Saving money can feel simultaneously challenging and boring at times. 

It’s a long game, and progress can be slow, so you need to find ways to remain motivated over a long period whilst practicing delayed gratification.

Temptation is everywhere! It can be so easy to dip into your cash for something today, instead of putting it towards your hopes and dreams for the future.

If you’re at the beginning of your savings journey and are looking for some tips to help you along the way, here are my top tips to help you stay on track, and reach those savings goals; however large or small they may be!

6 Tips to Stay on Track with your Savings Goals

Set clear goals 

It’s really important to sit down and spend some time thinking about your goals. What are you saving for?  

Be crystal clear with your goals; break them down into monthly amounts to calculate how much you will need to put aside every payday to meet your target. 

It’s also important to decide whether you’re going to work towards one goal at a time, or multiple goals in parallel. It can be very motivating to meet your goals faster, so you could consider working on one at a time in order of priority.

However, setting up multiple pots or sinking funds works can also work really well, so you could allocate your monthly savings across various pots.

Be honest with yourself (and your budget)

Creating a budget is vital; you need to decide on a plan for your money, otherwise it’ll be frittered away on iced coffees, nail varnishes and gig tickets (if you’re anything like me).

Be realistic when deciding how much you’ll try to save each month. If you try to save every spare penny, you’re probably not going to be able to keep up the momentum, and are likely to end up throwing in the towel.

Consistency when saving is absolutely key; it’s better to save an affordable amount every month than go all in and bomb spectacularly, giving up and splashing the cash.

Fun funds are also vital! You’re in this for the long haul, so you deserve to live your life, and enjoy a few treats on the journey. Break your goal down into manageable steps, and set aside an amount of money that you can spend every month, guilt free.

Utilise automation

When saving your money, automation is your friend!

It’s best to set up systems that work for you, so that if life gets in the way, your savings goals won’t come tumbling down.

Having automated payments will also stop you having to answer questions such as ‘how much am I going to spend this month?’ or ‘How much shall I save?’

You make the decisions for future you, and get that money moving as soon as it hits your account. A slick payday routine really helped me to stick to my plan, and my savings were out of sight, out of mind.

Gamify your savings

Honestly, saving, investing and most money moves are very slow and boring processes in my experience.

It’s about taking baby steps every month, to build our savings and confidence in managing money in a sustainable way. 

To give your brain that extra kick of dopamine, it can be a good idea to gamify your savings. Break down your target, use a printable tracker, and fill in one box every time you hit a fraction of your goal. You could also try completing challenges, like a low spend month, or a challenge where you shop what you already own, which can help to keep things from becoming stale.

Engage with people on a similar journey

It can be really useful to share your savings goals with the people in your life you are closest to; whether that be a partner, family members or a close friend.

There are also communities online that you can benefit from participating in. Follow money instagrammers, listen to money related podcasts and watch youtube videos to learn more about money and help to spur you on to reach your goals. You can follow me over on instagram and join the money saving community – we are a friendly bunch!

At the beginning of my money journey, I immersed myself in the topic with people that are on a similar path, virtually and in person, and found it really motivating.

Enjoy treats when you hit savings milestones

And finally, I believe the way to make your savings journey bearable is to try to enjoy it! If it’s pure misery for you, you’re going to end up getting down in the dumps, and the urge to shop will be even stronger. Allow yourself small treats and celebrate your successes whilst also enjoying the frugal things in life.

When saving for my house deposit, I would reward myself with a meal out with my partner on payday, or buy something that had been on my wish list for a while.

Final Thoughts: 6 Tips to Stay on Track with your Savings Goals

Wishing you good luck on your savings journey! It can be a long road so I hope these tips help you to to stay motivated.

Check out these free money offers for the best freebies and deals around, and follow me over on Instagram & Twitter for daily money saving tips and tricks! 

You can also sign up to my freebie club newsletter for the latest free stuff, deals and hacks… see you there!