”One penny may seem to you a very insignificant thing, but it is the small seed from which fortunes spring.”

Orison Swett Marden

“A penny saved is a penny earned” is a way of saying that one should not waste money but should save it, even if the amounts are small. Over decades, even small amounts of money saved regularly and if invested wisely, have the potential to add up thanks to the magic of compounding.

This well-used financial idiom is often attributed to Benjamin Franklin.

When money is saved instead of spent, you end up ahead in your financial total net worth by the amount saved instead of down by the amount spent. It means that you are two steps ahead of where you would have been financially.

“Too many people spend money they earned..to buy things they don’t want..to impress people that they don’t like.”

Will Rogers

So when you save your hard earned money, it will be there when it might be needed, especially in emergencies or retirement. This fact makes money saved similar to money earned. Thus money saved creates the same financial benefit as money earned (trading time for money) through work, thus, a penny saved can be viewed as the same as a penny earned.

The suggested amount of pennies saved should be at least 10 to 15 percent of your monthly income. But, if 10 to 15 percent is not currently possible, even small amounts of money are better saved than spent.

“The real cost of a four-dollar-a-day coffee habit over 20 years is $51,833.79. That’s the power of the Compound Effect.”

Darren Hardy

If you’re patient and disciplined, your pennies or money can work for you and make a real difference in your account balance over time.