Jonahan.com

I've recently gotten out of debt (with the exception of the home mortgage) and have begun to build a bit of savings. I've learned a lot and changed my lifestyle pretty drastically and figured it was time to pay it forward a bit.

1. (Very Important)  Your first step towards wealth is to start a $1000 emergency fund. This should be cash or in very easily accessible account. The idea is that you will always have a safety net and will eliminate most of the worry and stress from your life. With this $1000, something that may have been a big event for you like an unexpected car repair or traffic ticket or something becomes a minor issue. You've heard of Murphy's Law, right? Anything that can go wrong will go wrong? Well, this rule is your Murphy-repellant.
2. When buying anything other than food or essentials over $10, do not buy it today. Impulse buying is one of our greatest problems when it comes to blowing money. Give it a night, sleep on it, and if you decide you truly do need that item or service, then go ahead. Always ask yourself, "Do I NEED this?".
3. Avoid restaurants like the plague. I don't think I need to explain this much as we all know how quickly money can go here. Do reward yourself from time-to-time with a dinner out, perhaps to celebrate milestones like paying off a credit card. (But please don't put the bill on a credit card!)
4. On that note, DO NOT USE CREDIT CARDS! The idea that you'll pay it off soon enough is bogus. Too many times, something will come up, or you'll rationalize not paying the bill now. Pay with cash because you see and feel the money and it's harder to part with. With a credit card, it's easy to think money doesn't exist, it's all a virtual thing.
5. Save your dollar bills. This one sounds weird but it worked for me. I heard a guy explain it to me this way: he and his wife wouldn't use dollar bills, because that was for all the little stuff you buy. A pop here, a candy bar or coffee there really adds up. So every time they went to buy something, they'd break a $5, $10 or $20. It hurts just a bit more to physically see your cash go, so they found themselves not usually wanting to buy those little things. They'd put the dollars back in a fund for something like a little weekend getaway. Alternately, I'd suggest putting dollars back for an extra auto or credit card payment.