Craig and Brad grew up in ministry families, which meant their families struggled with finances. Today, they help wealthy investors manage millions of dollars. Here, they offer advice for a different clientele—youth ministry workers—but with similar principles and with a simple aim: to build a better financial culture by starting small.

You might recognize these people. A couple comes into our office for some advice. They have three small children, the youngest of whom has severe health problems. The husband is an associate pastor and the sole income provider. The wife works at home, caring for the young family. They face a constant struggle to make ends meet. The majority of their income goes to just pay for the family’s “needs.” The “wants”—owning a home, paying for college, and having savings for emergencies—seem impossible to reach.

As we discuss their situation and talk about goals, we learn they have been diligently saving $125 a month toward their dream of buying a home. It is the maximum they can squeeze out to save, and yet they have “only” $10,000. They feel frustrated, and doubt they will ever reach their goal.

This couple’s feelings are typical. Yet it doesn’t take too long for us to offer some hope.

We show them how the $125 per month can truly make a difference in the life of their family. Using a return of 8 percent per year for 35 years, the savings can grow to be worth $450,000.

Today is the most powerful day to compound the growth of our savings. With each passing day, the value of our money declines. As food and gasoline and other goods we purchase get more expensive, the value of our dollars declines. Yet the power of compounding interest earned on money can reverse the trend.

Here are a few more examples of how the couple—and you—can save more and leverage your savings into substantial cash.

How Much Does that Jamba Juice Really Cost?
Your weekly original-size Jamba Juice with an energy boost probably costs around $4. So what, you ask? Well, you need to realize that the $4 is after-tax money from salary. That means it is more like $5 of earned income. If your tax rate (federal and state combined) is 25 percent, you would need to earn $5 to pay for that $4 juice. And one juice per week adds up to $260 of earned income per year. If you saved that much during your career, you’d have have nearly $38,000.

Leveraging Your Jamba Juice Savings
Many non-profits, including churches and charitable organizations, offer savings plans. What many people don’t understand is that these plans are more powerful than saving alone. A retirement plan through your employer is the most powerful saving vehicle available to you. Here’s why. Many employers will match contributions (savings) to the investment plan. That means, when money is saved by the employee, two wonderful things happen. First, the government (who actually encourages saving) reduces your taxable income by the amount you save. This essentially subsidizes your savings, since you are not first paying taxes on that income. Second, the employer often matches your savings up to a certain level (typically 3 or 4 percent of salary).

Now, back to our couple. Let’s say that they decided to skip the $4 juice-with-a-boost once a week. Instead, they have decided to put the equivalent amount toward their retirement plan. The couple saves $25 per month from their change in beverage habits and retires with an extra $74,000.

If that seems incredible, that’s because it is. Instead of using $5 of income for the juice (25 percent, or $1, went to taxes and $4 to buy the juice), the couple effectively deferred paying any taxes and sent the entire $5 to savings where it was promptly doubled by the employer who added another $5 according to the matching plan. The $10 of savings then grew larger and larger rather than the $4 being spent on the drink.

Today Is the Day to Start Compounding
When the couple realizes how small, recurring expenses can really add up to a very big difference in later years, they begin to think through all their budget items. Sometimes it is as simple as realizing that no amount of money is too small to be saved. All savings are significant, and today is the most powerful day of compounding left in life; so don’t hesitate, start now.

Things to do:
* Review recurring habits and expenses that might be reduced or eliminated.
* Ask about retirement-plan details (i.e., from your business’ human resources department).
* Make a list of goals that are most important to you.
* Pay yourself each month.

Think about yourself as a creditor. Monthly bills like utilities, food, gas, taxes, housing expenses and other normal recurring items consume a large portion of income. But, in order to start the habit of saving, consider paying yourself as if you were one of those companies asking for payment. After all, why shouldn’t you be first in line for some of your income? Change your mindset so that you can “pay” yourself consistently. This habit may require some changes in budget, but what a positive change to increase payments to yourself and to reduce expenses paid to others.