I'm keenly aware of how important it is to set a good example. You may not think that your kids are paying attention to you, especially with something like money, but they probably are.

Save what you can toward the emergency and life happens fund. But don't worry yourself sick at the slow growth. The point is it's growing even it's just one dollar at at time.

I'm driving my old car until I'm on a first name basis with the low tow truck drivers!

We all only have a certain amount of money and that means yes, we have to make choices and sometimes those choices mean we don't get what we want.

I usually find that my gut doesn't steer me wrong when it comes to my money!

My Big Mama is my No. 1 financial role model. Much of my advice stems from what she taught me. She never made more than $13,000 a year, yet she paid off her home before she retired. She saved money from every paycheck. She taught me to be skeptical. It makes me cry to think that I'm a nationally syndicated personal finance columnist for one of the world's best newspapers and my core advice comes from my black grandmother who was a nurse's aide with just a high school education.

You don't need to waste money on a fancy program or app to do a basic budget. I've been using a simple Excel spreadsheet since 2005 to track my monthly budget.