If you have a spare $100 and put it in into something that returns 6%, in 40 years time it’ll be worth $1096. If you’re older and leave it there 30 years, it’ll be worth $602. Basically anything you spend $100 on now is costing you $602 in future dollars.

If you only have a spare $50, and are prepared to let that money sit there for 40 years, it’ll be worth $548. Just think if you get that money invested and out of sight, out of mind whenever there is extra. Here are just a few ways to save $50-100. As you can see, leaving it there an extra 10 years, is almost the same as saving double now.

The key is making it real.

I’ve found that the key to getting myself to invest is coming up with some numbers that make it real for me.

For example, if I’d invested $1000 a month in the VTI fund, which tracks the US stock market, for the last 10 years, that investment would be worth $205,000 now, compared to $120,000 of contributions. That’s even with the massive crash of 2008.

The Benefits of Giving Up an Unused Subscription

Let’s imagine that instead of paying $15 a month for a subscription you don’t really use, you’d invested that money for the last 10 years instead. In this case, even starting from $0, you would have over $3000 now after only depositing $1800.

The calculator I’ve used for coming up with the above tables is http://www.buyupside.com/calculators/dollarcostave.php

What you you have a spare $1000?

I know for some people the idea of having a “spare $1000” isn’t a reality, but also for many people it is. For example, you get a tax refund or the like.

Here’s what you can expect if you invest an extra $1000 that you have available.

At a moderate 6% rate of return, that money will have grown to

5 years: $1349
10 years: $1819
20 years: $3310

If you only have a spare $500, here’s what you can expected

5 years: $674
10 years: $910
20 years: $1655.