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Pay Yourself First: It Will Really Pay Off

Jeff was frustrated. It was still two days until his next paycheck and he had nothing to show from the last one. Nothing.
 
"I need a better job," he grumbled. Beth, his co-worker, couldn't help overhearing him.
 
"I thought you liked it here," she commented.
 
"Well, sure," Jeff told her. "It's just that from one month to the next, I can't seem to put away any money for a rainy day, for my retirement, or even for a down payment on the RV I want. I think I need more money."
 
Beth put down the file she was holding and leaned on Jeff's desk. "Jeff, I don't want to ask you a personal question, so don't answer if you'd rather not, but what's the first thing you do with your paycheck?"
 
Jeff glared at her. "I pay my bills, of course. Isn't that the responsible thing to do?"
 
"Sure it is. And then what?"
 
"Well, you know. I pay for whatever I need."
 
"Did you ever try to take off part of your paycheck, say 10%, and put it into an account you can't touch?"
 
"Why would I want to do that? I don't have enough as it is." 
 
Beth smiled. "Try it. My parents pretty much insisted that I do it back when I was babysitting in high school, and that's what I've been doing ever since. You wouldn't believe how quickly the money adds up. Taking a bit off your paycheck is really giving yourself money before you give it to anyone else. It's what people call paying yourself first."
 
When you pay yourself first, you take a percentage off the top of your paycheck and deposit it into an account you don't touch. Studies have shown this is one of the most foolproof ways to start saving money. If you have a hard time putting money back, then just toss it into an interest bearing deposit account that can't be touched for a certain amount of time. 
 
For more information on our savings accounts, click here.


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