When we think of habits, negative things come to mind like smoking, drinking or spending money. The good habits sometimes drop into the background like regular exercise, sleeping enough and saving your cash. Not all habits are weighted equal but saving money is one of the most important habits a person can develop, and it’s something we should be thinking about early on.
Saving money as a habit allows you to provide financial security for yourself and your family. If you regularly get into the habit of saving money, you will feel much better and have less worry about financial pressures, bills piling up or not being able to buy something because you don’t have enough.
Saving money makes you more accountable for your finances. People who spend all or more than they earn usually suffer financial problems like constantly incurring debt. If saving is one of your habits, than you are less likely to have bad debt in the form of credit cards and personal loans and be more accountable about where your money goes.
The more you save the more you have later on in life, and the more freedom you have to buy, travel and do what you want. If you’re a saver you’re less likely to be stuck in a job you dislike due to money, because you have savings to keep you going until you find a job you like. Saving as a habit gives you choices in your life that you wouldn’t be able to enjoy if you had a zero balance in your savings account.
Saving money is a good habit because it prepares you for the future and any obstacles that may present themselves throughout our lives. We can’t be certain that we will always have our jobs, our health, and our homes, therefore if you’ve developed the habit of saving, you are more likely to be prepared for these situations and not feel their impact on your life as hard as someone who hasn’t developed the habit of saving. With money in the bank you’re not going to worry about how you’re going to pay the bills or feed your family in between jobs.
Saving is a good habit because it makes us more responsible for our lives. People who save aren’t as irresponsible with their spending compared to those who don’t. Saving also creates more optimistic people because they worry and stress less about their finances. Financial worries can be one of the biggest issues that create health and relationship problems in our lives.
If you haven’t developed the habit of saving money, than there’s no better time to start than right now. Saving doesn’t have to mean putting away half your pay packet every month. A little really does go a long way. In order to develop a habit you need to do something continuously for a month or so, most people get paid weekly, fortnightly or monthly, so it can take up to six months to develop a good saving habit. Start small, five or ten per cent is enough to begin with. Even ten dollars a week makes a difference at the end of the year, and helps you develop a good saving habit. Later on you can increase the amounts to suit your needs. Saving really is one of the best habits you can, and should develop.