How To Save $10,000 In A Year

Saving money is hard especially when you live paycheck to paycheck or when your expenses keep increasing. However when you consider the alternative it is important to keep trying. Having savings put aside ensures that you have a safety net for when life happens. This guide on how to save $10,000 in a year is for anyone who is trying to start living a financially responsible life. Trust me it is never too late to start.

When I started out with a savings goal I didn’t fully prepare myself as I should have. I wish I had some of the information I got halfway through my goal. It would probably have increased the speed with which I would have saved and maybe even saved more money. This guide is based on my experience and I truly believe that if I had these tips while going into the savings journey I would have done a better job.

As a general rule before you start saving you need to follow Dave Ramsey’s steps to financial freedom. I have listed them here and the gist of it is ensuring that you pay off debt and set up an emergency fund before saving. I think depending on how much debt you have you can start on saving in the new year even as you take care of other financial goals.

How To Save $10,000 In A Year

If you would like to download the printable it is linked below.

Eliminate Unnecessary Bills

If you have read this blog before then you know I am always encouraging people to stop paying for things they don’t need. Eliminating bills that are draining your bank account for no good reason could lead to huge savings. I think that sometimes we get stuck in billing cycles and we go on auto pay (pun intended) where we don’t think about where our money goes.

In this new season of saving take a hard look at your monthly bills. What can you get rid off and start saving more money? A few suggestions would be subscriptions that you don’t even use. Gym memberships that you haven’t used in months are a great way to start saving if you can cancel them. If you have a cable bill, a phone plan that could be cheaper, a car payment that you don’t need or can afford present opportunities to save.

Take inventory of your bills and find things you can eliminate to save more money.

Stop Eating Out

Another way to save $10,000 in a year would be to stop eating out. Depending on how much you eat out this could be where most of the savings come from. If you are like me and used to spend close to $200 a week jut eating out it’s a potential $10,400 in savings if you completely eliminate this expense.

If you think spending $200 eating out is difficult picture buying breakfast everyday at $5 and then eating lunch at $10 five days a week. You then go for dinner over the weekend and brunch and you spend $100. That right there is $175 and if you just stop eating out and cook more of your food at home it is possible to save a ton of money!

Cut Back on Entertainment

When I was younger going out and spending money to keep myself entertained was so normal it never occurred to me how much money I was wasting. I say wasting because some of the stuff I did wasn’t that much fun and I did it to be part of the ‘crew’. I call this growing pains because you learn from your experiences good and bad.

One weekend while we were at a pool hall as I watched my friends compete on the table it occurred to me it would have been more fun to stay home with a good book and a bottle of wine.

At this point I started to say no to invitations because I didn’t want to waste money. Some of my friends got it and some didn’t but at the end of the day financial issues are personal. Only one person can be the driver when it comes to achieving financial goals. It may require sacrifice but saying no is important especially when you want to save money.

Automate Your Savings

Automating your savings will help you achieve this goal to save $10,000 in a year much more quickly. Set an amount that will get you where you need and transfer the amount to your account directly. Make it that you don’t think about it because you may talk yourself out of saving. Depending on when you get paid you can set it up to save when the money comes in. Factor it into your monthly expenses.

Create A Budget

Separate from saving you should definitely create a budget. Budgets are important because they show you what you spend your money on. When you create a budget ensure that you include this saving goal into the budget. This will ensure that you account for the goal and that you actively stay on top of it. Use a journal and create a fancy box to highlight your goal and cross off every time you put money away as an achievement.

HOW TO USE BULLET JOURNALS TO MANAGE MONEY

With a budget you are also able to gauge when it will be difficult to set aside that money in a given time. This will enable you to plan for it and maybe defer the saving to a different week or month. A budget will also help you to track how well you are doing and maybe depending on how well you are doing you can save even more.

Do A No Spend Challenge

No spend challenged are great for this kind of goal. Have you ever done a no spend challenge? You should definitely consider doing one. Essentially what you do is you set a given time and you avoid spending money at all costs. You would still have to pay for the normal stuff like rent but for all the other extra things you would buy you put a freeze on them. Walk away from anything that you don’t need to save money.

Depending on how big of a spender you are this challenge could save you money. No shopping online and no going to the mall. Don’ fall for any sales and congratulate yourself everyday that you go without spending. If you normally buy lunch make sure you make your lunch at home to avoid spending. Whatever thing that comes to mind that you don’t have to buy, with this spend freeze you avoid spending completely. Make sure you track the difference in your account balance after the challenge is over to see if there was an impact on how much money you saved.

Save In A Different Account

As you automate your savings a good idea would be to save in a different account. Make sure that accessing the funds is a little harder so that you don’t touch the money. If you save and spend then you will not meet your goal. Set the money to go directly to this account and track your progress. As a bonus you’ll earn a little interest on your savings which is always good.

Cut Back On Groceries

I’ve written a full post on saving money on groceries. This is one of the biggest household expenses so if you can save even $50 a week in groceries it will go a long way towards achieving your goal to save $10,000 in a year. Make a weekly meal plan to ensure that you know how much food you need. This always reduces waste and the grocery bill.

Shop for alternative options to name brands which saves money over time. Use coupons when you shop. You don’t have to be an extreme couponer but using coupons on the big stuff will save money. Frozen meals are usually cheaper than fresh meals so if you like this option you can always try. I don’t love frozen food but it saves money and when I need to cut back I occasionally buy frozen food.

Find Thrifty Ways to Save

Get creative with finding ways to save money. You can stop buying things you don’t need for one. Buying gently used things can also lead to huge savings. Something as little as changing the temperature on your thermostat can save money. Find free parking, free things to do, stop paying full price and avoiding upgrades can lead to savings.

These are just a few examples that we can do everyday to save money. You can get very creative with this depending on what your normal expenses are. I stopped having someone do my hair because with you-tube you can DIY just about anything. If there is something you pay someone to do for you maybe it’s time to learn how to do it yourself.

Earn More Money

Make this the year that you make more money and not just to save more. If you think you are underpaid then you probably are. Try to see if you can make more money by getting a raise. Get a new job or work two jobs. You can even work for yourself part time if you have a skill that you can use.

There are multiple opportunities to save money and you can certainly find one that works for you. Start ride sharing, delivering food, selling things you don’t use and working online for a little extra money.

DOWNLOAD PRINTABLE HERE.

If you have decided that you wan’t to save money use these tips to start. Learn as you go and adopt.