Living His Best Life Thanks to Long-Time Saving Habit | My Member Story

As a teacher for the Granite School District in Utah, Robert Osborne dedicated his time to teaching, classroom counseling and guiding at-risk youth through the Youth Education Services (YES) program.

He always loved learning and wasn’t content just to sit around, so he decided to go back to school to get his master’s degree in computer science and technology. He continued his studies even further, focusing on physics, chemistry, weather and meteorology.

Forging a new path

After more than three decades, he was ready to step away from teaching and start a new career. His neighbor, who worked for Mountain America Credit Union, mentioned an open job opportunity that might be right up his alley. Robert applied and has been with the credit union for over four years as a senior facilities technician.

In his position, Robert is presented with a different challenge every day. He loves how there’s never a dull moment and he gets to see new people all the time. In what he fondly refers to as his second career, Robert’s pride in working for Mountain America shines brightly—he views it as not just a job, but somewhere he can truly make a difference.

Dedicated to the member experience

Being both a member and an employee, Robert is just as interested in developing a good relationship with his financial institution as any other member. Working at Mountain America has given him a unique insight into why the credit union is focused on the member experience and how to constantly improve it.

Because Robert has an inside view, he has developed a new appreciation for the employees and the huge role they play in guiding our members to achieve their financial goals.

The saving habit instilled at an early age

The value of saving money was passed down to Robert as a young boy. Those early lessons shaped his financial prudence long before he embarked on a career in the financial industry.

Take his savings, for instance. Robert has prioritized saving since he was little. Both his parents were from the generation where you didn’t waste anything, but his father was especially frugal and more interested in saving than spending.

When he first started teaching, he would put just $10 away each month. It doesn’t sound like much, but doing it consistently meant Robert’s accounts were growing!

Later, he would take this strategy to a new level and play a little game of Round Up each day. He would look at his daily charges and add them up. Say they came to $69.50. He would round up to $75 in his head and transfer the difference—$5.50 in this case—to his money market account.

Some days it was less, some days more. But, again, he was doing it consistently and seeing his savings grow.

Passing the lessons onto another generation

Today, Robert is ensuring the legacy of financial wisdom continues with his daughters. Drawing inspiration from his childhood, he introduced a ritual of collecting change. When his wallet or the nook in his car gets filled, he hands it over to his daughters, who deposit it into their own savings accounts.

Not only is this teaching them to save, but they’re also realizing how small contributions can accumulate over time.

Switching to mobile money management

Over the years, Robert had largely managed his money by going into a branch. Of course, at one time, that was the only way to do it. As digital options became more readily available, he embraced online banking but, for some reason, never downloaded the mobile app.

His financial journey was profoundly impacted, however, when a teller at his nearby Mountain America branch suggested he download the mobile app for more efficient services. Robert was impressed that the teller took the time on a very busy afternoon to help him get set up on the app—he even gave him a few pointers to easily transfer money between his different savings products.

Robert has been using the Mountain America mobile app for four years now. He is able to track his spending any time he wants to and transfer funds to his money market account with the click of a button.

It’s hard to believe that a simple financial app could have such an impact, but Robert sums it up by saying, “The Mountain America mobile app is helping me and my family live our best, good life!”

Once a collector, always a collector

Beyond the conventional wisdom of saving money, Robert carries on another trait from his father—that of a collector. His home is a treasure trove of memories and passions, all of which come with an amazing story.

Whether it’s old coins, nostalgic comic books, guitars or sentimental items—like the ticket stub from the first time he took his daughter to Lagoon—it all has value to Robert.

Advice for aspiring savers

Robert’s financial story offers valuable advice for those embarking on their own savings journey. He shares, “Start young and be consistent.” He believes in simple yet effective strategies such as pocketing the money you would have spent going out to lunch, utilizing credit card rewards, taking advantage of the mobile app and paying off your credit card right away.

In essence, Robert’s guidance for aspiring savers is a blend of old school wisdom and modern-day tools.

“Don’t leave your money just sitting there,” he recommends. “Put it to work for you. It’s a great feeling!”

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