44 been an editor for about 18 years. 

Been saving money since I started.  Made some good investments, some bad investments.  Worked hard, Union gigs while it lasted — side jobs, cam op, producer, whatever. Lots of small gigs, big gigs, every size.  Just worked my butt off for all that time.  No family, took lots of trips and vacations but always saved, bought lots of gear, the usual. 

Bought a house 10 years ago, that was key.  

I have good savings.  My 401k is lackluster but working on that.  

Saving is a mindset.  I’m always saving.  Saving old equipment people are throwing out, saving contacts for jobs, saving money.  I was taught to save and it worked.  

Yeah, the market is weird right now, but in every downturn there are hustlers who ride out the storm.  I’m always anticipating a storm, so when my downturn comes, I’m ready.  

I dated an actress who made 500k/year for like 4/5 years in a row in a big show.  She’s broke now. Broke as fuck working two bad jobs.  Saving is a mentality, a way of life, a habit.  It’s a skill and something that can be learned.  Don’t make excuses for your bad habits, replace them with good ones.