down, but if you really have a substantial amount of debt, you might want to take the approach that is recommended by financial advisers and gurus alike: start at the piece of debt that has the highest amount of interest rate and start paying more on that one, until that number is whittled down to zero. When it comes to spending, you have to know when you’re throwing money away, when that overt amount of cash could easily be in your pocket. Think about how much you spend on the obsolete or what you aren’t using to its fullest potential as far as money goes. Cable is overpriced as you’re paying nearly $200 per month for a service that you might use sporadically at best, but certainly don’t care much for the 400 channels when you only watch a small amount of that. Streaming tends to be the better option, as well as ditching that landline in favor of your cell phone. Think of what you can do with more than $2,000 per year for that cable bill you don’t need. And as long as you’re eliminating expenses, why not think about adding to your savings account or retirement fund? If you aren’t planning for retirement through some program or investment options, you’re letting free money slip through your hands. The savings account option just means that you should take a percentage of your paycheck and automatically put it away for that proverbial rainy day. The automatic part is critical; you should have that done from checking account to savings every two weeks or however you get paid. Habits that form as a result of smart money managing are the ones you never want to shake, but instead embrace as you continue to save, spend correctly and watch your financial outlook improve.