Every once in a while, I happen to catch the money segment on NBC’s Today Show.

61% of Americans could NOT afford a $1,000 emergency (car repair, medical) if it came up.

Some suggestions came up for saving money. You already know I’m not fond of STASH as a serious investing tool-it’s to conservative and the returns are too low to outpace raxes and inflation (6%).

Enter Long Game-a savings app. I tried testing it with my test/play money bank account, Ally, but it wasn’t listed. I realised youtube was the answer.

The man explained that by playing in-app games, one could earn coins and up to about 1% interest on his money.

This is not your money working for you, it’s you wasting your time for very little.

Saving shouldn’t be a silly game or waste if time. This app overcomplicates it for no reason.

You don’t need an app, just a tablet of paper, a sharpie, and the calculator on your phone.

1. Set up an Emergency Fund

Add these things up:

6 months of your expenses: (mortgage+car+insurance+groceries…)

Divide by 12. Let’s say, $1,000/month.

That is your emergency fund. Set it up as an automatic transfer to a savings account outside your bank. I suggest Ally bank.

2. Set Up Separate Sinking Fund Savings

Once you have an emergency fund, set up a different savings account for yearly costs called “Sinking Funds”:

Ancestry $150 (January)

AAA $100 (May)

Costco $55 (January)

Vacation $5,000 (July)

Painting house $1,000 (October)

Total $6305

Divide by 12: $525.41/month. Set this up as automatic transfer to the second Ally savings account. Then push back the amounts from the Ally savings to your regular checking as they become due.

Forget confusing diversions.

Keep it separate.

Keep it simple.