Between 1991 and 1998, “Saturday Night Live” would sometimes run a segment entitled “Deep thoughts by Jack Handy.” The segment consisted of a short passage or story, usually with some ironic twist. I liked the pieces then and still find them entertaining now. One quote actually carries a lesson. It went like this:

“It’s easy to sit there and say you’d like to have more money. And I guess that’s what I like about it. It’s easy. Just sitting there, rocking back and forth, wanting that money.”

There are a lot of truths in saving and investing. First and foremost, you can’t just sit there and think about having more money. You must create a plan. To begin to lay the framework for a systematic approach to a more successful future, so let’s review some of the action steps.

A budget. Unfortunately, budgets seem to have a stigma attached to them. Only people with spending problems or individuals with credit challenges use budgets, right? No, not right. Budgeting is a forward-looking exercise that grants you the ability to determine where you want to spend your money rather than looking back and wondering, ‘Where did it all go?’ Budgeting provides knowledge. Knowledge provides power. Choices are always easier to make when you have solved for the variables. Once you can affix a cost to a need or pursuit, you can then determine its value against other goals. Whatever you do, don’t mix up those terms. They are not interchangeable. There is a “cost” to not being a wise spender/saver. It’s the “value” that’s provided when you meet otherwise attainable goals.

More “Deep Thoughts” on this next time…