Growing up you may have been generous about your allowance and spent willy-nilly, taking it for granted that you had non-existent money management skills.  After all, why not?  Your parents just threw some scraps at you once a week and you knew next week there’d be more. But now you’re an adult, and along with the women, cars, and some facial hair, you’re also now responsible for your own cash.  At this point in your life, you either don’t know what the heck to do with money or, if you do know, refuse to listen to yourself.  Whichever it is though, you have to get on board with a few basic facts…or else get used to the increased likelyhood that your future will be cold, alone, and hungry.

Plan Your Income
Your total income should cover three basic things: debt, bills, and savings. Each time you manage to bring home a check, make sure that it covers all these aspects. The more it covers them, the better off you’ll be.  If it doesn’t cover all of them, you’ll be in for trouble…and less and less sex.

Plan Your Expenses
Thanks to credit cards and the ever-rampant mentality these days to keep up with the Jones’, we tend to live above our means. Old grandpa’s rule stands true: earn more spend less.  You don’t need the latest Xbox game if you can barely afford your rent right now.  Don’t plan your next AC trip on your lunch hour if your girlfriend is ready to walk because you took her to McDonalds for your anniversary.

Loans
You don’t need a McMansion only because your better-to-do friend just bought one.  And you certainly don’t need it when you can’t afford the payments.  Making assumptions based on hope (I’m sure I can take on an extra job over the weekend) or ignoring the issue blatantly (I’ll somehow manage) is obviously a recipe for broke-pie. No point in counting the eggs before they hatch especially when you don’t even own a hen.

Saving For The Rainy Days And The Later Days
You need to make sure that you save some cash, all the time.  Life cannot be lived one day at a time.  Things come up both good and bad, and you cannot rely on next weeks check to take care of everything for the next 75 years of your life.  Saving for rainy days will help you sleep better at night.  And when you become more of a baller and have a retirement account, make sure that money stays there and don’t dip into it.

Investing Smartly
Putting your monthly income in red or black in Vegas is not an investment.  If you want to invest your money to grow, put time and effort in it and educate yourself on how it works and what is best for you.  Investing wisely can significantly grow your assets and make living much easier.  If done like an idiot, it can wipe you out.

Credit card Watch
It seems almost impossible to live without a credit or debit card. While it is natural to spend using plastic, you need to know where to draw the line. When the bills mount at the end of the month, it is not going to be a pretty picture. Impulsive and unnecessary shopping is usually encouraged with a credit card in hand.  So if you get one, use it on stuff you know you can repay in 30 days.

Put down the latest gadget you just blew a weeks paycheck on and get your head around the entire idea of money and how it affects your future.  Try and keep things simple, live within your means and save for the proverbial rainy day.  Or for your next Vegas trip.