We often find ourselves making excuses for spending money and while it might be helpful to do so in times when money needs to be saved, it’s important to spend the money that you work hard to earn, on yourself from time to time.
Whether you’re conscious about how much you’re spending every month or you find yourself guilt-tripping your own decision-making when it comes to buying something, then this guide is for you.
If you want to save money but still treat yourself to things in life that you deserve, then here are a few ways how to do it successfully.
Have a realistic savings goal
A savings goal is always handy to have because it ensures you always have some funds available, should you ever have a rainy day, week, or month. However, in order to make this savings fund work, you want to be realistic with the goal you set.
Of course, this goal can be adjusted as your financial situation changes but it should always be respectful of your household income.
If you’re setting goals that are too steep or unattainable, then you’re going to find yourself in that situation where you’re always trying to reach a number that you can’t get in the time you’d like.
Make sure your realistic savings goal is a number that works for you and that you can be flexible when it comes to occasions where you can’t always save.
Create a ‘treat yourself’ fund
A ‘treat yourself’ fund is exactly what it sounds like. This is a fund that you can dip your digital hands into every time you want to buy something for yourself. While you used to have a piggy bank for your loose change and notes, nowadays, a lot of savings and funds in general are dealt with online.
Creating a ‘treat yourself fund’ sets aside that guilt that you might often feel when it comes to buying something for yourself. When you’ve purposefully set money aside for use on your own treats, then it doesn’t feel like a guilty purchase. You’ve put that money aside specifically for spending on yourself so ultimately there’s no guilt attached to it.
Set the amount you want to put aside each money and ensure it comes out like any other fixed expenditure, so you don’t think about it as much.
Track what you spend and cut unnecessary expenditures
Think about how much you’re spending each month. It’s good to have a budget sheet so you can see exactly what comes in and out of your account every month or whenever you get paid.
Tracking your expenditures is going to highlight any potential areas of your spending that don’t necessarily need to be made. For example, if you’re spending money on a subscription that you don’t use anymore or isn’t providing enough value to warrant the expense, cut it.
You’re going to find you have more money as a result of doing this every so often, which means more money to spend on yourself!
Try inexpensive activities
Inexpensive activities can be just as fun as the activities that cost more money. It’s always a great habit to create when looking for ways to treat yourself. While not everything in life is free, you can do activities that cost you a fraction of the cost.
You might want to take a trip to the cinema every so often but did you know that a lot of streaming platforms nowadays will release films straight to your television, rather than going into a cinema?
That means you can enjoy a new film from the comfort of your sofa and it very rarely needs to cost you double digits to rent it out or buy it.
Learn to appreciate the small things
It’s good to find an appreciation for the smaller things in life. There are plenty of joys that you can have in your life and don’t need to cost you a fortune. From sample perfumes that you can order in the post as a little pick-me-up, to grabbing a coffee on your way into work.
Learning to appreciate the small things in life will bring a lot more happiness to your life. It also makes the big things feel even more special as and when they happen. Find those little things in your life and be sure to appreciate them fully.
Find new side hustles and extra ways to earn money
Side hustles are great to have because they allow you to earn more money. Everyone can have a side hustle, it’s just finding out what talents and skills you have, or knowledge, that you can use to make it into a side hustle.
If you’re good a English or Maths, you might want to become an online tutor and help younger generations navigate their studies with the help of an expert like you. It could be that you’re good with arts and crafts and therefore make products that you can sell online for a profit.
There’s a lot that you can do online and offline when it comes to a side hustle. So if you’re looking for those opportunities, then it’s definitely worth taking advantage of.
Shop within your means
Finally, be sure to shop within your means. Regardless of whether you have a small amount of income coming in or you have made it to the big leagues and have thousands coming in each month, you should always shop within your means, that way you ensure you don’t fall into any debt that you can’t get out of.
You can’t always guarantee that the money you have today will be there when you need it most. Therefore, if you have a lifestyle that’s within your means financially, you won’t need to worry so much that you could get yourself into a financial state that can be hard to bounce back from.
Saving money and still being able to treat yourself in life is important and it’s one thing that you can certainly do successfully with a bit of practice.
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