3 Habits for Building a Strong Financial Foundation in Your 20s

In your 20s, it can feel as if you have all the time in the world to figure out your finances, but the truth is, the habits you form now will shape your financial future for years to come. Establishing a strong foundation early on can set you up for long-term money success, helping you achieve milestones like homeownership, debt freedom, and maybe even early retirement.

The good news is that developing a solid financial footing is not about making huge sacrifices; small, consistent actions now can make a big difference down the road.

Here are three key habits you can adopt to secure your financial future.

1. Pay yourself first

One of the best books you can ever read regarding money, and one that can really make a difference if you read it in your 20s, is a timeless classic called The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason. In the book, two friends Bansir and Kobbi, struggle financially, while their childhood friend Arkad has grown wealthy.

The two men seek out Arkad to ask for his wisdom and secrets. Throughout the book, Arkad explains some fundamental wealth-growing principles, such as living below your means, investing wisely, and especially, "paying yourself first." This means that before you spend money on anything else -- be it bills, rent, or video games -- you need to allocate 10% of your income to savings and investments.

Pay yourself 10% before you ever pay anyone else anything.

This habit not only creates discipline, it shifts your mindset from spending to saving and investing, thereby allowing you to steadily build financial security over time. The earlier you adopt this practice, ideally in your 20s, the more time your money has to grow through compound interest and smart investments.

For example, if you save and invest $100 a month starting at age 25, with a 7% annual return, you could have roughly $264,000 by age 65. Wow. By beginning early, you give your money decades to grow.

2. Create a realistic budget

Budgeting may not sound exciting, and frankly, it isn't. But that does not mean that it's not important. It is. A good budget helps you live within your means and helps you prioritize what financial goals and commitments are most important to you. It is your plan for how you think you should best spend your money. That's it.

See, that wasn't so difficult, was it?

There are all sorts of budgeting apps you can use to create yours. Whichever one you choose, just make sure your budget prioritizes necessities like housing, transportation, and groceries, while also allocating money toward entertainment and fun, as well as your long-term goals, such as an emergency fund and investments.

The key is to create a budget that you can stick to, so it feels less like a restriction and more like a roadmap to achieving financial stability.

3. Build and maintain good credit

Especially as you get older, you will see that good credit opens doors to better financial opportunities, including lower interest rates on car and home loans, as well as credit cards.

By using your cards, with a plan to pay them off every month, your credit rating will go up quickly (note: the average credit rating for someone in their 20s is 680). Avoid maxing out your credit limit, and always make payments on time.

If you develop these three easy and simple habits -- paying yourself first, living within your means, and building up your credit rating -- you will be creating a solid financial foundation you'll be really grateful for in 10, 20, or 30 years.

Meet with an Old National Banker for a free financial review to get your finances on track.

This article was written by Steve Strauss from The Motley Fool and was legally licensed through the DiveMarketplace by Industry Dive. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.