Saving money can be a difficult subject. It can be stressful to think about all of the different things in your life that you have to save money for. Sacrificing in the short term never feels good in the moment, but saving for your future and knowing where all of your money is going can do a lot of good for your mental health.
Eric Nelson is a principal broker and finance expert who specialise in insurance products and financial services. He is also an active NAACP member and proud social justice advocate who cares deeply about mental health. Today he shares tips for people to help them with their savings goals.
One thing you can do to help save money sounds a little out there, but is actually incredibly useful. That is opening up multiple bank accounts for all of your different savings needs. Your main bank account will be the place that your income comes into regularly and will be used for all of your essential bills. Don’t carry around the debit card for this account if it has one. Set up automatic transfers to all of your other various accounts from this main account.
Open up other accounts that are intended for specific goals. Definitely have one set up for you emergency fund, which should cover several months of expenses should something happen. Set up another account for an ‘allowance’ or ‘fun money’. This will help you stay motivated enough to stick to your goals.
Next, you should open up separate accounts for short and long term savings goals. Short term things include planning a vacation or big purchases. Long term goals would include saving for a home. You can open up as many accounts as you want for your various expenses.
The goal with this is to be able to visualise the amount of money you actually have for each goal. It is a lot harder to save when you just have a big sum of money in one account. You could be tempted to skim some off the top here or there because you don’t think it will make a difference, but it does.
