Find Out Everything You Need To Know To Save Money Fast And Achieve That Financial Goal You’ve Been Dreaming Of.
A question is often asked, but not many can answer: How to save money?
Whenever someone talks about their finance, there’s a big chance that they’re either feeling insecure for not having enough or guilty for spending too much. Plenty of advice you’ve heard from relatives, friends, or even speakers in webinars: save money since you’re young, don’t get into debt, stop overspending on wants instead of needs, and so on. However, like everything else, it’s always easier said than done.
When you want to save your money for a long-term trip next year, your laptop suddenly breaks. Or when you decided to cut your spending for the next months, you have medical bills to cover out of a sudden.
Remember when you promised to save money when you reached your 20s? Most people who promised to start saving “tomorrow” will only end up not saving anything at all.
In reality, you will only start saving your money when you start learning healthy financial habits and establishing your future goals. Here, we’re going to cover everything on how to save money fast that makes sense. We have everything in line from finding your purpose, picking the right tools and money management tips.
Finding Your Why: The Definition of “Save Money”
Before you aim for your financial goal and start saving money, there’s one essential question you must answer, and it will determine whether your attempt will succeed or not in the future.
Why do you want to save money?
People save their money for myriad different reasons. Some want to be financially independent before they hit the 20s, some want to help their family’s business, and others are saving up to buy a house. These people have a similar thing: a long-term goal and a clear definition of saving money.
According to The Balance, saving money means “the intentional act of setting money aside for a specific goal or purpose, or for general life events like buying a house, saving for college, raising children, etc.” Due to its long-term nature, you need to set goals first before you start saving your money. You don’t have to start big to save money; it can start from small things, such as buying yourself gifts on your birthday, having emergency funds, deposits for a holiday, or even a retirement fund.
After you establish your goals, you can start dividing your income by saving posts monthly. For example, 10% of your income will be saved in retirement fund savings, and so on.
The key takeaway is determining what you want to achieve in the foreseeable future and breaking it into actionable steps that you can manage and evaluate within short periods.
“Save Money Live Better”: A Slogan to Live By
Not many realize this, but having healthy finance can improve your life in many ways. Research conducted by HPRC noted that poor financial management and lack of resources often lead to mental burden and stress that can wear your day-to-day activities down. Additionally, if you have debts, there’s a greater chance for you to have high blood pressure, making you easily irritable and prone to health problems.
We can conclude that establishing a saving habit will positively affect your financial health and mental and physical wellbeing. Making simple changes such as cutting down your take-out expenses and buying things you need instead of want can impact the quality of life you’ll have in the future. Remember, save money, live better—not only for yourself but also for your loved ones.
After you’ve found your purpose and corrected mindset to start saving money, let’s dive into the technical parts. It isn’t easy at first, but with grit and commitment, you’ll be able to reach your financial goals!
Save Money Basics: Financial Planner Tools You Should Have
Before you start saving your money, make sure that you already have full control of your income and expenses. If you haven’t, here are several tools and planners you can utilize to save your money.
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Your Notebook
As old school as you can get, your notebook is your best friend when budgeting. Not only that it’s easy, cheap, and accessible for everyone, but by writing down your expenses, you’ll be more aware of the things you’ve bought during the day. To start, you can list down your target for the month, be it maximum spending, expected income, or loan that needs to be paid, if there’s any. Afterward, you can record your day-to-day spending and sum it up at the end of the month to review where you are financial.
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Google Spreadsheet
Who doesn’t love spreadsheets? Perfect for you who’s obsessed with keeping everything on track, a spreadsheet can provide you with everything from day-to-day expenses information to monthly and yearly financial reports. And yes, it’s all in one spreadsheet! How cool is that?
You can search for a free save money planner template or budgeting template on Google, and you won’t have to worry about tracking your money again!
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Budget Management Application
When everyone uses a smartphone, budget management app become a new uprising trend. As a result, when you open your Google Play Store or App Store, type “save money planner,” and there’ll be immediately an array of finance app you can choose based on your needs.
While application gives an ease of use that spreadsheet and notebook can’t, you need to pick the ones that work best for you as not all applications are built. There are security issues that you need to consider as well before linking your e-money or card to the application.
How to Save Money Fast: 7 Simple Steps You Can Start Today
Now that we’ve covered the basics, it’s time to delve deeper into all the ways on how to save money fast! Of course, saving your money isn’t rocket science; it isn’t an overnight effort, and everyone has their own methods that work for them. Regardless, these steps will guide and inspire you to finally achieve your financial goals.
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Create a Strict Budgeting System
When you want to establish a successful financial cycle, you can’t stop budgeting your expenses. Specifically, you need to be strict with it. Don’t sell yourself short for e-commerce sales; buy 1 get 1 promo or impromptu dinner night at a fancy restaurant. You need to focus on your goal and limit your spendings on it. If you cannot self-restraint yourself, ask a friend or family to remind you once in a while.
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Automate Your Savings
Have you ever felt that joy after receiving your salary and ended up spending all of it on unnecessary expenses? Automating your savings is an important step to budget your finance properly. Make sure to have a portion of your salary automatically transferred to your saving account after receiving your payment.
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Drop Unnecessary Entertainment and Expenses
It’s hard, but it’s the best way to save your money fast. Want to eat fancy? Opt for a homemade meal instead of a fancy restaurant. The same thing applies to entertainment or Friday night drinks with your friends. If you’re dedicated to saving money, you will realize that their expenses are unnecessary.
