How to Save Money Without Thinking About It

In our culture of instant gratification, the idea of saving for the future might seem antiquated. But at a time when the economic deck seems stacked against you, thanks to a student loan debt crisis and fresh memories of the 2008 Wall Street meltdown, opening a savings account will give you a big advantage in the future.

According to a 2015 survey, just over 70 percent of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings and another 21 percent don't have a savings account at all. If you stash your cash under the mattress or in a no-interest checking account, you're actually losing money thanks to inflation. Here's why thinking about saving today will accelerate your financial health tomorrow.


YOU CAN SAVE WITHOUT LIFTING A FINGER
Did you know there’s an app that makes saving and investing effortless? The Acorns app automatically rounds all your purchases up to the nearest dollar, then takes that spare change, which can add up quickly, and invests it in various Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs, to those in the biz).

“The simplest way to save and invest is to make it automatic,” says Acorns chief education officer Jennifer Barrett. There’s no longer any reasonable excuse for not having a savings account.

IT WILL MAKE YOU MORE ATTRACTIVE—LITERALLY
Opening a savings account is a sign that you’ve finally decided to put on your big boy pants. “Just opening a savings account will give you that ‘I’m doing the right thing!’ feeling,” says Erica Sandberg, author and host of the podcast Adventures With Money podcast.

And after years of adding to that savings account, you’ll start to look better in the eyes of the world—especially the banking world. A savings account “[makes] you appear stable,” Sandberg says. “And that can help you secure a great mortgage.”

IT CREATES A SAFETY NET
A savings account is more than just a nest egg to rely on later in life. It can also be a fiscal and emotional safety net during unforeseen challenges years before you’re ready to retire. Should an unforeseen medical expense come up or—knock on wood—should you lose your job, having some money saved will undoubtedly help.

“A savings account can help protect you from sky high credit card interest rates when life inevitably happens,” says financial planner David Rae, a VP at Trilogy Financial. “Financial stress can lead to weight gain, and no one needs that.”

TIME IS ON YOUR SIDE
Albert Einstein famously called compound interest, the interest earned on interest, “the eighth wonder of the world.” Mike Zaino, president and CEO of TZG Financial, says Einstein’s Rule of 72, which shows how long it’ll take to double your money, based on anticipated interest rates, is “really easy to figure out and super important to understand.” Divide 72 by the rate of return on your money, say four percent, and you’ll discover that it'll take 18 years to double your money.

Or how about this: If you put away $10 a week from the time you’re 18 to the time you retire at 65, you’ll have saved $24,440. But thanks to compound interest and an eight percent rate of return, your investment would have grown to just over a quarter of a million dollars! Compound interest “can either work for you or against you,” says Zaino. “Those who understand it, earn it. Those who don’t, pay it.”

YOU ALREADY HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO SUCCEED
If you've taken the time to invest in your physical fitness, you're probably already disciplined. Why not apply that same discipline to your fiscal life? And just as you reap the benefits of good health and six-pack abs for your hard work at the gym, you can be rewarded for that same disciplined when it comes to saving.

"Modest regular amounts can fund an adventure that won't drain your cash for everyday living expenses," says Brian Ford, Financial Well Being Executive at SunTrust Banks. Building a savings account can pay for that weekend in Vegas or that month in Europe you thought you couldn't afford.
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Article source: http://www.menshealth.com/guy-wisdom/reasons-for-savings-account/slide/5