Saving never sounds like fun. Spending money always appears the easy way to have fun in life as it presents a world of opportunity while saving is a world of missed chances. It doesn’t have to be this way. If you are saving independently, as a couple, a flat or a family there are ways to make saving fun. Try introducing some fun and games to change how you view saving and make it something that everyone can enjoy.
Family fun
If you want to encourage saving in your family try introducing some fun games to get the family more involved. You could have weekly competitions for the weirdest way to save, for the person who saved the most, for the person who sacrificed the most and more. Maybe your son will start to reuse the tinfoil you wrap his sandwiches in for lunch every day or your husband will jog home instead of taking the bus. Encourage innovative ways to save with fun rewards each week.
Savings thermometer
Draw a large thermometer on a board in the house. Color in the thermometer whenever money is saved so that everyone is part of the journey. Have a goal at the top of the thermometer and a prize for getting there. The prize should only be a small percentage of the total goal to ensure that money is actually being saved unless the prize is the goal (e.g. a holiday or new car).
Get serious
If you are competing with a friend or family member you could set a larger goal regarding net worth. With the aim of reaching a net worth of $X00,000 first. Whoever meets the target first could get the other person’s car for a week or have to do some demeaning task.
The idea is simple. Put the fun back into savings by making it a game or by rewarding people as they go. By taking the focus away from doing less you will likely not even notice what you are missing out on and may just have a great time.
