<prompt> Human: I am not opposed to hard work and dedication, I have 90 credits in college but havent gone in 1 year. Most of these credits are in social sciences towards my associates degree in criminal justice.My steps I can infer myself are:Find a better paying job as isLearn a skill to improve job hours, regularity and open my schedule for schooling.Find an affordable school in South East Pennsylvania where I will be eligible for in state tuition in 10 monthsI am aware of MITs advertised free Online Courseware and have an interest in computer science, healthnutrition as well as math. I just dont know the path of achieving and completing these steps so to apply them in my overall goal of financial progress. What are my options to advance my career away from retail management, and educate myself into a position where I can choose a career path that is more fulfilling and financially secure? I am aware many people are on here trading tips on stocks, putting away for retirement, playing with amounts of money I dont make in a year and thats GREAT, I can strive for that but first and foremost my goal is to continue to feel stable on my feet, as I currently feel that something like my car breaking down, or substantial speeding ticket for instance would result in financial ruin.Edit: I just want to say thank you to you all Assistant: I think your plan as if now is really good. I make about as much as you, the best advise I can give you is to make a budget. Figure out where your money goes now. List what expense you cant avoid ex rent, electric etc and what things you can live without restaurants, concerts ect try to reduce what you spend wherever you can. Every penny counts at our level, but knowing where it all goes is crucial. Whatever money you can save I suggest opening a high interest savings account I use ally bank, also consider investing in index funds very low risk. Human: I have a checking account in NY that I LOVE. Never had a fee in nearly five years. I would never in my life want to leave them, in this case would I be able to open a savings account with a different bank and that be okay? Or should I be concerned about fees and such?Assistant: Certainly make sure you wont have to pay any fees that defeats the purpose. You can just open up a savings account. Currently I do most of my baking with Bank of America but I also have a savings account with ally. You never want to have 100 of your money in savings anyway. Human: Cool Ill do that! Thank you. I will explore options tomorrow morning and open a savings account with the appropriate institution by the end of the week. Ive worked out I can afford 60 a week comfortably.  <response>: This is awesome. I began by opening an investment account of mutual funds and direct deposit 250 a month in there. I freak out all the time cuz that balance isnt in my face everyday but Ive been putting in for over 6 months and havent been in a position to withdraw any. Ive made stupid spending decisions and been poor a few times but Ive actually come a long way. Youre definitely on a good path to start with savings, best of luck!! 