You cant have a dollar without a penny

Publish date: 2024-07-21

My grandmother Big Mama was full of financial wisdom. But there were two things she said that really stuck with me:

“Every penny ought to have a pot.”
And “You can’t have a dollar without a penny.”

Big Mama didn’t believe that you should have “money left over” after paying your major expenses. Rather, she preached that every penny you earn should end up in a pot dedicated to meeting your financial goals. After you paid your bills, you put money in a savings account for emergencies or into the pot for retirement. Once you pay off your auto loan, that money doesn’t go back into your monthly budget. Instead, it’s saved for the next car you’ll need. There should never be money left to just “play” with, she would lecture.

And Big Mama believed that it was worth fretting over every penny. Literally every penny you had was as important as the dollars you saved. She taught me that the pennies you may think don’t mean much can add up eventually. Think about it. You need a penny to turn 99 cents into a $1, she would point out.

I bet Otha Anders would agree with my grandmother.

“Anders started saving his first penny more than 45 years ago when he found it on the ground,” Frededreia Willis wrote for the News-Star, which is part of the USA Today newspaper network. “The coin reminded him to pray and give thanks.”

Before the end of 2015, Anders cashed in his collection of pennies. Fifteen five-gallon plastic water jugs and half a million pennies later, the 73-year-old Louisiana resident deposited $5,136.14 into his bank account to help pay for a dental bill, Willis reported.

“Anders said his penny pile began to grow and he ultimately stopped spending pennies and always made sure whenever he made a purchase, his change contained at least three to four pennies,” Willis reported.

The lesson here: Every penny has a purpose.

The 21-Day Financial Fast
It’s back. And by popular demand.

Like many people, a reader asked me before the end of the year: “What steps should I consider in hitting the reset button for 2016?”

Take the 21-day financial fast challenge. This is a fast all about your money. I developed the concept several years ago in the financial ministry I direct at my church. For three weeks — 21 days — you’ll spend only on necessities. No eating out. You can’t go to the movies. And you can’t use credit.

It’s best to do the fast using my book, “The 21 Day Financial Fast: Your Path to Financial Peace and Freedom.” You’ll read it for this month’s Color of Money Book selection.

So are you up for the challenge? If so, we start Jan. 10. I’ll be posting daily videos and encouragement on Twitter (@Singeltary) and Facebook. Watch this video of a couple who did the fast and saved a lot of money as a result.

Face the truth of your past, and you’ll free your future
In my first column in 2016, I talked about the importance of facing your past so that you can get to a better financial future.

Many people can’t keep their New Year’s resolutions because they are dragging baggage from their past. For me, I’ve been trying to deal with worry. As I wrote in a recent column, I’ve been working on this worry thing and nearly have it beat. Yet it is still a problem. My husband and I faithfully save for the things we want, but when it comes time to spend, I worry about using the money. I can hear my grandmother Big Mama say, “You just never know what’s going to happen.”

So I’ve pledged in 2016 to let go of worry. To help keep me on track to accomplish my New Year’s resolution, I’ve chosen a theme song, “Let It Go” from Disney’s “Frozen.” This song will be my way to stay strong and not worry when it comes to money. I can do this. I can let it go.

Color of Money Question of the Week
What song would you choose to help meet your financial resolution for 2016? Send me your selection, and why you chose it, to colorofmoney@washpost.com. Put “Let It Go” in the subject line.

First Live Chat of 2016
I’ll be live at noon (ET) today if you’re feeling remorse about what you spent during the holidays. Or let’s talk about your financial New Year’s resolutions. What do you want to improve upon when it comes to your money management? Here’s the link to the discussion.

Customized Financial Resolution Generator for 2016
Money magazine has created an online tool that can help you generate money resolutions. To do so, you answer a series of questions, such as “What do you struggle with the most?” The questions help you “zero in on the goals that are most meaningful to you — and therefore the ones you’re most likely to stick with,” the magazine says.

If your answer to the question of what you’re struggling with is paying for college, you’re resolution would be: Open a college savings plan. Once you’ve got your resolution, you’ll get tips on how to reach your goal. In this case, you’re provided with information on a 529 college savings plan.

Try the resolution generator to see if it’ll help you keep your financial promises this year.

Color of Money Columns
Here are my columns from the past week:

— To move forward financially, first face your past

— Time to reboot your financial life? Try this 21-day fast.

Brooks on retirement
Here’s a recent column I think you should read from Washington Post retirement columnist Rodney Brooks:

— What the financial planners say about the year ahead

Readers may write to Michelle Singletary at The Washington Post, 1301 K St. NW, Washington, D.C., 20071, or michelle.singletary@washpost.com. Personal responses may not be possible, and comments or questions may be used in a future column, with the writer’s name, unless otherwise requested. To read previous Color of Money columns, go to washingtonpost.com/business.

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You cant have a dollar without a penny