If you want to be a natural saver, you need to develop the right financial habits that will make it possible. It is true that spending is easier to do than saving. We can even go as far as to say that there are people who are natural spenders than savers. According to a survey, the majority of Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings accounts. This does not indicate that Americans are natural savers. In fact, it shows that they love to spend. And everything around them is encouraging them to do so. Living in a consumerist society will do that. The US economy relies heavily on consumer spending. The government will not encourage you to start saving your money.
But if you want to improve your financial position, you need to learn how to save. When you have the extra money on hand, you can use it to invest and make your personal net worth grow. From there, you can start trying to reach bigger financial goals that will help make your future financially secure.
As you can see, all it takes for you to start reaching your dream financial future is by learning how to save first. But the problem is, what if you are not used to saving? You need to practice the right habits if you want to become a saver. Fortunately for you, we have some of the important financial habits that you need to learn in order to become a natural saver.
5 financial habits to learn from natural savers
We all know that saving is beneficial – but why is it that people find it hard to do so? According to an article, there are many reasons why people find it hard to save – specifically for their retirement. The reasons include a stagnant or lower income. Some say that they are concentrating on another financial need or are struggling with the rising cost of living. The list goes on and on.
Admittedly, if you are not used to saving automatically, it will be hard to change your ways. But that is what financial habits are for. If you have the right ones, you can slowly but surely change your mindset so you are more inclined to save than spend.
Here are the important habits that you need to learn to become better at saving effortlessly.
Budgeting
Saving and budgeting go together. It will be very hard for you to save more money if you do not know how to create and use a budget plan. This plan will give you an overview of your financial situation. It will show you how much you are earning and where it is being spent. If you have to save more money, you simply have to consider your budget plan and get rid or lower some expenses.
Goal-setting
Having a goal is a great motivation to save – especially if it is something that will get you one step closer to your dream future. This is why you need to learn how to set financial goals. It is important for you to have something to target or aspire for. You can expect that changing your mindset to become a saver will be hard. It will have you going against what you really want to do. However, if you know your end goal, it will be easier to overcome your natural urges and change it into something else. Restricting your old habits and changing it into new ones will be difficult. But if you always set a goal for you to reach, this will be bearable.
Automating savings
Of the financial habits that you need to learn, this is probably one of those that you can get help with. That means you can simply coordinate this with your bank and then forget about it. Open an account that is strictly for your savings and connect it with the one that receives your income. You can set a specific amount that you will save each month and the bank’s system will automatically transfer it. To keep yourself from using it, you need to forget about it. Soon, you will find yourself with a lot of savings that can be used to increase your personal net worth.
Apart from that, you should also change your mindset to automatically save any financial windfall that you may get. Some people will spend it on unnecessary things immediately. You need to change that mindset. Think about how you can make that extra money grow. You can use a small amount to celebrate but do not spend the whole thing. Save half of it – if not more.
Budget monitoring
Monitoring seems like an unconventional habit to become a natural saver. But if you understand what it entails, you will realize that it is one of the most important financial habits that you need to develop. We all know that nothing in life is constant. It is always changing. Having said that, you have to get used to monitoring your finances. Obviously, there are so many things to look into but that can be simplified by your budget plan. Monitoring your budget allows you to maintain full control of your finances. Not only that, it allows you to check if everything is still aligned with your current lifestyle and priorities. If not, you need to change it will not compromise your financial progress.
Smart spending
Being a natural saver does not mean to stop spending. You just have to be smarter. We live in a consumerist society. If you want a comfortable lifestyle, you need to spend money. There is no going around it. But there are ways for you to keep your spending to a minimum. Look for great deals. There is always a more economical alternative for everything. You just have to be creative and ingenious enough to find it.
A smart spender also means prioritizing what is important. If your finances are limited, you cannot make that an excuse to stop saving. You need to look at your expenses and choose only what is most important to you – specifically those that will help you to be more productive. The key to being a natural saver is to put it on top of your list. When you get your income, get the savings immediately. Whatever is left, that is what you have to use to spend until your next paycheck comes.
How financial habits can help you get ahead
By working on your financial habits, you are building a better and stronger financial future. Contrary to what some people believe, getting a bigger income is not the end all and be all of financial success. It is true that it will make thing easier. However, if you do not have the right habits, you might end up using all that money on unnecessary things. You need to learn how to manage your income so you will not waste it. By being a saver, you will naturally be more cautious about how you spend your money. It will also motivate you to use the right financial habits because you understand how it can lead to several positive effects on your financial life.
Keeps your finances organized
Among the benefits of having the right financial habits is keeping your finances organized. Sometimes, people make the wrong choices because their finances are all over the place! They do not know when certain debts and payments are due. That can cause problems like late penalties, etc. Among other things, you need to track your expenses effectively. You might be unaware of money leaks that are keeping you from saving more money. If you are organized, you do not have to worry about any of these affecting you.
Improves your financial situation
The right financial habits will also help you improve your financial situation. Your habits will help you stay on top of your finances so you can recognize the best ways to improve it. Your updated knowledge of your finances will allow you to recognize opportunities that can turn it around. It allows you to take risks because you know what your finances are capable of.
Makes you avoid financial mistakes
The habits that you implement in your life will also determine the mistakes that you will make. It is okay to make mistakes because that is how we learn. However, that does not mean we cannot try to avoid it. Financial habits will not eliminate mistakes but it will help lessen it. You will find yourself making smarter financial choices because of the habits that you have developed. If you have become a natural saver, you will be more cautious about every expense that you will pay for. This cautious behavior will give you time to think about whether something should be spent or not.
Gives you what you need to survive a financial crisis
Finally, financial habits are quite useful when a crisis strikes. According to reports, the US is in for another recession – probably by 2020. If that prediction is true, do you think you have what it takes to survive it? You can bet that you will be going through a couple of these events in your lifetime. You will also realize that the amount of money that you have will not guarantee that you will get through it unscathed. What will help you are the habits that you will implement to take care of your limited resources. The money you saved will help tide you over and the spending behavior you developed will make sure it will last for as long as it possibly can.