Yes, money is important. Yet its significance is lost if you do not understand that it is a tool to elevate your human experience. Money is not the end goal. Elevating the experience you have while on this planet, or as Gwyneth Paltrow would say “milking the sh*t out of this life”, is the goal.
Now that we are on the same page, here are my top twelve strategies for saving more money in 2020.
Twelve Strategies For Saving More Money
Get clear on your feelings. “The quality of the destination is determined by the quality of the journey.” The first, and the most important, step to achieving a financial or any goal and feeling fulfilled is to know how you want to feel once you achieve it. Often times, people will set a goal, reach it and look around thinking “is this it”? The art of feeling fulfilled is determined by just that - feelings. Will saving more money make you feel safe, excited, joyful? Whatever it is, get clear on how you want to feel and ask yourself how can I practice feeling this way as I strive for this goal.
Set a monthly goal and check in weekly. Break up your savings goal into monthly chunks so that it feels manageable. Then, use your weekly money date to track your progress. To download your free money date guide, join the .
Find a money buddy. We all need a cheerleader and someone to hold us accountable to our goals. Whether this is your SO, BFF or a fellow freelancer, find someone you can trust to support you on this journey.
Upgrade your savings account to a high-yield savings account. Most saving accounts only offer a .01% interest rate, while high-yield savings accounts currently hover around 2%. Check out my January list for the best savings accounts in 2020.
Where can you cut back on expenses? Look through your expenses last month and be honest about where you can cut back. Is it a gym membership that you don’t really use? Could you downgrade the membership and instead commit to Youtube workout videos? Are you eating out too often? Could you start cooking more at home to save money?
Brainstorm ways you can increase your monthly income by 20%. Finding ways to increase your income is my favorite method for saving more money. Check out my list of 30 ways to add $300 to your bank account every month.
Negotiate all monthly bills. Review your cable, internet, phone and any other monthly bill. Call your providers and ask them for lower rate options. Believe it or not, they will be willing to work with you in hopes of keeping your business for the long term.
Find creative ways to have fun without spending money. One of the traditions Nick and I have created is a weekly date night at home. We take turns cooking a fancy dinner, making a fancy co*cktail and enjoy a lovely evening together without spending much money. Whether it’s a date night at home, visiting an art gallery instead of grabbing happy hour or going for a fun bike ride, there are lots of ways to have fun without spending money.
Switch up your living arrangements. Saving money may mean moving to reduce your rent or renting out a room on AirBnb.
Preplan your meals. One of my favorite ways to save money is to prepare my food ahead of time. This way, I’m not tempted to order food in or buy a snack when I’m out.
Limit shopping to one day per week. There was one year when I realized that I was spending a lot of money (for me) at the grocery store. After reviewing my spending habits, I realized it was because I was finding a reason to go to the store everyday. So, I decided to start only buying items on Wednesday. This forced me to think through the things I needed for the week, plan out the costs and practice intentional shopping. It was one of the best habits I created around money.
Offer to host friends versus going out. Nick and I decided to rent a more expensive place so that we would do more entertaining. Not only do we love it, but we also save money by not meeting friends out and spending money on a meal, drinks, and Lyft rides. These night outs can easily run $100+ for us, and while they are fun to do, we try to keep it to a minimum.