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Evaluate Your Bills
Have you ever felt like your groceries or electric bills are getting out of hand? There’s a big chance that you haven’t had time to spend time and evaluate your spending. Get familiar with categories such as clothing, gas, and groceries, and think about which categories you can cut back. You’d be surprised at how many alternative brands provide the same quality but with less price.
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Take Public Transportations
Try taking public transportations instead of your personal vehicle to save gas expenses. Additionally, by taking public transportation, you can multitask by doing other things on the bus or MRT—not to mention that public transportations are more earth-friendly!
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Skip the Coffee Purchases
Yes, you can’t function without coffee. It’s understandable. However, there are other ways to fulfill your caffeine intake than taking a trip to Starbucks every morning, aren’t there? Try making your own coffee at home and enjoy it while you prepare to go to work. You’ll save a lot of coffee money and time that way.
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Set Future Goals
As mentioned before, the key to save money fast lies in its goals. If you’ve set a goal and dedicate yourself to it, it’ll be easier for you to cut unnecessary expenses and devote your money to things that actually matter.
Of course, goals don’t have to mean a house or retirement plan. It can be as simple as buying a new pair of shoes, taking a trip to nearby cities, or buying your loved ones a gift they’ve wanted since forever.
3 Smart Tips to Save Your Money Better
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Remember the 24-Hours Rule
We’re all prone to impulse purchases. Sometimes, the purchase is needed, but more than often, the amount of cash you’ve spent turned into guilt and regret for misspending your money.
So, the next time you want to make a purchase, be it large or small, make sure to spend a solid 24 hours thinking about it first. Maybe you want to write down how much it costs first, and if after 24 hours you still feel like it’s necessary, then you can purchase it. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can save by giving it a second thought first.
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Quality Over Quantity
Imagine yourself in a situation; you have to choose between buying a pair of branded shoes that costs $200 but lasts you three years or $50 that doesn’t have a brand and lasts only several months. Which one would you buy and why?
If you’re someone who thinks ahead and wish to invest in your day-to-day needs, the former shoes will sound more promising as it provides longevity. By choosing quality over quantity, you will spend your money on things that really matter. Additionally, you can save so much space by only buying things that you need, hence improving the quality of your mental wellbeing as well.
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Monetize Your Passion
We’re all passionate about something in our lives, but not all of us know how to make money from it. However, remember that passion can be your starting point to entrepreneurship, but it’s not the only driving force that defines your success. Ask yourself whether you want to put your hard work into building your passion-work from scratch and whether the product or service has a potential market where you can leverage it.
Furthermore, before you begin to monetize your passion, ask yourself: are you good enough at what you do? Even if it’s as simple as graphic design, you can either make a living by creating design courses or servicing clients with their branding needs. Don’t forget that you also need to think about the seemingly unimportant points as a business owner, such as marketing, invoicing, or even legal. Are you able to handle it on your own? If not, you can hire or collaborate with someone who has the same passion.
Monetizing your passion might be a grand dream that everyone wants to achieve. However, behind that, there are countless sleepless nights and hard work that you need to do to thrive and succeed.
Question & Answer
Why save money is important?
First and foremost, we can’t predict the future. Hence, saving money is important because it gives you a sense of security in future financial emergencies. Moreover, a healthy financial habit will also grant you financial freedom, the ability to pay for large purchases and avoid harmful debts. Additionally, saving money will also reduce your financial stress that may lead to health complications in the future.
How to save money at home?
There are several ways to save money at home. Firstly, you can get your monthly expenses down to the basics and cut expenses that aren’t necessary, for example, entertainment subscriptions. Consider dividing your monthly groceries into several categories and put a maximum expense to each category as well.
Lastly, you can also save money at home by limiting purchases and shift to DIY instead. From putting your shelf to painting your bedroom, you’ll realize how much you can save by doing it yourself instead of buying a ready-to-use one.
How to save money from your salary?
The easiest way to save money from salary is by budgeting, recording, and evaluating your expenses. For budgeting, you can use several methods, such as the 50/30/20 rule, in which you budget 50% of your salary for basic needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings. To keep yourself on track, make sure to record every expense you make in a personal notebook, spreadsheet, or finance app. Lastly, at the end of the month, evaluate the realization of your budget and revise it accordingly.
Another important thing is to automate your saving after you receive your salary. This way, you won’t be tempted to splurge it on unnecessary spendings.
How to save money for a house?
Saving up enough money to buy a house might sound impossible, but it doesn’t always have to be that way. With a smart saving plan and a clear goal, you can put away enough money for a down payment for your dream house.
Firstly, you need to determine how much money you need to save for the down payment. After you know how much to save for a down payment, start creating a strict budget that focuses more on saving and cutting down entertainment and vacation expenses. Some people even downsize their lifestyle by moving into a smaller apartment or selling their vehicles and put their money into a savings account.
If your current salary isn’t reliable for your dream house down payment, you can ask for a raise from your manager by providing solid performance reviews from the projects you’ve worked on. Otherwise, you can also pick up a side hustle that aligns with your career or passion for an additional income source.
All in all, save money for a house isn’t impossible. The bottom line is that you need to come prepared with the amount you need to pay for a down payment and start a strict saving habit to achieve it.