You’re not alone. A poor savings habit is one of the plagues of modern times and could keep you from achieving future dreams.

Why worry about saving now when you’re living the carefree life of a college student?

Because college comes to an end and good habits developed now will pave the way to success later. Also, money saved now gains compounding power that allows your money to make money.

Compounding reinvests any interest or dividends earned on savings, giving your money additional power. The sooner you begin investing, the more time you’ll have to take advantage of compounding.

As an example, if you invest $20,000, at a compounded 10 percent annual return for 20 years, you would end up with a net cash amount of $254,640, according to First Hawaiian’s Bank’s Bishop Street fund.

But if you wait and invest $40,000 with the same compounded 10 percent annual return for 10 years, you would only end up with $117,800.

You would think that investing twice the amount for half the time would net the same result, but this is not the case. The power of compounding allows you to make twice as much with half the investment.

Of course, in the real world, not many of us have $20,000 we can drop into an investment account. But there are steps you can take now to develop good savings habits and accomplish the same goals.

Step One: Get out of debt. If you have credit card bills, most likely they are costing you more in finance charges than you could earn with savings or investments.

If your debt is high, at the very least commit to making double the minimum payment due each month. If you don’t, you’ll be paying on that card for the next 10 years.

Step Two: Commit to systematic investment. You must be receiving some income to live, whether it’s a part-time job or an allowance from your parents. No matter what the source of your income, save 10 percent.

It’s simple. If you receive a $100 check from mom, put $10 in your savings account and don’t touch it unless you have an emergency.

Happy hour at Mango’s does not qualify as an emergency.

Step Three: As savings grow, look for alternative investments. You are not going to build your wealth keeping your money in a bank savings account.

Begin to look for alternatives to earn a higher rate of interest

If you belong to an organization that has access to a credit union, then join. They will likely be able to offer you a higher rate of return than most banks.

You can also consult investment advisors, available at your bank.

Some mutual funds allow systematic investing which enables you to earn higher returns by buying into a fund for as low as $25 a month.

It takes some discipline and a little work, but saving is something we all can do.

It may be tough to see the benefits now, but with some small sacrifices and the benefits of compounding, you’ll be glad you did it