Do you struggle to find any excitement when it comes to saving money? I’ve been there. Truthfully, when you’re putting a little bit of money away month after month, saving money is about as thrilling as watching paint dry. But the good news is, there are a number of ways to make saving money much more fun!
And when saving money is fun, you’ll be motivated to make it a consistent habit.
So, with that in mind, I present to you, 10 creative ways to make saving money fun!
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1. Start A Side Hustle To Boost Your Savings
Put simply, when you make more money, you have the opportunity to save more money. And saving money becomes a lot more fun when you get to do it in large chunks.
I can also tell you from personal experience that saving money can be a pretty boring process when you aren’t able to save very much. Sure, you can cut some expenses and find a few extra dollars here and there, but if being limited by your income isn’t fun.
Can you imagine if you made a couple thousand extra dollars each month? Think about it. How much faster could you reach your financial goals if you added $24,000 (or more) of savings each year? Let me tell you, fast.
Therefore, if you want to have more fun saving money, you should think about starting a side hustle.
I am a huge believer in side hustles, and I have written a number of posts about it. In fact, if you want to start a side hustle of your own, be sure to check out the following articles:
- 25 Ways To Make Extra Money On The Side
- 9 Lucrative Freelance Skills You Can ACTUALLY Learn Online
- 11 Key Tips To Start A Thriving Side Gig
- How Do Blogs Make Money (10 Proven Ways)
Accelerating your savings by growing your income is one of the best ways to make saving money fun.
2. Make It A Game
If you think saving money is a droll, boring process, then you should consider turning it into a game. For instance, you could start with $50 and try to increase your savings by $10 every week for an entire year.
Or, you could make saving money a competition with a sibling or a close (trusted) friend, and see who can save a bigger percentage of their income. I’m just spit-balling here, but whoever saves a smaller percentage of their income each month could have to buy the other person drinks or lunch or something of the sort.
Get creative and make saving money a game. You never know how fun it can be until you try.
3. Change Your Perspective
If you don’t have a strong motivation to save money, it can get pretty dull. In fact, before you read another line of this article, I want you to assess your purpose for saving money.
Think about it like this, boring goals are boring to achieve. So, stop setting goals that don’t get you excited!
Now, I realize every savings goal won’t be the most thrilling thing in the world, but even a slight change in perspective can turn things around.
For instance, saving an emergency fund is pretty boring, if you ask me. But, it is extremely important! So, when my wife and I were saving ours, I stopped thinking of it as an emergency fund, and started calling it our big pile of cash. I thought it was a lot more fun to save a big pile of cash than it was to save an emergency fund. Even though they were one in the same.
4. Save For Something Fun
I firmly believe that in order to properly manage your money, you need to use some of it for fun. I mean, what’s the point of working hard and saving all your money if you never get to enjoy it?
Therefore, if you want to make saving money fun, you should save for something that brings you joy.
For my wife and I, that means a family vacation. For you, that might mean a new car, a new outfit, or even a new vacation house. The more you save for something that excites you, the more fun — and motivation — you will have to save money.
5. Allow Yourself Some Fun Money
Similar to my previous point, if you want to make saving money fun, you should actually put a little bit of money towards spending on things you enjoy. Ok, so this isn’t really saving money, but it is a way to make sure you enjoy your life while you save.
I like to think of fun money like recess for kids at school. You see, teachers know that by giving kids a limited amount of time each day to run around and work-off some energy, they will be easier to manage in the classroom.
Well, your financial life is the same way. If you allow yourself a limited amount of money to spend on something fun each month, you will not feel so restricted when it comes to saving money.
Allowing yourself some spending money, makes saving money a little more fun.
6. Track Your Net Worth
One of the things that gives me the biggest motivation to save money, is tracking my net worth. There is just something so satisfying about watching that number increase month after month. If you want to make saving money more fun, I highly recommend you do the same.
Additionally, one of the things about tracking your net worth, is that you can look back and see how far you’ve come. For example, over the last year and a half, my wife and I have gotten out of debt, saved a six-month emergency fund, and started investing for our future. And tracking our net worth over that entire time allows me to see how far we’ve come, and motivates me to keep going.
Saving money is a lot more fun when you can actually visualize the impact it has had on your net worth over time.
7. Do A Savings Challenge
When saving money isn’t a challenge, then it is bound to get a little boring. So, if you want to liven things up, you might benefit from a savings challenge.
There are a number of different challenges out there for you to try, but the following are my favorites.
52 Week Savings Challenge
The 52 week savings challenge is meant to challenge you for an entire year. Here’s what I recommend. First of all, figure out how much money you are able to save each month. Once you have your number, I want you to add 10% to that number. Now, divide that number by 52, and you have your weekly savings goal.
The challenge lies in the fact that you are saving at least 10% more than you think you can. So, you either need to cut expenses, or make a little extra money. Oh, and if you really want to make it a challenge, you can try to increase your savings by 5% each week.
12 Week Travel Savings Challenge
The 12 Week Travel Savings Challenge is my favorite, because it comes with a short-term, satisfying reward; a vacation. The goal is to save at least $1,000 for a vacation in 12 weeks.
If you like the idea of taking a vacation every 3 months, then this is a great way to make saving money fun.
The 50% Savings Challenge
If you need a little shock to the system, then the 50% Savings Challenge is a great place to start. The goal is to save at least 50% of your income for an entire month, or a quarter, or a full year. You pick.
This is actually a pretty fun challenge if you are up to the task.
8. Read Books On Personal Finance
If you are really struggling to see the point of saving money, then it is time to bury yourself in books about personal finance. Why? Because books give you access to some of the best motivation, wisdom and experience out there. And, in my experience, they are inspiring.
Seriously, whenever I am lacking motivation in my financial life, I try to power through a good book. I’m not sure what it is, but personal finance books give me so much energy and motivation.
I recommend anything written by Dave Ramsey, Jon Acuff and Mike Michalowicz (especially if you are entrepreneurial). These are just a few of my favorite authors, but there are thousands of great authors out there that are sure to inspire you to save more money.
9. Follow Inspiring Blogs
I follow a number of different blogs, and they all have one thing in common; they keep me excited about saving money and earning more money. And, if you are a blogger, or a person looking to start your own blog, it is essential that you follow a few blogs in order to improve your craft.
I can’t tell you how many times I have felt a lack of motivation or fun in my financial life, only to find all the inspiration I need in a single blog post.
If you aren’t the kind of person that loves to read blogs, then go follow a good YouTube channel about personal finance, or listen to a good podcast. Just find a good source of motivation for you, and follow it closely.
10. Reward Yourself Along The Way
Saving money for the sake of saving money gets boring. If you want to make saving money fun, then you need to set and celebrate financial milestones along your journey.
For example, if you are trying to save a $25,000 emergency fund, then you might want to consider breaking it into $5,000 increments. Then, you should toast a glass of champagne, or enjoy a nice dinner — within reason, of course.
Depending on the goal, saving money can take a long time. So, add some fun along the way by rewarding yourself whenever you hit major milestones.
Final Thoughts
There’s no doubt that saving money can be a boring process at times. So, if you want to keep boredom from creeping into your financial life, then you need to take steps to make saving money fun.
Hopefully the tips in this article have equipped you with a few strategies to do just that.
