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When you're not making the big bucks in your 20s or early 30s, rent, grub and credit card debt basically keeps you from saving anything. You think you'll eventually get a promotion and slowly work your way up the ladder, and maybe one day (way, way in the future) you'll own your own place and have enough to spring for a decent wedding ring.

Financial journalist Farnoosh Torabi thinks this is no way to live. Only 28, she already owns her own Manhattan apartment (without the help of Mom and Dad), and her book, "You're So Money: Live Rich Even When You're Not," has plenty of advice on how you can get started toward financial stability as well. "It's true -- money may not buy happiness, but having no money isn't exactly paradise either," she writes. Having some cash but managing it poorly is nearly as bad. Then you're missing out on money's potential to ameliorate your quality of life."

Torabi's book is compelling because it suggests that even if you're a lowly serf making $40k, you can live large -- buying that iPod you're coveting, wearing nice clothes and going out to fancy dinners -- and still sock away some cash each month to put toward investments or a down payment.

There are plenty of good tips in Torabi's book, so click here for a few that struck us as particularly sage.

Figure out what "The Good Life" means to you. Torabi suggests you start out by deciding what are needs and what are wants, and making a list in order of importance. Do you "need" a car, or can you take the bus, for example. Is it more important for you to own a dog, or to go on vacation? Once you do that, try to find places where you are spending money needlessly. Beyond that, make sure you're deducting everything you can for taxes, and take advantage of your 401k -- where your employer is pretty much offering you free money, because they feel guilty for taking away retirement plans.

Be smart about your debt and banking. Look at all your debt and figure it out in order of importance. Check which loans have the highest interest rates, and make sure you pay those down before others. Check out different credit cards, and pick the ones with the best features. Getting a free flight every three years, for instance, isn't worth it.

Be a smart shopper. While it might seem like you're saving money by buying cheap things, keep in mind that those are often the first to wear out or break. Every once in a while, it makes sense to go with the "splurge" item, but only if it's something that's going to get some use. Torabi writes that it's worth it if it makes you "hotter or healthier, or both." Of course, this is why we go with liquors in bottles rather than plastic jugs.

Invest. Even if the stock market is crap at the moment, the gains to be made there will pay off in the long run. If you're young, you can afford to speculate and take some risks that may pay off big. Risk has an inverse relationship to age, so a lot of the things that won't be prudent when you get into your 40s may be worth taking the chance on today, when you're not putting your child's college tuition on the line.

Stop working for the man -- and become the man. Ask the 50-year-old guy in your office who's stuck in middle management about all the times he's thought of going off on his own. Now, however, he's got a big mortgage and kids, and he just can't stomach the risk of leaving the company where he no longer enjoys working. Torabi says that the ultimate way to control your financial future is to create your own opportunities and start your own business. If nothing else, it will be worth it simply for the thrill of hiring and firing people.

Interested in expert advice on another topic? Let us know in the comments section ... seriously, we'll track down an expert (or at least pretend to be one ourselves).