<prompt> Human: So Im a 25 year old guy, and Ive pretty much been living the paycheck to paycheck style of life. Not because I get paid badly, but because I simply love spending money. Ive literally started an excel sheet right now, called Spendings, where Im keeping track of every pence I spend. I believe this is a good step forward, as admitting the problem is the first step! So as a guy who is new to the adult life finished my university degree not long ago, Id appreciate any tips and head-ups..so you know, Id be able to actually save money and get my own place. And yeah I should really stop buying Starbucks..but damn its so good, nothing compares.  <response>: I was roughly your age when I had roughly your problem. I changed my ways at around age 27. Im now 35 years old, and I am on track with my pension plan Im in the Netherlands and I also have 60k euros of savings. That sure feels amazing. Some things that may help:1. Indeed, tracking your spending. I use a spreadsheet for planning my spending, and I use a smartphone app to track my spending. I compare my planned expenses with my actual expenses every month. There are a lot of apps that do this for free, I bought a 5 app that works well for me. In all cases, tracking your expenses helps. Some options: YNAB, Mint.com free, a spreadsheet program, the apps MoneyWiz and DailyMoney, pen and paper, going through your statements once a week, etc. 2. Pay yourself first. When you have income coming in, decide how much of that income you can save. Then, immediately transfer that money to your savings account andor investment account. I experienced that this helps me to stop spending. The money in the savings account is out of sight, and therefore its also more out of mind. It doesnt feel like money that I can just spend on whatever. You could try whether this works in the same way for you.3. Create goals, and create reminders for them. For example, you might want to save money for a very nice holiday. Say, a 2000 holiday to a nice warm place for two weeks, next summer. That means that youll have to save roughly 300month from now on. Create an automatic transfer, and also put reminders of your planned holiday everywhere: cut out a picture of a tropical island and put it in your wallet, make it your screensaver on your computer, make a weekly reminder on your calender, put another picture on the inside of your front door or over your bed, whatever... Keep your goals in mind and youll see it is easier to work towards them and to make the right decisions Do I want this unplanned dinner out, or do I want to be able to afford that holiday?. Of course, please find your motivator for saving, doesnt have to be a holiday :- 4. Celebrate milestones. Celebrate the first 500 that stayed in your bank account for a month. Celebrate having 1000 in your savings account. Celebrate 2000 in your savings account. Pat yourself on the back maybe try it literally for doing the right thing. 