When talking about finances and saving tips, it is usually about “what you can live without” or “how to cut your expenses on particular categories of purchases” which is not always that exciting to think of. Because we all still want to have the best experience while saving and living life to the fullest. So, is it possible to make saving a little bit more fun? Is it possible to be happy while saving? Totally yes! And we will tell you how.
Should Money Saving Be Hard?
No matter how much you earn, it’s always great when you are wise about your spending and budgeting. It’s not always easy but it’s still an excellent skill that actually should be studied in schools – why not? So, when you are on your own about deciding on how to manage your finances, it’s all about the lifestyle you have and the source of your income – whether it is stable enough and whether you have any other income sources, like side hustles, etc. When you understand the nature of your income and the perspectives, you can better understand the ways you can save your money.
Generally speaking, money saving is always on the strict and dull side – don’t buy clothes frequently, don’t eat out, and do your own pedicure. When you read such tips, you surely know they work, but it’s all about the upcoming limits that you will need to put on yourself and it’s not exciting. The same thing happens when you know you need to spend a large portion of your income on a student loan or mortgage. Doesn’t make you really happy, right?
So, in order to trick your brain and distract yourself from negative thoughts, you can make budgeting actually fun. It gives you an opportunity to achieve your funding and saving goals while not being burdened and depressed about it. And this is the actual win-win situation – you move towards your goal and still enjoy your lifestyle. Much better than being sad about eating instant noodles, right?
But how can one achieve it? First of all, you need to be motivated – have the right approach and your big goal set for the future. This is a great start where you know why you are doing it and are excited about it. That’s where the following tips that we have prepared for you will come in handy.
Declutter Your Room – Declutter Your Brain
Cleaning your space might be just another chore for you. But it also can be a great way to make some extra cash. Selling everything you don’t need anymore, for example, old textbooks or some clothes that don’t fit could potentially be a little help for your funds. Though it could be not much, you can still achieve a few goals at a time when decluttering your room. For example:
- Decluttering is a good way to find items that you can sell
- Decluttering helps to clear your mind and become more organized
- Cleaning your space helps you remind yourself which items you own. By organizing your stuff into categories, you can save yourself from buying another pair of jeans, for example, when you already have three.
- You can also define which items you lack but really need and the next purchase will be more thoroughly considered.
- Cleaning your space can help you be more motivated and inspired for work or some income idea.
Decluttering your brain is crucial – you need to feel fresh and energized, with a positive mindset and lots of patience. Cleaning is something that helps a lot of people to get into the right mood and reboot to start something new or create a new habit. Try it out.
Find the Best Deals
Deals and coupons might be a little hard to calculate, especially when you are just entering the field. But once you get used to it, there will be nothing impossible in finding the best price. There are a lot of apps and websites that can help you out – the ones that provide you with cashback on purchases in various shops and online markets (they often require you to pay for a monthly subscription), the ones that compare prices for the same item in different shops, the ones that provide you with information about sales and deals at supermarkets or retail shops, and the ones that gather information about the upcoming price drops.
If you are a college student and have a student ID, you can find a lot of deals that will instantly save you money. For example, various software or subscription services provide special prices for students. You can google the ones that you are most interested in and use your chance to pay less just for being a student.
Doing this quick research doesn’t take much time, it can actually be fun. But it allows you to save money and feel better about your research skills.
Another thing that you might try is to create a folder on your computer and add screenshots of the ads or products that you want to buy. Wait for at least two or three weeks before reviewing the folder again. You will surely find out that some of the products are not that desirable anymore and you can stay away from buying them. Thus, you avoid making impulsive purchases.
Make It a Game
When we are talking about making something more fun, we often mean making it into a game or a challenge. Money saving is no exclusion – there are multiple challenges that you can try out to find which one you prefer. It’s not a competition – the prize in case you win is that you reach your saving goal. You either can continue on or stop – it all depends on what you want to do with the funds.
You can make up a game of your own or try out the ones that are already very popular. For example, a 100 Envelope Challenge.
100 Envelope Challenge
When you need just a little push to put some money aside, this challenge is just for you. What you need to do is to take 100 simple envelopes and write the numbers from 1 to 100 on them. Shuffle the envelopes and pick one or a few of them at a time each day. The number on the envelope you draw is the amount of money you need to put into it and then add the envelope to the ones that you have already stuffed. Day by day, the pile of stuffed envelopes will grow until the empty envelopes end up.
Such a challenge will allow you to save $5,050 in 100 days or less. If you are not ready for the bigger sums, you can simply cut the number of envelopes down to, for example, 20 or so.
52 Weeks
Another challenge that can save you a lot of money is a 52 weeks challenge. It basically stands for 52 weeks of a year – put money in your saving account or box every week. Start with $1 for the first week, $2 for the second week, and so on. At the end of the year, after you put in $52, you will end up with $1378 in savings.
Karen Palmer
