The best way to save money is to just start. It doesn’t have to be big; you don’t need to put $1000 or more into a big investment fund or take out a pension plan with your bank. Instead, think small and start putting away a little bit at a time. You’ll be amazed at how quickly you can build a decent nest egg that you can then put into a trust or a fund.
Here are some simple, small ways that you can start your savings today:
- Add It To Your Budget
People who aren’t saving often wonder how they will even get started. The trick is to plan for saving money. It’s simple, include a line item in your monthly or weekly budget for savings and immediately put that money away into a separate savings pocket on your bank account or into an old-fashioned piggy bank in your room. Whatever way works for you, make sure that as soon as your income comes in, that set amount goes straight into your savings.
It doesn’t have to be a huge amount of money. However, it has to be a set amount each month regardless of what happens. You can even get your bank to create an automatic deposit to take the money from your general account into your savings account. This way, you won’t even see the money as being available to spend.
- Keep A Record Of Your Expenses
The quickest way to stop spending money is to see a visual representation of what you are spending it on. By making a record of your daily and monthly expenses, you can quickly see where you could cut costs and make a little room for your savings instead. There are a number of smartphone apps that you can use to track your expenses. Some even link directly to your bank account and automatically record each transaction for you. After a few months of careful tracking, you’ll be able to see exactly where your money is going and what your spending habits are.
- Set Some Goals
Knowing what you are saving for will help you to stay motivated each month and curb your enthusiasm for impulse buys. However, it’s important to be specific with your goals and have some exact figures and dates connected to those goals. For example, you can say you are saving for your next holiday by setting a date for buying the plane ticket and how much that ticket is going to cost. If you play at Lucky Creek you may win enough money to reach your goal faster, but if not, save, save, save!
If you are too loose with your goals, it can be difficult to see or judge your progress. It can also be very easy to lose interest in your savings because you are simply putting money away with no plan to use it ever. Of course, a retirement plan is an important long-term savings goal, but it is not very exciting right now. Try to give yourself both short and long-term goals so that you can get some gratification in the short-term to keep motivated for the long-term.
