If you are looking for the best advice on saving money, there are three points that can steer you onto the correct path. They are: Figuring out where the money goes, Determining what really matters, and Making use of technology. At the heart of financial independence is the old saying "It's not what you make, it's what you keep". A budget is central to keeping more of what we make and requires a well-considered plan. Having no plan is like driving without a map. For more details www.greateducationonline.com Following these simple steps will put you well on your way to the financial independence you seek. This three-part series will help us examine how to move toward these goals. Keep in mind that a steady, methodical approach will help ensure that the effects of mistakes along the way can be minimized.

Figuring out where the money goes. Imagine that you are in a sail boat and you saw water building up at the bottom. Determining the extent of the leak will help you may conclude whether your boat is actually sinking. The same applies to our financial situation be it in the home or business. The path to financial independence begins by figuring out where all of the money goes, which allows us to determine where, and how badly we are "leaking" financially. This process both painful and arduous, but the positive is that it makes learning possible. A few common examples of eating expenses (calculated on an annual basis) are provides to illustrate a few examples of a "leaky boat":

-Let's say that you drive by the local Seven-Eleven and pick up a super-sized Coke to satisfy your need for a "caffeine fix" and spend $2.50 ever morning. You would actually be $625.00/year (even if one compensates for a two-week vacation from this each year).

-In another reality, you visit your local coffee house (Starbucks or Seattle's Best) and you spend four bucks on one of those special concoctions with caramel, foam, etc. Using the same calculations we see that indulging our need for flavored coffee costs the family over one-thousand dollars per year.

-The fast food fix. If a family of four is "on the go" and grabs something fast for dinner at Taco Bell or McDonald's and conservatively shells out about six-dollars per person, their hamburger fix would result in a $2,500 annual drain on the family budget.

Figuring out where the money goes starts with a pencil and paper and ends with an exhaustive list of where every penny is spent in a given week. For more details www.greatindustrialguide.com This painful and arduous process involves looking not just at the big recurring expenses such as rent, utilities, and gasoline. It also involves looking at where and what we eat, and the equally important look at things we buy on impulse such as that pack of cigarettes, or the candy you buy to stop your kids from whining.

"Happiness is the miracle of compound interest" is what is on the license plate of one of my friends who retired in his early fifties. Simply put, it is interest generated on interest. Unfortunately, this concept can work for you if you have savings on which to generate interest or it can work for you or against you if you have credit card debt. It means that the interest you owe compounds your debt. Figuring out where the boat is leaking also involves the interest you pay on your debt. "If you don't like to hole you're in, then stop digging", which means acknowledge and control the desires for "immediate gratification" in yourself and your family, which is the starting point for getting out of credit card debt.

The best advice for saving money involves first taking this hard look at where the money is going so that the "leak" can be repaired - and then repairing it. If this concept makes you uncomfortable, the next article should help you feel better as it will help you figure out how to "stop digging" and building your nest egg.