What is Struggling to Save?
We’ve all been there! Saving isn’t super intuitive, and they don’t explain well in schools how the heck you’re supposed to save. Saving is putting extra cash away and not spending it until you need it.
This post is about struggling to save.
Let’s dive into the top 7 ways on struggling to save:
1. Creating a Budget
This is always at the top of the list because it’s just that important! You need to know what you’re working with, and the only way to do that is to know what your income and fixed expenses are! You can set different amounts for different categories (rent/mortgage, groceries, transportation, debt repayment, etc).
2. Setting Realistic Goals
It’s great to have a dream you can set aside money to achieve. However, it’s important to note that these goals are achievable within a set timeframe. These goals can be saving up for an emergency fund, vehicle, vacation, or other large purchase. This can be a fun activity, because you get to jot down the experiences or items you’d like to purchase in the future. Then, work backwards to see how much you will have to put away to get there in the set timeframe. See this post for all things sinking funds!
3. Automating Savings
The EASIEST way to save, no cap! Setting automatic transfers completely removes all the work and takes away any hesitation you may have. This puts money away into a different account so you won’t be tempted to spend it all. As they say, set it and forget it! This gives you the freedom to log into your accounts every few months and see the lump sum increasing with every transaction.
4. Cutting Unnecessary Expenses
It’s easy to look at things and say “I can afford that”. But the greatest freedom is to be able to say you can afford something, all the while, choosing not to purchase it. It’s quite liberating. You don’t have to buy every single thing you can afford. You can start by reviewing your recurring expenses, seeing what areas you tend to spend more on, and removing any unused subscriptions.
5. Comparing Prices
Finding the best deals by comparing prices at different retailers! Always look up the price of an item at different retailers to see which offers the lowest price. Now, this is also a great time to mention that a lot of retailers offer Price Matching! For example, if you’re in a rush to get something, and Target and Amazon both carry the identical item, you can request a price match at Target by showing the Amazon listing. It’s super easy! Target’s one of the many retailers that have a price matching policy. Feel free to look up what other retailers’ policies are regarding price matching!
6. Cooking at Home
Eating out is so expensive and can add up so, so quickly. That’s why cooking at home is a great way to save more money. Don’t like cooking? No problem! There are some SUPER easy recipes out there that are super quick and easy to make. Or you can opt into some food services that can be pretty cost effective, while teaching you new recipes you can cook at home.
7. Negotiating Bills
Always, always negotiate your bills! Especially for the recurring ones, including internet, insurance, utilities, even (and especially) hospital bills! Don’t know how or where to start? Check this post out or follow the steps I’ve used to negotiate my bills below:
- Research: nothing extensive, but have a few quotes up your sleeve.
- Call your provider: this might take a few times, depending on who you get. For internet providers, go straight to canceling your subscription and they’ll take you to the right department to start your negotiation
- Be nice: explain your situation and reasoning for needing either maintaining the same price they’ve been charging or why you need a discounted rate
- Make your request: be nice but stand your ground! Don’t let them sell you on additional items/services! If they don’t honor the discounted rate, always be ready to cancel and hop to one of the other providers you found during the research step!
To reiterate, the top ways to resolve struggling to save are:
- Creating a Budget
- Setting Realistic Goals:
- Automating Savings
- Cutting Unnecessary Expenses
- Comparing Prices
- Cooking at Home
- Negotiating Bills
There you have it! Interested in learning more about sinking funds? Check this post out for sinking funds examples.
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