Make 2021 the Year You Succeed in Saving Money In 4 Easy Steps
It’s a fresh new year, a clean slate for your personal finances. No doubt the holidays have left you in the red, but don’t despair. With these simple and easy suggestions, you can quickly pay off your holiday debt and establish a healthy personal savings account. Once you’ve read these suggestions over, try addressing one issue a month. If you are eager to get back on track even quicker, see if you can’t try them all, every month. Make 2021 count!
FIRST THINGS FIRST, WRITE IT ALL DOWN | All too often, we have the goal of getting our finances in order but lose enthusiasm pretty quickly. Writing down the exact amounts, the category (i.e., Groceries, gas, mortgage, small pleasures, etc.), as well as the dates of your fixed expenses is a fundamental starting point. Of course, you will also want to list all regular income and the dates on which they are put into your account. In doing so, you will be able to establish a reasonable savings plan that you can actually achieve. A few tips in this regard,
- Savings Goal | Set a savings goal, both monthly and yearly, that is reasonable in line with what you earn and your expenses. – Forbes
- Savings App | A savings app can help make great use of small amounts you wouldn’t necessarily put aside; it’s also automatic and therefore a no brainer. Try an app like Moka (formerly Milo). “The Moka app automatically rounds up your everyday purchases and invests the spare change…”
SECOND, REVIEW YOUR DEBTS | While paying off your debt might seem to contradict the idea of saving, it really goes hand in hand. With a little planning and a positive attitude, you will be able to steadily and efficiently pay off your debt while saving money. Need a little motivation? Consider this article as it can help you put it all in perspective; it also highlights these two main reasons you cannot just ignore your debt.
- Interest | “First, if the most significant part of your debt is to a credit card company, then the interest you are being charged is very likely costing you an enormous chunk of income.”
- Credit Score | “Second, even if the debt you have is not costing you an inordinate amount of interest, by not paying it off, you could be negatively affecting your credit score.”
THIRDLY, REVIEW SPENDING HABITS | Obviously, there are some flexible expenses we can’t get around and definitely can’t control. For example, the cost of groceries or gas tends to fluctuate according to the economic situation, not just locally but worldwide. There are a few things you can do to improve your spending habits.
- Spending Limits | The word ‘limit’ is enough to make you skip this step but give us a chance. You may have heard of the ‘envelope method’, this is a spin-off for those who aren’t great with hard limits. Set a cap on necessary spending, like $50 for groceries per week (for a single person). Do your best to plan and stay within those limits. Worst case, you can always increase the limit by $25 increments.
- Rework Must-Haves | Just like a strict, cold turkey diet will reduce your chances of success, removing all the small pleasures from your habitual spending will do more harm than good. Play around with your morning coffees, eating out, retail therapy, hobby costs, etc. Be honest and write down what you spent on these individual small pleasures during the past three months. Then try cutting one out, alternating week by week. If you are game or find you can do without one of them, keep it going and try a few at a time. Take what you save and deposit it directly into your savings account for safekeeping.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST, GET CREATIVE | Even when your income is low, and money is tight, you can get creative when it comes to putting money aside. Challenge your friends to a weekly save-off or try the following,
- Purge & Sell | Regardless of how much we make, we all accumulate way more than we need in today’s society. We often don’t even notice how much we have that we truly don’t need. Every month concentrate on one area of your home and purge, be it books, toys, clothing, home goods, etc. Anything that no longer makes fair use of your space or that you and your family have outgrown can be sold on a community sale website. Anything you get goes straight into your savings. Even if you only made $10 a month, you would end up with $1200 extra in your savings by the end of the year.
- Change Jar | Even in a day and age of cards over cash; we still manage to accumulate loose change. Put a change jar by the front door and empty your pockets or bag as you enter the house. A little adds up quickly over time. Live with roommates or a family? Ask everyone to participate and set up a savings goal that you can all enjoy.
2020 was a definite flop for all of us, individually and collectively. Take a deep breath, believe in yourself, and get excited about your personal finances. In addition to a savings account, try setting goals for an emergency fund, paying off your debt, setting up a budget that actually works and even looking into safe ways of investing.
If you need a little wiggle room to get started, 24Cash is here for you. As a Canadian company, we believe in helping fellow residents succeed in their goals. Learn more about our quick and easy online loans. You deserve to succeed.