A lot of people want to start saving money for the future, but they don’t know how. It seems difficult, especially when there are unexpected expenses and things you don’t want to miss out on, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. Saving money will be different for everyone and it depends on how much money you earn, what bills come out of your account and what it left over at the end. You don’t want to deprive yourself of necessities, but there are easy ways to start saving.
New reports are coming out everyday that show people can’t save because they have nothing to spare. Luckily, there are some techniques that may seem small to begin with, but by the end of the year you should see some money in that savings account.
Work Out Your Expenses
Before you decide to start saving your hard-earned cash, you need to work out what all your expenses are. This will include all the utility bills, any debt and money that needs to be put aside for grocery shopping. There are apps that you can download to record everything, or you can do it the old-fashioned way by writing everything down at the beginning of your payday. Once you’ve figured out what is left over, this is your budget that can be divided between treating yourself, unexpected expenses and savings.
Open A Savings Account
They best way to make sure money is put away and stays there is to open up a savings account that you can’t touch. This is called an investment account and it will keep the money in there for a set amount of time before you can access it. Not only will this decrease the temptation to withdraw some, it also means you’ll be able to see it rising slowly and feel a sense of pride. Struggling to put money away? Think of it as a bill that you have to pay or there will be trouble, and that way you won’t miss putting the minimum in.
Put A Little Away Every Day
If you find it difficult to pay huge sums of money into your savings account, why not take a smaller approach to saving. There is a method of saving where you save £1 a day and increase it by another £1 for each week of the year. It seems like a small amount, but when you reach the end of the year you will find that there is a larger sum that you have saved up. As the amount is so small, you won’t even notice it coming out of your account.
Only Pay in Cash
One of the problems that people face when saving money is the impulsive spending. That coffee you pick up along the way to work in the morning eventually adds up and before you know it you are eating away at money that could have been saved instead. It is easier to spend impulsively if you have your debit or credit card always on you. To combat this, leave the cards at home and only take a little bit of cash out to keep with you. Most people won’t want to hand over the cash when paying for things, and so you will avoid spending it.
Set A Goal
Another easy way to start saving money is to set yourself a goal. Are you wanting to buy a new and expensive laptop, or perhaps you want to go on holiday or save for a mortgage? When you choose something to save for, it gives you something to work towards and you will feel more inclined to save if you get something out of it in the end. You may have to sacrifice certain luxuries, but it will be worth it in the end.
Have No Spend Days
A great idea to save money is to have days where you don’t spend money on anything, unless of course it is bills or for travel. If you are only paying for the essentials, you won’t be tempted to spend money on things you don’t need. You could go days at a time and challenge yourself to only buy one thing a week that you feel is a luxury item, whether it is a book, item of clothing or a delicious treat for a dessert. You’ll soon realize how much money you can save when you resist temptation.
Saving doesn’t have to be difficult and if you start with these small tips, you’ll soon find you have a savings account with lots of money in it!
