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There are always new and flashy ways to save popping up online and crowding finance sites. You’ll see articles explaining some new type of savings account or investment strategy that the authors promise will have you seeing huge gains on your money. However, these are often flash-in-the-pan flukes, weird schemes, or outright lies.
If you’re looking for some tried-and-true, dependable savings methods, then you’ve come to the right place. Today, we’re taking a closer look at some of the most dependable methods to save money and live on a budget.
Firstly, get a budget together. Make sure it includes your income and all of your bills. This will help you be more prepared to save by seeing exactly what you’ve got coming in and what’s going out. From there, you can make sure every dollar of your paycheck has a job. Set aside money for bills and expenses like food and gas.
From there, you’ll have your normal pool of money. Set aside what you want to keep for spending money, then put the rest into your savings account. This is a classic, no-fuss method of saving that helps your money accrue interest at a steady pace.
Aim to save around ten percent of your paycheck. If you can manage to squeeze your finances to make it more than that, great! However, aiming for ten can help a lot. Getting any money going into a savings account is a big step because it means you’ll start seeing interest grow on the account. That interest might start small, but it can become considerable over time.
One way to encourage this kind of spending behavior is to set up automatic transfers from your paycheck. This can help you mark some amount of money that is taken from your paycheck straight into your savings. By doing this, you can “set it and forget it,” allowing your savings to fill up while you go about your normal business.
Challenge yourself to spend an entire month without spending a dime on anything other than your bills and necessities. Make a trip to the grocery store to stock up your pantry, get your bills paid off, and then go through the month spending nothing else.
Bike to work, and bring a lunch in a lunchbox. Pursue free entertainment, like going to the library or park. You’d be surprised at how much money you can save if you challenge yourself to stop spending!
