Ah, snap. Things were going so nicely. You felt like you had your life together. And then . . . it happens. It meaning your water heater busts, your car manages to get two flat tires, and you crack a tooth . . . why?

Thankfully, you had an emergency fund. Unthankfully, now you don’t. It feels good to pay cash to fix the problem, but then your emergency fund is drained—and now what?

Now you go all Rocky Balboa on it and run up a bunch of stairs chanting, “It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” Meaning, you rebuild that emergency fund.

There’s no shame in that game. This is what the fund is for—emergencies. It did its job—and well—so get back on those stairs and show life you’re going to keep moving forward. You will rebuild your emergency fund.

Ever catch yourself counting down the days until your next paycheck?

Maybe you decided to take out a store credit card for the 20%-off shopping day and the bill just came in. Or maybe your “check engine” light is on and you’re dreading the repair. Either way, that paycheck can’t come fast enough—and might not be enough.

For 78% of Americans, living paycheck to paycheck is a way of life, an endless cycle of money going out almost as soon as it comes in.(1)  Kind of like a revolving door you can’t exit, it keeps you from getting where you want to go. But it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. Here’s how you can escape for good.

Sometimes managing money is tough simply because you’re busy. But don’t let your busyness get in the way of making your money work as hard as you do.

You need a budgeting tool that makes it easy to budget on the go. Life is hectic, but budgeting shouldn’t be.

1. Get a budgeting app.

You’ll have everything literally in the palm of your hands. You can budget wherever whenever, because your budget is with you always—not stuck in a spreadsheet on your computer or in a notebook on your desk. We suggest the EveryDollar app, of course. You’ll see why as we go.

It’s time to talk about how to find contentment. Why? Because this important attitude can help you on your budgeting journey and in life.

What Is Contentment?

Contentment isn’t as much the buzzword these days as happiness, joy, or even gratitude. But it should be, because it encompasses them all and even goes one step further. Contentment is a feeling of fulfillment and satisfaction. This state of being may seem impossible in a world where everyone seems to want more more more. But it’s not. 

By following these tips, you can learn to be more content. But remember: Contentment is a process. But sticking with it will be worth your effort. 

Some days it may feel like your spending is out of control. You look at the bank account, the credit card statement, or the empty wallet and wonder, Where did my money go? But how do you stop? How do you stop spending money when the temptation to spend is all around?

If you’ve asked yourself that same question—if you’ve spent a latte on your coffees or gotten near the end of the month and thought, Welp. That paycheck didn’t last as long as I needed it to—then here are 25 ways to stop spending money on food, clothes, household goods, and those nonessentials that feel pretty essential in the moment.