Five Things New Grads Should Do When They Get Their First Paycheck

If you are one of the lucky grads switching from full-time student to full-time employee this graduation season, congratulations. You have made a significant investment in yourself, and you are seeing it pay off. You may have already mentally spent your first paycheck, but taking a moment to plan for your financial future, as unglamorous as it may sound, is worth doing right away. Getting on the right track soon will save you from pitfalls and bad habits that could derail your net worth down the line. You worked hard to earn that new salary—here are five tips to make it work for you.

You should never turn down opportunities for your employer to match your retirement savings—a dollar–for-dollar match is a 100-percent return on your money, pretax. Make sure you have enough cash to function but then max out your employer contributions.