Kenneth F.

Learning to track one's personal finances is an important process, no matter how much money is involved. If you think you do not make enough money to consider organizing your finances better, think again! Good personal finance skills are perhaps most important when your budgets are tight and you need to get the most out of every penny.

Be careful not to make any long distance calls while traveling. Most cellphones have free roaming these days. Even if you are sure your cellphone has free roaming, read the fine print. Make sure you are aware of what "free roaming" entails. Similarly, be careful about making calls at all in hotel rooms.

Almost every new product comes standard with warranty that covers 90 days from the purchase date, and some products are warrantied for a year. Chances are, if your item fails, it will do so within the time frame of the standard warranty. Because they rarely have to pay them off, extended warranties are a safe bet for vendors, but for consumers, they are almost always a waste of time.

If you are looking for the best deals, take the middle man out of the equation. Sites like Expedia and Travelocity can include transactions fees (though some have been reducing them or even eliminating them). Take a look at the prices directly available at the websites of the airlines and hotels you are considering. You may find that it is cheaper.

Having a savings plan is important, so always plan for a rainy day. You should strive to have enough money in the bank to cover your essential bills for six months. Should you lose your job, or run into an emergency situation, the extra money will get you through.

These are just a few of the steps you can take to improve your personal finance skills. Trying some of them out will probably save you money - and once you see results, you will want to find out more. Keep researching money management and see just how well you can handle your personal finances.