When 36-year-old Carolyn picked up a brochure about a 'Golden Harvest' savings plan at the credit union she saves with recently, she was very surprised at just how much saving a little would get her in the long run.

And when she calculated how much of the monthly sum she would commit to saving she was already wasting, or, if not outright wasting, could certainly be putting to much better use, she immediately started to reorganise her expenditure patters.

"At $5,000 a month for five years I would have $1M in 10 years. That is $400,000 on my $600,000," she said. "That is very close to matching funds."

And when she calculates how close she could get to the $5,000 monthly without cutting her expenditure to the bone, she is a bit upset at herself. "When you think about it, a bottle of drink at $60 once a day at work for four weeks is $1,200. Then there are the car trips that are not really necessary that waste gas. And also there is the little going out and phone card that adds up. I mean, you can't afford to stop living to save, but the fact is that I can identify $3,000 a month towards it easily," Carolyn said.

So she will be taking the thrifty approach, expecting that her salary will only go up. "If I start it now I know I can maintain it, because I won't be changing jobs to a lower paying one," Carolyn said.