Dear Vice Column, Despite recession fears looming for most of 2022, I've managed to keep my office job, which covers my basic expenses with enough leftover to spend on life. Due to anxiety about layoffs, I've been living below my means and have squirreled a decent amount into savings. I don't know much about investing, and have been scared to start due to doom and gloom headlines about the stock market — but I know I'm losing spending power by keeping too much cash. What are a few things I can do to build smarter money habits in 2023? – Scared into saving Dear Scared into saving, Congratulations for keeping your job, and managing to save some money during a period of high inflation. You're right that having too much cash on hand will put you at a disadvantage as it won't keep up with inflation. Hopefully at a bare minimum you're keeping your money in a high yield savings account , which offer much higher interest rates than a checking or standard savings ac...