If you’re a millennial, it’s highly likely that saving is not quite a priority for you now. You’ve just completed your bachelor’s degree. Probably even a master’s. You’re at that stage where you’re just becoming focused on your career. Or, maybe you simply want the freedom to reinvent and develop yourself, to see what the world has to offer. Do you want to see as much of the world before you settle down with a life partner? Or, maybe you are contemplating getting married to your college sweetheart and starting a family.

These things take money.

Listen, we’ve all been in our 20s before. Life seems like a sea of endless possibilities. There’ll be time to save or invest later, you think. Besides, it’s not as though you don’t bank now. You routinely carry out banking activities without fanfare. After all, you have bank apps on your mobile devices from which you are able to check on your account, make sure there’s always a minimum balance so you’re not completely broke. That makes you savings-savvy, doesn’t it?

No, it doesn’t.

Why saving money is important

Young people have the unfortunate reputation for being reckless and frivolous spenders interested in trivial and vain pursuits rather than prioritising essentials and saving to meet life’s more substantial concerns. Not all young people, however, are guilty of not saving, especially if they’ve been raised to understand its value.

Saving, they understand from the days when they received their first piggy bank, is the systematic and specific setting aside of funds that aren’t randomly withdrawn. Grown-up saving has this as an underpinning, but is expanded in its reach as the funds are deposited into a regulated financial institution and will see gains over a period of time.

If you’re between 22 and 35-ish, it’s official. You’ve now moved into your prime earning and spending years. Big foreign retailers understand this and are increasingly working in tandem with social media “influencers” to get you to buy their products. You don’t have to go into their stores; with Internet shopping as easy as it is, now, more than ever before, retailers are finding innovative ways to separate you from your money.

But what if these years could also become your prime savings years?

Dedicated savings

If you’re constantly withdrawing funds to buy clothes or purchase high-tech electronic gadgets, your money will not get a chance to earn dividends, and this does not augur well for your financial well-being in the long term. Saving money in a dedicated way is important as it helps to protect you in the event of an emergency, pay for large purchases, avoid debt, prepare you for future investment, and leave a financial legacy in the long term, among other proven benefits. Let’s not forget, too, the very necessary goal of paying down student loan debt, for those of you who have amassed what seems like more than your fair share. But, at the end of the day, student loan is a debt which must be repaid.

The following are a few other savings goals to help you become more focussed.

Travel

If you’re one of the fortunate ones not saddled with student loan debt, and you want to see the world, once it’s safe to do so, overseas travel can become pretty expensive pretty fast. Do your research on accommodation, food and activities and then make a rough estimate of how much you need. Start an account specifically for that. This is not just for the young, I still do this. Plan carefully so that you can pay for elements of your trip over a few months, like your ticket four months out, your hotel two months out, and excursions two weeks before departure.

Personal Development

Investing in yourself, in order to become more marketable, is always a good thing. If further studies are an ambition, begin now to save so that the need to take out a loan to finance it will be kept at a minimum. Like my mom always said, no one can ever take away what’s in your head. Make sure you equip yourself to be competitive, as a college first degree is the same as a high school diploma was a few decades ago.

Wedding

You and your intended should factor in at least a year to throw the celebration of your dreams. Don’t simply save enough for the cost of the line items of the party; overshoot those costs so you come into married life not at a deficit but with leftover money that will provide a nice start for a couple of months in case the unexpected shows up.

Starting a Family

If you plan to have a child soon, whether you go it with a partner or not, out-of-pocket expenses add up. A lot. Enlist the help of others who’ve done it before for advice and then go about setting deadlines.

Home Ownership

Owning a home is, for so many young people, a pipedream; a distant one, with prices being what they are. But if you don’t want to be subjected to the vagaries of renting or leasing, a long-term savings plan for a down payment is a practical thing to do.

Saving is a financial habit that, the earlier you establish it, the better it will serve you in the future. Because you are young, there is no better time than now to start saving so that you can meet those longer-term financial goals you have only just begun to set for yourself.