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6 ways to stay motivated for your big savings goals

As weeks turn into months, it can be hard to maintain the enthusiasm you once had for saving for your home loan deposit, or any other large financial goal you may have, like a car, boat or holiday.

Motivation comes and goes, so there are probably times when saving is effortless and other times when you feel like quitting.

Here are our top 6 ways to takes to stay motivated to achieve your homeownership, car, boat, or big holiday dream.

#1 Create saving habits

You create rituals around saving money. For example, your routine is to take a packed lunch to work between Monday and Thursday. On Fridays, you treat yourself to a bought lunch.
If you do this regularly and consistently, over time, it will become a habit. And this regular practice of making your lunch most days will soon overcome the temptation you once had to buy your lunch every day.

#2 Make the admin easy

The easier the process of squirreling your money away, the more chance you’ll keep doing it. Start a new bank account that you dedicate solely to your savings. Set up an automatic transfer from your salary so that each month a set amount is funneled to this account.  To work out what’s realistic to put aside, you will need to have a budget that takes into account each month’s expenses.

It’s true that writing up a budget is not easy. But once done, it’s a great motivator because you will find saving becomes more comfortable when you know where your money goes. Check out this budget calculator from our friends at Yellow Brick Road, or give us a call to talk about how to breakdown your income and expenses.

#3 Set savings milestones

Saving for a home loan deposit can be intimidating unless you break it down into smaller goals. So instead of aiming for $50,000 in five years, break it into a monthly goal of $833.

It may help to divide this amount further into weekly milestones – reminding yourself throughout that small goals end up becoming significant amounts.

 

#4 Focus on the Positive

When you go without things, don’t think of it as making a sacrifice. Instead, reframe what you’re giving up in a way that focuses on the end goal. Change ‘I hate giving up takeaway’ to ‘I can live in my own home by cooking my dinner each night.’

And be realistic about what you can and can’t do without. You’re not going to be able to say no to every purchase or experience, so be clear about which things you’re willing to spend money on and what you can miss out on. If some of these decisions are not easy to make, sit on it overnight, and you might find the urge to spend the money has passed by the next day.

A great way to assess your spending is to calculate how many hours of work the price of the thing you what to buy represents. Ask yourself if the money could be better spent getting into your own home, car, holiday sooner.

 

#5 Use Pinterest to Bring Your Deam to Life

Collate images of your future home, car, boat, or holiday and re-invigorate yourself when your motivation starts to wane.

If you’re looking for a house, design bedrooms, garden, the kitchen. If it’s a holiday, plan your itinerary, browse hotels save images of them on your Pinterest boards.

 

#6 Be Realistic

Chat to an STS Accounting Group accountant if you need help assessing what is realistic, breaking down your income and expenses, and making a plan.

A realistic goal will enable you to achieve your dream sooner, and just one conversation with an expert accountant could change your future of savings.

Give STS Accounting Group a call today.

 

This article was sourced from Yellow Brick Road.*The information on this article contains general information and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs.