I never benefit from those generic advice segments. You know the kind that say ‘œSave $7000 in a year with our 10 simple tips’ because I inevitably don’t spend money on the useless things they recommend cutting back on in the first place. Cut back my daily paper delivery, magazine subscriptions, maid service, ultimate cable subscriptions, expensive cell phone plans, third car and rampant credit card debt’¦ uh, ok. My answer to most of these items is ‘˜not applicable’ except for one thing ‘“ I like to eat my lunch in a restaurant. And, in case anyone’s asking, no I won’t save for retirement by cutting back on eating out for lunch. I expect to earn less when I retire and there’s no way I’m going to stop working if I can’t even afford lunch now.

It’s easy to mock the concept that is sometimes dubbed the ‘˜latte factor’ which goes something like this ‘“ if you saved up that $5 a day you spent on fancy coffees every morning before work for the next 40 years, it would add up to a whole lot of money you could use to retire early. Of course,if you retire early, then you’re not working for the full 40 years and where are the savings supposed to come from?… ah well, I did promise I wasn’t going to mock the concept, right?

I know, I know. The whole idea of these things is to realize that small amounts of money add up over time, but I think that you need to get a grasp on the extent of your challenges before you start problem-solving . If you’ve got big crises looming over you, it’s ridiculous to only think in these David and Goliath terms. You can’t rely on consistently making a decision 14,600 times over the next 40 years in order to save for a vital economic transition. It’s a set up for failure. It’s like making diet plans to lose a hundred pounds by spitting out a single bite of your donut each day. Sure, sure, every bit helps. But you might want to look at the bigger problem because if you’re in a crisis then the odds are good that there are bigger problems out there. Crises are also immediate in nature, so if you need to make changes, they need to be big and fast. Don’t get bogged down with the cheap, quick fixes that won’t amount to a hill of coffee beans before your situation goes from bad to worse.

If you notice that you have 8 out of 10 money-wasting habits on every financial quiz you take, or you just have no idea where you money goes and you can’t seem to stop, then you might want to consider re-organizing your life in a serious way. We’re not talking about your morning coffee; we’re talking about your career, your home and your debt. Big problems are complex and can be a number of factors. Maybe you don’t earn enough because you secretly feel you’re not worth it. Maybe you’re spending money to deal with depression. Maybe you just don’t know where the money goes, and that’s all ever seem to know… and isn’t that odd? If you have these problems but aren’t in a current crisis, you’re in a good situation for making changes that are big and slow in nature. There are lifestyle changes you can make that will have a huge impact, but it often takes a year just to get them rolling. The payoffs are huge however, and well worth the trouble that quick fixes won’t provide.

Therapy can be helpful. People usually look at me askance when I suggest this, but it’s true. We have blind spots about money and therapy will be quick and efficient, especially when you arrive with the shockingly clear goal like ‘œI want to sort out my spending priorities and emotional issues about money so I can have a better quality life, and I’m willing to invest $1000 in 10 weeks of sessions so you can help me figure that out.’ Trust me, this will go much faster than how you feel about your mother, or why you are scared of the dark – although I make no guarantees that you won’t end up talking about both your mother and your sleepless nights in the process of discussing your money habits. A therapist who has some experience with shopaholics, shoplifters, or debtors anonymous would be most helpful here ‘“ not that you necessarily those categories but these experiences will help the therapist make a plan for you that will help you tackle the emotional urges behind your shopping sprees, your financially controlling partners, your gambling runs, your fear of dying in poverty, your wilful ignorance of your bank balance, or whatever it is that’s holding you back.

But what if you read these financial advice segments and just find yourself skimming past 8 out of 10 things you just don’t understand like retirement savings deductions, survivor benefits, tax exemptions, claims adjustments, property liability claims and so on? I don’t think you need to cut back on lattes. I also don’t think you need a therapist. Your issues may simply be that you need more education. It may not seem like an urgent goal, but it’s an important one nonetheless. If you’re in this situation then you can tackle the latte factor in daily life while you still have time to prepare for some of the bigger pitfalls that await you.

Let’s get some perspective here. Over your lifetime, more than a million dollars will probably pass through your hands. This is the scale of the financial responsibilities you face. The mistakes you make about money will be in the tens of thousands of dollars, either in a trickle that runs beneath your notice or in the form of single, expensive mistakes. The scale and intensity of your problems and goals needs to be triaged to figure out how to begin.

Major life changes like graduating from school, buying a house, retirement, getting married or divorced are all good triggers for doing some proactive research to avoid big mistakes. If you’re in between transitions and crises, then the trickle factor is probably going to have a significant impact and maybe it’s best to focus on that.

A good bookkeeper, accountant or financial advisor will help you focus your energy.   Sometimes, taking a knowledgeable friend out for a fancy dinner will benefit you more than spending time with a sales rep masquerading as a ‘œcustomer service representative.’ You are seeking education and information, not a pre-packaged product or service.   I recommend choosing a friend who’s 5-10 years ahead of you in life and in a position where you want to be. It should be an interesting dinner and an excellent investment.

And finally, I have a gripe with the people who always want me to eat leftovers at work. If I have leftovers, I save them for a second dinner. I usually pop them in the freezer and wait a week or so. I buy lunch and use the time to read, relax, or go for a jog instead. When I work away from home, I delight in having a hot meal to refresh myself. Ideally, my lunch date is taken solo without office colleagues, with my cell turned off, it is never an excuse to return early to do free work on my lunchtime and I try to keep it reasonably inexpensive and healthy. Buying a lunch is a chance for me to reclaim 45 minutes of leisure out of my work day.

I know every advice book out there says to pack a bag lunch, and sometimes I do. But it’s not a religion, people. I usually work from home and I still eat lunch out sometimes just to get a change of scenery. It’s not worth my time to cook for a half hour when I could eat quickly and bill someone for that half hour instead. Of course, if I enjoyed cooking, it’d be different math entirely, but I find this is utilitarian kind of eating so I prefer convenience over other considerations.

When in an office environment, I can generally find a few places near my work where I can get lunch for about $6. That’s $30 a week or $1500 a year. The selection is often a little repetitive, and that’s where leftovers become a welcome diversion instead of a chore. Lunch is usually significantly cheaper than eating dinner in a restaurant, and the whole indulgence is easily balanced in my budget by eating dinner at home more often than I would otherwise.

If you can’t balance your books that way because you’re down to the bone and the price tag of an occasional hot lunch really squeaks your budget, you might want to consider this ‘“ could you eat out for a month and use the extra time to find a better paying job? Could you start planning to retrain yourself for a new career? What if you stopped worrying about saving $6 a day on lunch and started thinking about earning $20 a day more than you do now? I’m just saying… sometimes a meal is also an investment.