Savings goals a.k.a. safety net means money that you put away in a savings account and it’s purpose is to sit there and be there in case you need it. It is not meant to be spent. It is there to be borrowed from and paid back. It is better to borrow money from yourself than someone else that would charge you interest.
In an ideal world you are reading this blog post right before entering the work force. Once you get your first job, then give yourself a doable goal of saving $10/week or $500/year or more. You could sacrifice buying fast food once or twice a week. Your goals would look like this if you were 16 and got your first job:
$500 age 16
$1,000 age 17
$1,500 age 18
$2,000 age 19
$2,500 age 20
$3,000 age 21
$3,500 age 22
$4,000 age 23
etc…
Now lets say you followed my suggestion, and you have a safety net; that money is going to come in really handy when unexpected things happen in life. It could be anything, but you will be prepared.
How long should you save like this? I think you should either save like this indefinitely or at least until you save up enough to pay your bills for 6 months. Feel free to increase your savings goals if you have a high wage job and low monthly expenses. Believe in yourself! You can become the master in the game of life!
