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Clark Howard's Tips

May 8, 2008

The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle is credited with teaching the following: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit."

Everyone has both good and bad habits. Clark used to eat ice cream nearly every single day of the year. Then he discovered his cholesterol was too high during a checkup. His doctor suggested cutting back on the frozen dairy treat; he didn't advise going completely cold turkey. Clark had to reprogram his brain to not have a pint of ice cream after dinner. Now he only indulges about once every 2 weeks. On the flip side, he has a good habit of exercising nearly every day.

You can actually will yourself to develop good financial habits. You can create a savings habit where there hasn't been one. Many people do this by setting up a 401(k) to automatically take money out of their check before they get paid.

You can also do the same thing with T. Rowe Price's Automatic Asset Builder, which takes a minimum of $50/month from your paycheck and pops it in a Roth IRA.

But you've got to make that conscious, mechanical decision to make a change. Then over time, it will become automatic. One of the easiest ways to begin saving is to use a change jar at home and empty out the coins in your pocket every night. Other talk show hosts suggest saving your singles when you break a larger bill.

The key is to analyze yourself and see how you can make a change. You may fall off the wagon several times, but you need to keep at it.

Consumer advice courtesy of