There are so many different ways to save money. You can Google it and get about a hundred different ideas within a few seconds. The hard part is putting those ideas into practice. I'm pretty sure we can all agree that the best-laid plans often go awry. We have the best of intentions to save money. We even put the word "savings" into our budget as a category or take a mason jar and call it our savings. However, the act of saving money consistently can be very hard to do. Here are a few possible solutions so that saving money doesn't have to be so scary.
Automate it - It's super easy to automate your savings. Discover offers an online savings account with a current interest rate of 4.21% that is paid monthly. The app is super easy to use and you can set up a small amount that is withdrawn on a certain day of the month. I would recommend you pick every time you get paid. This is called a recurring deposit, and you don't have to think about it because it would happen automatically every payday. You don't have to use Discover, though. There are plenty of other apps and programs that can help you automate your savings. For example, Acorns and Qapital are both very popular apps that help you save money automatically. If you don't want to use an app, check with your bank to see if they offer a program to "round" your purchases to the next even dollar. Most banks offer such a service and even put the change from rounding your purchases into a special savings account for you. So easy!
Use an envelope - Are you more old school when it comes to saving money? You can pick up a box of envelopes for about a dollar and label them with categories that you want to save for such as Christmas, a family vacation, or an emergency fund. Getting the envelope and labeling it is the easiest part. The real work is remembering to put money into the envelope each week or each month. There are all kinds of ideas, tips, and tricks to help you do this. You could pack your lunch for work every day for a week and take the money you would've spent eating out and set it aside in an envelope. There was a fad not long ago called the Five Dollar Bill Challenge where you saved every single five dollar bill you were given in change. There are even cute printables you can use to color in a square every time you set aside a five dollar bill. Whatever method you choose, try to stick to it so that saving money becomes a habit.
Save your windfalls - Did you get an unexpected check in the mail or a rebate you forgot about? Cash the check and save it! Will you get a tax return in a few months? Save at least part of it! Did you get a little cash for your birthday? Save half of it! Are you able to sell something you no longer need or are you planning to have a yard sale? Set aside that extra cash you’ll make in an envelope! Saving your windfalls is an easy way to jump start your savings. Sometimes all it takes is a little bit to get you started so that you’ll feel motivated to keep saving.
Reward yourself - Don't forget to reward yourself for hitting your savings goals. If you're a beginner saver, you might want to allow yourself to splurge and spend $10 or $20 for every $100 you save. This can help motivate you to keep saving, especially if you can see your progress. Remember to keep savings goals small to start with so they don't seem so unreachable. If you want to save up $1000, break it up into four equal savings goals of $250. Remember to give yourself grace when you mess up and remind yourself that you can get back on track with your next payday.
Saving money doesn’t have to be complicated or scary. Make it as easy as possible for yourself so that it becomes a regular habit no matter which method you choose.
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