

This means saving the money you don't have.

Don't get me wrong  I'm all for savings, and I even have a few ways to save that aren't too complicated. But let's face it, most of us are a bit blind to the fact that our monthly spending is out of whack. If you work and live in a high-cost city, you probably know your utility bills and cell phone bills are getting pretty outrageous, and you probably know you're going to miss things on time.

How can you be smart about your money? Here's a few easy steps you can take to save money in the future.

1. Look out for monthly savings reports from major credit unions.

Credit unions are a great way to monitor your spending and find ways to save more every month. They are often the best place to start getting started because they'll be quick to respond to any questions and will report monthly income and spending by category. A credit union's financial aid will likely match your federal student loan payment and most state student loan funds, so if you can get a good interest rate, it has the potential to save you a lot of money by reducing your monthly payments down the line.

Most credit unions also offer a lot of financial education courses to help you keep track of your expenses, save money, and improve your credit score. For example, a credit union can provide a course on personal finance so you can learn about savings, debt payments, interest payments, and how financial institutions treat money.

2. Make sure your credit card is up to date.

This is a big one, but credit card companies are generally less willing to give credit to anyone who has already tried to use their service when they have missed something. For instance, credit cards with a high maximum balance are more likely to be disputed if no one uses them because of missed payments than if you try to use them. To make sure that the credit card companies aren't seeing your past activity, keep a check list of any cards you've used recently.

3. Cut down on your cable TV.

You may think being rich makes it easy to get what you want (as long as the content is good), but a good amount of money is spent watching TV every day and for much more than just keeping up with your friends. Even if people watch it to get away from the reality of a busy work day, the content can often be a problem  especially for those of