11 ways to save money now

With unemployment on the verge of hitting double digits for the first time since the early 1980s, investing in yourself is really another form of an emergency fund. So start a capital fund for your career.

Put in enough money to cover travel and other job-hunting expenses for at least six months, the average length of unemployment for baby boomers who are currently out of work. And over time, use the fund to save money for career education and training - either to move up in your current field or to switch professions altogether.

"Pretend your career is a rental property," says Wisconsin financial adviser Michael Haubrich. "If you don't rehab it every so often, it goes down in value. And the rents you collect on it are going to go down too."

Of course, the same is true for almost every other aspect of your financial life. What's more, the investments you make now may pay off a lot sooner than you think.

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