The Top 4 Money Blocks Around Savings

When you think about money blocks around your savings, the most common one that comes up is not having enough money to save. Makes sense, right? If you’re not making enough money, how will you be able to save? But saving is NOT about how much money you make; it’s about what you do with the money you make. You have to have a true understanding of why saving matters and in order to do that, you have to understand what blocks you have around saving. Here are the top 4 money blocks people have around savings:

You believe it’s difficult to save so you don’t even try.

Did you grow up seeing your parents struggling to save? Or maybe one day you made a random decision to put aside $10 a month but didn’t think that was substantial enough so you just stopped doing it altogether? Have you validated it by telling yourself saving is hard because at the end of the month you hardly have anything left to save? Saving is simply the act of setting money aside, no matter the amount. And if all you can do is $10 a month, that counts in my books! When it comes to saving you must start where you are and then grow and build over time.

You say you want to save but do not have a savings plan.

What are you saving for? Do you even know? Is it for a big purchase, for school, retirement or just because someone told you it was important to have savings? If you don’t know what you’re saving for, you will have a difficult time sticking to the process. How do you make sure your savings continue to add up? You create a savings plan. Done properly, this will help you save for short and long term goals but also make sure you have an emergency fund in case something unexpected happens.

When you receive more money, you expand your lifestyle, instead of keeping your lifestyle the same and increasing your savings.

You finally received that promotion or long awaited raise at work, it only makes sense that you take that extra money and expand your lifestyle. Right?! You did work hard for it after all! Before you jump to buying that new car or only stuffing your closet with designer this and designer that, take a look at your savings plan and identify if there are gaps in your plan that need to be filled or whether your new expanded income can help you achieve one of your financial goals sooner. When we neglect to pause and first evaluate our financial plan, we end up making more money but stay in the exact same financial position and then wonder why our financial life never moves forward.

You spend money first and then look at what’s left over at the end of the month.

Is your online shopping cart already full just waiting for that paycheque to hit your bank account or that invoice to be paid so you can click the checkout button? Do you then take a look at what’s left and apply the minimum payment to any debt you might have and then with the little that’s remaining, stretch it as thin as it will go to cover any other necessary expenses? Well, it’s no wonder why you don’t have money left at the end of the month to save. If you’re serious about saving you must follow the tried and true rule of “Paying Yourself First!” This means contributing to your savings plan as soon as you receive your pay cheque and then allocate the remaining money to spending and debts. Better yet, set up an automatic savings plan so that your money is automatically transferred and you’re not leaving your savings up to chance. If after your savings are set aside, bills are done and debts are paid, you still have money left over, then absolutely go and splurge on yourself. There’s nothing wrong with spending as long as you have first taken care of your savings.

Having blocks around saving is a real thing. And as a result some people don’t have any savings at all because they just don’t know how or where to start. It’s important to have a balance between saving and spending.

Here are a few tips on how you can shift your savings blocks into a savings mindset:

Live off of your pre-raise income / prior income level
Save a major expense that was just cut (ie. car payment)
Save your bonus or tax refund
Save monetary gifts
Save money you would have spent when an item is on sale
Save money you would have spent on a coffee or eating out if a friend treated you

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