How to Motivate Yourself to Hit Your Savings Goals

Most of us need to save money.

Whether it’s to pay off debts, to save towards our retirement, for a special event, there are times when we need to save.

But, saving is tough.

Temptation constantly surrounds us. There’s something that we want to buy at every turn, and it can be hard to say no. We’re also often faced with unexpected bills and issues, and there’s nothing worse than saving hard for months, only to find that it’s all gone when the car breaks down or an unexpected home repair bill comes in.

A setback can put you back to square one, and you may find that any motivation that you did have has gone with your hard-saved cash.

Your Mood

Many people find that trying to save can have an adverse effect on their mood and even on their mental health. Staying in all the time, cutting costs, and budgeting carefully can leave you feeling like you are missing out. This can be upsetting, and make it harder than ever to find the motivation to keep saving.

A great personal finance book I highly recommend. Click below:

But, if you want to hit your goals, both determination and motivation are key. Here are some tips to help you to stay motivated to save long-term.

Mindset

Are you the kind of person that only saves for specific things? Spending the rest of your time living paycheck to paycheck, with nothing set aside for a rainy day? Many of us do.

The idea of saving if you are on a low income can be terrifying, and it might seem impossible.

The key is changing your mindset.

Instead of only saving when you need to, get into the habit of saving all of the time. If you can save for a few months before a holiday, what’s stopping you from saving the same amount the rest of the time?

Become a budgeter. Think of yourself as someone who is good with money, who always has something set aside and is financially sensible, and you might find that you soon become that person.

Goals?

Goals can help you to stay on track- and writing them down makes you more likely to stick to them.

Get free sample chapters from my book: Not Another Personal Finance Book.

So, get out some paper and write yourself a list. Think of everything that you’d like to save money for. Include distant plans, like how much you’d like to have set aside for your retirement, as well as things in the much nearer future, like a holiday or shopping for your summer wardrobe.

You might find it easier to separate your goals into long-term and short-term, but make sure you include how much you want to save and any deadlines. Then, display this somewhere that you can see, so you’ve got a constant reminder and something to power you on when you get the urge to spend more than you should.

Is It Manageable?

Big goals are great. But, all added up, the amount you need to save can be overwhelming. So, look at what you’ve got coming up, and calculate a total that you need to save this year.

Then, break it down into weekly savings.

Suddenly, it’s a much smaller amount. Set up a direct debit to transfer that amount into a savings account, then any extra that you can add is a bonus.

Think about the weekly amount. If you need to save $20 a week, what do you currently spend $20 on that you wouldn’t mind doing without? It might be cups of coffee on the way to work or paying for buses instead of walking.

Budget With Ease

Budgeting can seem complicated, because many of us earn different amounts each month, and few of us spend precisely the same week to week. This can make a household budget tricky.

Setting up a simple budgeting spreadsheet can help tremendously.

Sit down and print out your last three bank statements. Look at where you are spending money and include absolutely everything, right down to luxuries and small expenses that you might not think matter. Including so much detail is a lot of work, but it will make things easier to stick to, and less confusing going forward.

Treat Yourself?

Saving is a little bit like dieting. If you are too strict with yourself and deny yourself everything that you enjoy, you will eventually have a massive binge and feel terribly guilty. It’s better to find healthy treats that you enjoy and to let yourself have the odd naughty snack occasionally.

When it comes to budgeting and sticking to it, find treats that don’t cost money or that you can do cheaply. Look for vouchers and discounts online and save as much as you can. Then, now and then, if your budget allows, buy yourself a small treat.

Borrowing Risks

Sometimes, we need to borrow money. While we’d love never to have credit, it may be unavoidable.

If you need to borrow money, you want to read this site to make sure you are borrowing sensibly, in a way that won’t harm your savings plan or credit score.

Remember: it’s essential that you include the loan repayment in your budget, and that you try to pay any debts off as soon as you can.

The Unexpected

Unexpected expenses are frustrating.

So, avoid them. Make sure you save a little extra in your budget each week so that you are always prepared for the unexpected. You might find it easier to keep this money in a separate account.

You got this!

This post is for educational purposes only.

Ken Boyd

Author: Cost Accounting for Dummies, Accounting All-In-One for Dummies, The CPA Exam for Dummies and 1,001 Accounting Questions for Dummies

Co-Founder: accountinged.com

(email) ken@stltest.net

(website and blog) https://www.accountingaccidentally.com/

(you tube channel) kenboydstl

 

Image: Bullseye, Jeff Turner CC by 2.0