Saving more in 2019

Hey everyone!

I hope you enjoyed my post last week about ways to spend less money this year. Now that you are trying creative ways ways to cut back on spending, we want to be aware of what we are doing with that “extra” cash that we didn’t spend on cable or eating out. This week I wanted to share two quick ideas on how you can save more money.  

First, set savings goals for yourself (see my post on SMART goals). There a lots of ways to do this and lot’s of schedules online (try googling “52 week saving challenge”) that show how you can start small and save a daily or weekly amount and then at the end of the year you could have a big chunk of change for vacation, to invest, or whatever.

For me, I like to save on a set schedule automatically. With online banking and I can set the amount that makes sense for my budget to automatically get transferred to my savings account on payday. It’s important that the money moves on payday, so I’m not tempted to spend it. Another form of saving like this is using your employer 401k, this comes right out of paycheck and won’t even touch your checking account, so you never really feel like you are missing that cash. It’s even better if your employer matches your contribution.

Second, In the next few months people will start getting their income tax returns. If you really want to making savings a priority in 2019, you’ll make a plan of how you want to spend that money BEFORE you deposit the check and get all excited about the sweet stuff you could buy. For me, I generally try to think of a percentage of the money I want to save/invest and then give myself a much smaller percentage of that money to use for something fun. Overall, I think I do a pretty good job taking care of what we have, so it makes sense to celebrate the money we are saving all year long by spending a little on something fun. The point I’m trying to make here is, that you need to make a wise plan, I mean one that you’ve thought-through BEFORE you get the check. When it’s all said and done you’ll feel much more responsible, knowing that you didn’t spend the cash on impulsive sweet stuff and more free to be proud of your planning.

Thanks for reading! As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments about saving more and spending less.

Kara P.