These days, there’s a lot of talk about what us 20-somethings should or shouldn’t spend our money on. How soon should we pay off our student debt? Do we buy a home instead of rent? If so, how in the world do we save enough money to do so?

Budgeting isn’t sexy no matter how you slice it, but there are ways you can be smart with your money and still enjoy all the activities you love even if you aren’t making a million bucks. Over the course of my 20s, my salary has ebbed and flowed, which has given me great real world experience on how to manage my finances and protect myself financially.

I'm 27, and I’m just as curious as the rest of us about how to make money in your late twenties. It's a topic of discussion my friends and I frequently tackle, and I'm constantly reading books on financial empowerment, such as The Psychology of Money...