Falling Behind On Your Savings? Here's How To Get Back On Track

It’s been almost two years since the panny-d devastated the economy. Yikes.

It's no secret that lockdowns had a massive impact on the livelihood of thousands, forcing them to reconsider their money sitch. People who were a bit lax about their spending habits took to budgeting to achieve some semblance of stability - and we don't blame them

Heaps of people made financial resolutions for the first time last year - but found it challenging to follow through on them. If you're one of the people who struggled achieve their money resolution, there’s plenty of time to get back on track. With a bit of strategising, you'll be smashing your financial goals in no time - here's how. 

Single out the problem

The first step in refocusing on your financial resolution is to figure out what went wrong in the first place. What were the issues that led to you abandoning your goals?

It could be a lack of motivation, or setting goals that were impractical in the first place. A lack of direction where the goals are not clear could also create problemos.

By singling out the problem, you can learn from your mistakes and avoid them in your second attempt!

Set small, achievable targets

Divide the resolution into small achievable targets. Rather than focusing on the end-goals, set small benchmarks that are more achievable. 

This will also help keep your morale high. When you only focus on the final target, you could lose motivation and give up on your financial resolution.

Smaller goals will lead you towards the your final resolutions - just like you would approach a decade-long financial plan on a yearly basis, approach a yearly plan on monthly basis.

You need to prioritise certain things such as debt payments, expenditure and spendings among others.

Notice where the money is going

Creating a budget plan is great for keeping a check on your cash flow over short periods of months. Keeping notes of your income (money in) and expenditures (money out), you can calculate your monthly profits and loss.

Which means you can figure out the 'fixed' (like rent or phone bill) and 'variable' (changing amounts - like partying!) expenditures. By cutting some of your 'variable' expenditures, like buying clothes or going out, you can save some serious moolah. 

Create Multiple Sources of Income

Having a job or a business that covers all your financial needs is great. But what's even better is to have multiple sources of income. The main reason is that a setback to one won’t affect the other stream of income and you will not lose all the money at the same time.

When you're making financial resolutions, sometimes it’s more about how much you earn rather than how much you save; investing money grows your capital!

Automate your finances

A clever lil step in achieving your financial resolutions is to automate your finances on your payday.

That way, all your fixed finances will be automatically paid and it'll save you landing any fines. Bills paid on time means no room to waste money to waste on unnecessary things.

Develop better money-saving habits

Some awesome money-saving habits include:

●       Creating a monthly or weekly budget

●       Living beneath your means

●       Building an emergency fund

●       Keeping track of your expenditures

Also cut all money-wasting habits like:

●       Racking up credit card debt

●       Shopping when you are bored

●       Having food delivered / take-outs 

Don’t let one mistake ruin the whole exercise

Try not to let one mishap put your entire plan into chaos. People typically let one mistake sabotage the whole thing and lose all hope. But if you're new to budgeting, it’s expected that you'll hit bumps in the road now and again!

Until you master the whole art, celebrate little successes that you achieve. Keep these victories in mind whenever you’re looking for motivation to continue forward. In time, you'll reach the financial stability that you deserve!

And remember...

Fulfilling your financial reso is a big achievement, but it doesn’t happen overnight. It takes dedication and bloody hard work. 

So make all the tweaks necessary and don’t give up halfway through - if the last two years have taught us anything, it’s that life is unpredictable, so its good to have a safety net in case things ever go wrong. ❤️‍🔥