Set Goal

Not all superfluous spending goes to shiny new toys and baubles. Money can be easily frittered away on expensive cable packages or restaurant meals, to name a couple of examples. Setting goals provides a mechanism for overriding the impulse to buy things that are not as important. "People don't often associate spending plans with dreaming, but if you do it right, it's a key ingredient," says Bucci. "You need a reason not to spend on things that don't matter. You decide that you have a goal in mind that is more important." Writing down your goals will help prioritize spending when it comes time to map out your plan. Bucci recommends writing short-term, medium-term and long-term goals on note cards. If you have them, include kids and the significant other in the process. "You make your choices, but you need to have the dream or the goal and the money, plus knowing that you're going to be able to put the money aside,"

Automatic Saving

"We're the only industrialized nation with a negative savings rate; people are spending more than they make," says Dave Jones, president of the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies.

To combat sluggish savings, earmark a certain percentage or dollar amount for a savings account. Savings accounts can be either specialized retirement accounts or regular deposit accounts. Start small to get into the routine of saving regularly.

"When you're getting started, it's more important that you get in the habit of saving rather than that you save a lot," says Bucci.

Use windfalls and raises to jump-start savings as well. Got a raise at work?

"Put that money toward savings. You were living just fine without it," says Cunningham.

Bucci recommends funneling half of the newfound income into savings. "The other half you get to spend," he says. "So you're not missing anything, you're not taking anything away from yourself. You're still getting more money than you had before, but now you're saving a little bit more."