It has always surprised me at how fast I spent my money. If you are someone like me, once I have money in my pocket, I immediately think of ways on how I can spend it. From buying fancy clothes to expensive dinner dates to impress my friends, I was always willing to spend money - even if it meant all of it. Like many Americans of this generation, I have developed the awful habit of spending.
The truth is: we have come to believe that it is absolutely necessary that we dress ourselves in the most up-to-date clothing and purchase the most up-to-date piece of technology. We live in a society where the more materialistic things you possess make you more of a person. A person who has more money than another person automatically becomes superior over that person simply because of his/her income. The more money you have the more people who like you. Although these concepts are degrading, it is the cold hard facts.
One day while I was reading a book about the most successful people in the world I came to a conclusion that the most successful people in the world became successful because they developed the habit of saving. You see, the habit of saving money requires force of character than most people have developed because this means we must make sacrifices and deny our personal wants. Denying ourselves of what we want is something that is unheard of, but self-denial and sacrifice is something that we must practice in order to become successful. The reason is simple, we spend our life, and our money, on things that we do not necessarily need. Also, the things that most people spend their money on such as partying and drinking actually damage your body!
Now, although you may have already known that successful people developed the trait of saving, this idea would be of no use to you if you were not explained exactly how to save your money. So, here are 3 tips for you to use in order to develop the habit of saving:
1. Track your expenses - Do yourself a favor and track your expanses. Take a piece of paper and a pen and calculate all your expanses from now on. Not only will this tip help you be more careful of how you spend your money, but it will also give you an idea of where all your money is going.
2. Analyze your expenses - After you have written down how you spend your money, analyze this table and examine where all your money is going. You will be astonished at how much money you waste on the things that you do not need. It is for your benefit that you break your table into 5 categories: savings account, living (anything from food you need to eat to bills you need to pay), education, life insurance and recreation (these are activities that you do not necessarily need). Although is recommended that people save at least 20% of their income, it has been proven that most people do not have any percent of their income and spend 30-50% of their income on recreation. Complete this table for yourself and see where you rank.
3. Think savings - Telling yourself "yes I can" will influence your subconscious to believe that you are capable of doing whatever task is at hand. Furthermore, if you tell yesterday each day "today I will save money" you will encourage your subconscious to produce the act of saving money. Plus if you really want to save money, constantly remind yourself of this idea throughout the day, especially when you are in a situation where you would typically spend money. Challenge yourself and repeat the phrase "today I will save money." Once again, your subconscious will influence you to act upon saving money because this thought has now entered your mind. When it's difficult to save your money, continue to repeat the phrase until you have totally influenced your subconscious and mastered this technique. If you can shape your mind, you can shape your world.
Three Tips on How to Save Money This New Year
By | Angelo Sanchez
37 BLAQUELINE Entertainment Magazine/Winter 2017