Daddy Financials

It's pretty simple, take the money out of your wallet/piggy bank/mattress and put it in the bank.

If all you currently have is a checking account, take 5 minutes and open an online savings account. There are brick and mortar banks that offer these now. The accounts are FDIC insured just like a regular savings account, only they offer a much better interest rate. Citibank, HSBC, and Emigrant are some of the bigger, well known banks that offer online savings accounts. ING Direct is my personal choice because they have been doing it the longest. There are better rates out there than ING, but they are consistently among the best. Consistency goes a long way in my book.

That's it....if it sounds too simple, it really is. Save something, anything over a period of time and watch your money grow. There is no rocket science to it. You can still play the lotto and have your dollar and a dream, just put away the other dollar in your pocket to avoid the sleepless nights.

I know there are some bloggers out there who save like 15% or 20% of their incomes, if you can't, then don't. Obviously that is ideal,but not the norm. You can still shoot to save 15% of your income, but don't get down if you can't. I personally cannot save this much because I don't make that much to begin with, and I have to figure ways to spoil my daughter and put food on the table and still have some semblance of a life.

Save whatever you can, if it's only $15 bucks a month, that's fine. At the end of the year you'll see $180 plus interest in your savings account. This money will continue to compound and you'll be surprised how fast you'll see the account hit $500. Compound interest truly is man's greatest invention (Albert Einstein).

I put just enough in my 401K to get my full company match(6%), I put $50/month into an IRA, then $25/month into my baby girls 529. Then $110/month into our emergency fund (currently at $1,550), and then another $5 into a separate savings account for the baby, that is what I can currently afford. These don't seem like big numbers, but if your like me and you start with nothing in the bank, you will jump for joy every time you see the "interest/gains earned this month" part of your statement get bigger and bigger.

Be consistent, set a minimum and put away at least that amount each month or per paycheck. Again it does not have to be $100/month or even $50/month. If you can dish out is $5 or $10, your already ahead of the game. Most people spend more than they make and don't save a dime. Get yourself ahead of the game and be a leader instead of a follower. You can automate it if you want, but I don't think that alone will do it. I think books like "The Automatic Millionaire" oversimplify some things. You can stop automatic withdrawals with just a click of the mouse.

The responsibility falls on you, have some accountability to yourself. Make it a priority to put away those $10 because you said you would and don't spend it on that chinese food you've been thinking about all day. Wait 'til the next paycheck to get that MSG fix.

You can still live for today and save for tomorrow, that's why I say save what you can. You don't have to become a hermit and cut off all of your friends just to save money. If it becomes too much of a drag your not going to keep at it. Start small and I'm sure once the account starts to grow, you will naturally decrease your spending and make yourself save more.

Everybody likes having money, interest is like free money, and everybody LOVES free money :)

Make your money work for you, pimp that money out and slap yourself if it's not earning you anything (you could slap the money but then you would get weird looks in the street).

Start small, be consistent, and enjoy. Reward yourself once you reach certain goals, like saving that first $500 (maybe a night out with the boys or going to the bar to watch the game on the big screen). There is no better time to start than right now. I even gave you links in the beginning of this post so you don't have to type anything to get the bank you choose.

Thanks for reading.

I love you Baby