There are very few people who can say that they gave much thought to financial planning during their twenties.                As long as they have enough money for niceties, then they are good to go. Even those few who know the importance of paying their bills on time often don’t give much thought to planning for the future and learning about credit management.

Although they may be young and have the rest of their lives to be responsible with money, there are reasons to get a head start on positive personal finance practices. Try and convince them not to wait until their 30s or 40s to get serious about money.

If you are in your twenties right now then these 6 strategies will help you plan for a comfortable financial future:

1. Start Saving for Retirement If you’re dealing with low wages and high student debt, you may feel you can’t afford to save for retirement.

However, starting a retirement savings plan while young can have a tremendous impact on your future financial health because you’ll maximize your retirement income thanks to the magic of compound inter-est.

No one’s saying you have to contribute the maximum each year to your Retirement Annuity or company benefit scheme. Pay what you can afford. As long as you’re contributing something, you’re on the right path and doing better than a lot of 20-something adults.

2. Live Within Your Means  After graduating from university and getting a job, you might be in a mad rush to achieve the lifestyle you were accustomed to growing up. However, realise that it took your parents years to acquire what they have, so don’t expect the same lifestyle in your first couple of years out of school.

If you learn how to live within your means in your 20s, you can carry this good habit throughout your entire adulthood. You’re less likely to get into deep credit card debt. And living within your means makes it’s easier to save for retirement and enjoy other things in life, such as the occa-sional holiday.

3. Avoid Credit Card Debt      The debt you accumulate in your 20s can haunt you for decades. So before you buy houses, cars, or start a family, tackle your debt.

The older we get, the more responsibilities we take on. Lingering debt means additional interest, and it becomes harder

to wipe out these balances. You might be ready to move out and exert your inde-pendence after graduating but if you can, stay home for a little while longer and use this time to pay off student loan debt and credit card debt.

4. Get Insured Just because you’re young doesn’t mean you’re invincible. You can get sick, injured, or die unexpectedly, just like older folks. No one likes to think about bad situations, but you need to prepare for the worst.

The best time to buy insurance is while you’re young and healthy. This includes health, life, and disability insurance. It’s not only a responsible way to protect your finances, but you also might qualify for a better rate because of your age.

If you live on your own, make sure you get insurance to cover the replacement cost of personal belongings in the event of a natural disaster, theft, or fire.

5. Build an Emergency Fund Your 20s is also one of the best times to start building an emergency fund. Talk to any adult in their 30s or 40s with a home loan or kids and they’ll tell you it’s harder to save when there’s so many financial responsibilities.

If you’re still living at home, try living off half your income and save the other half until you build a nest egg of at least three to six months’ living expenses.

6. Establish Your Credit History You can’t rely on your parents forever. Now’s the time to establish credit if you plan to buy a house and be financially independent in the future.

Applying for a student loan is a good start, but diversifying your credit can build an even stronger credit score. You can apply for another instalment loan, such as an car loan, or you can apply for a credit card. It isn’t enough to apply for credit, you have to use credit responsibly.

Don’t get in over your head. Only charge what you can afford, and make every effort to pay off your credit card bills in full every month, and on time.

Credit building is a slow, gradual process. And regularly monitor your credit report to check for inaccuracies or identity theft, which can drive down your credit rating.

The Real Secret Very few of us wanted to be “boring” planners in our twenties. We wanted to be free, live in the now and be spontaneous. However, there is one vital skill of accumulating wealth that all 20-somethings should start practising right now.

It isn’t sexy or exciting but neither is it complex to understand. And that secret is to live below your means. That’s it. The bigger the difference between what you earn and what you spend, the sooner you’ll find yourself with enough money to do what you want with your life and that is real wealth