Tricking Yourself Into Saving

We know some of you study psychology—so how about some mind tricks that will help you learn to save your money?

The next time you go shopping with a budget (and you should certainly have a budget), keep track of how much you fall under. For example, if you go grocery shopping with coupons (and you should definitely use coupons), check out the section of your receipt with the amount you saved listed. Deposit this amount into a savings account as soon as you get home. Trick yourself into thinking that the amount you saved from taking advantage of sales and using coupons is like a payment to yourself.

Another excellent money trick involves treating any extra or surprise income as separate from your budget or your spending plan. For example: in addition to your income, your grandmother sends you a $25 check as a gift. You weren’t expecting this money, so pretend like it’s not even there by depositing it immediately into your savings and forgetting about it. This works especially well if you open a savings account separate from the one tied to your checking account—you’ll put the money there so quickly that it won’t have a chance to spark dreams of new shoes or dinner out. You’ll remember it when you absolutely need it and it’ll even have accrued some interest!

These ideas are all about avoiding those moments between acquiring your cash and spending it—those exciting minutes during which you imagine all of the wonderful things you can buy and do with the extra money. Get yourself into the habit of putting your money away and forgetting about it. The time will come when you will need the money and you’ll remember it then.

Happy saving,

Savvy Student