How To Save Money Each Month Consistently
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You know you need to save but you’re struggling to do it consistently every month.
Or, you keep dipping into your savings every week until you’ve spent all you’ve saved in that month.
Not so long ago we struggled with saving money too.
We’d save money only to transfer it back for a takeaway or some other expense.
We’ve realised saving is not something that just happens.
To truly save you need intentionality and commitment.
Today we’re sharing the 5 things that have enabled us to save consistently every month.
Table of Contents
How To Save Money Each Month
Saving money each month should be a non-negotiable in our opinion.
It’s fundamental to start living a lifestyle where you have room to save.
This is intentionally ensuring you don’t spend more than you earn.
To be completely honest with you, there’s no way you can save if you’re above your means.
This means building a lifestyle that requires less money than you make to sustain it.
The gap between your income and your outgoings becomes the money you have to save.
Let’s get into how you actually achieve this.
Know Your Why
To save money each month consistently, you’ll need intentionality and commitment.
And knowing your why will give you just that!
This means being clear about the reasons why you’re saving in the first place.
For instance, we’re building our EF so we don’t have to worry about how we’ll survive a financial bump in the road.
We have sinking funds so we can avoid using debt for special occasions like birthdays and Christmas.
Wanting a home to call our own and start building our lives in pushed us to save for our home.
We were also driven by ownership – owning our own home was a big deal to us.
Each of these reasons is why we save our money.
This is the foundation of our decision to save and serves as the fuel to keep saving.
Be Realistic
When we started saving, our ambition overpowered our ability.
Our ambition was to save as much as we can so we saved almost 50% of our pay.
But considering our pay and our outgoings we could only save 20% instead.
We see people doing this all the time.
They attempt to cheat the system by saving more than they can afford to.
This is a sure way to lose steam very quickly.
Start being real with yourself and your affordability.
You’ve heard it said before: “live within your means”; well we’re saying “save within your means”.
Save at your own pace and don’t try to play catch up with others.
Be Strategic
If you’re struggling to save money each month, chances are you don’t have the right strategy.
Maybe you’ve tried saving with the same bank you have your main account with.
Or, you’re relying on remembering to manually transfer the money to your savings account.
Friend, you need to start being more strategic about your savings.
Open dedicated savings account for each of your savings goals.
If needed, open the account with a separate bank from your main account.
Set up a realistic automated payment from your main account to your savings every payday.
Make sure you can’t easily access or see your savings account balance.
Plus, have a strict no-withdrawals-unless-my-house-is-on-fire type of policy.
Also, take time to review your living expenses so you can save money from your bills.
Get Accountability
The point of an accountability partner is to hold you accountable for your own goals.
The phrase “you’re your worst enemy” is accurate when it comes to savings.
We can’t express enough how having accountability kept us motivated to keep saving.
They will remind you of the why behind your goals and encourage you to do what’s necessary.
If you’re saving solo you can lean on your family, friends or someone you trust with your goals.
A top tip is to not pick a yes-friend as your accountability partner.
You want someone who will be absolutely and brutally honest with you.
This means you can depend on them to keep you from slacking or your goals slipping.
Promise Yourself A Reward
Rewards work great!
Say you’re aiming to save £20,000.
Promise yourself rewards every £5k milestone you reach.
And you can also promise yourself a big reward once you’ve saved the full amount.
Although your why is the main driver to save, rewards are the icing on the cake to keep you going.
Plus, your accountability partner can remind you of your promised rewards when you feel like quitting.
For this to really work your reward has to be personally compelling and be something of worth.
It may be a weekend away, a newer gadget, a lifestyle upgrade or whatever.
The point is, saving is not just about the destination. It’s about the journey too.
Celebrate the steps you’re taking on your journey to financial empowerment!
Take Action
Check out our Ultimate Money Plan to get in control of your money and smash your financial goals.
Share this post with others so they can also learn about money too.
Let us know how you’re getting along by getting in touch with us, we’d love to hear from you.
Knowledge is powerless without action.
So take action, and take care.
Thando & Lindie