How to Have More Fun With Saving Money
We all know that we need to save money if we want to achieve our long-term financial goals. Unless of course, you want to start taking out loans. The truth is, few people have the cash required to put a deposit on a house or pay for a family holiday after just one month at work. However, saving money aside every month can feel like an exhausting and overwhelming experience, particularly when you don’t have a considerable amount in your budget, to begin with. But you can have fun saving money.
If budgeting has been a stressful experience for you up until now, we’ve got some good news. There are plenty of ways to have more fun with your savings strategy. Try the methods below and consider getting the whole family involved too!
1. Make it a Competition
Have you got a competitive side? Great! Put it to good use by challenging your best friend or your spouse to a financial health contest. The person who can save the most money back over the next month wins something. You’ll need to prove that you saved the most by ensuring that you provide a statement from your savings account.
To make sure that the competition is fair, if you earn more than your friend or vice versa, make sure that you announce the winner based on the percentage of your income that gets saved. For instance, if you save £200 but earn £800 a month, you’ve saved 25% of your income. If your friend makes £1200 a month and still saves £200, you’re the clear winner!
The prize should usually be something that’s not going to diminish your savings win. For instance, you might just use the opportunity to gloat over the other person as the reward.
2. Challenge yourself
It sounds strange, but sometimes it can be satisfying to see how much you can save just by challenging yourself. The next time you go shopping for food at the supermarket, make a list of the items that you need and challenge yourself to spend a little less than you usually do. For instance, if you typically spend £40 on your weekly shop, try to spend £35 while still getting the same items. You can even challenge yourself to go also lower the next week if you’re successful with your efforts.Â
Do things like use comparison websites online, and see how far you can push your savings. If there are some electricity companies that you like the sound of, but can’t find a rate or offer to make the switch, then challenge yourself to call them and haggle or simply ask.
The money you save on your shopping can then go into your savings account so that you have more to tap into the long-term.
3. Play a Savings Game with your Family
If you’re trying to save money as a family, get everyone involved. It’s much easier to accomplish incredible things when everyone is working together, after all. Make sure that all the members of your family agree on the goal that you’re going to be working towards with your savings efforts. For instance, maybe you want to save up for a holiday. If so, put a picture of your ideal holiday on the fridge to keep you motivated.
With your goal in mind, ask everyone to come up with creative ideas on how to save cash. Every time someone has an idea that leads to saving, mark it on a competition board. At the end of the year, the person that takes you closest to your goal wins!
4. Use your Smartphone
The chances are that you already spend most of your day on your smartphone, so why not make the most of that tool as a way for you to save some extra money? Download apps and other tools onto your phone that can help you to quickly and easily track your spending and measure your savings performance. Many of the apps available for saving today are designed to be fun, so you can rest assured that they’ll be much more satisfying than writing numbers on a piece of paper or tracking an excel spreadsheet.
Some of the apps that you can get for saving will even give you stickers or stars whenever you move another step towards your goal – which is a great way to keep an eye on your progress.
5. Draw a Savings Thermometer
Finally, this is a great option if you want to get the kids interested in saving. Draw a picture of a thermometer or download and print one and stick it on the fridge with a picture of your savings goal at the top. Every week, color the thermometer in according to the amount that you’ve saved. That way, you’ll be able to visually see your progress – even if you’re only moving a tiny amount each week.
This idea will make sure that you don’t lose track of your motivation, and it will also keep your entire family interested in the financial progress that you’re making.
