How To Save Money When You Have No Money To Save

How To Save Money When You Have No Money To Save

It’s one thing to try and make an active attempt at saving money as a Millennial. It’s another thing completely to actually have money in the bank to save. In an age of pay-check-to-pay-check living, endless engagements and birthdays, saving that cash has never been more of a challenge.

But fear not, we’ve put our heads together to come up with some simple tips to help you set more than $30 in your savings account (without giving up that active social life of yours, of course).

Rename Your Bank Accounts

Logging into your bank account can be a pretty sad experience sometimes. You know, having to come to terms with the bare minimum funds you actually have and that last Saturday was a $250 “quiet” night out. So instead of having an account number or boring name, change your savings to something like “I Will Actually Own A House One Day Fund” or “Quit My Job And Travel In 2019”. Not only will it be a more pleasant experience, but mentally you might actually be spurred on to deposit some dollars rather than spend them.

Become A True Entertainer

You might be thinking ‘where are we going with this one’, but bear with us. We all know how “one or two drinks” turns out during a night on the town and you wake up with a hefty dent on your debit card, and a world of regret. Instead, switch to the equally fun, cheaper dinner parties and in-house entertainment. You don’t need us to tell you how much cash you can save by buying food or drink from the supermarket and making it at home.

Not only will it save you heaps of money, but also bringing the party to your place is equally as enjoyable and you don’t have to deal with any questionable people at the club. Win-win.

Get Your Friends To Pay You Back

It may seem like an absolute no brainer, but there is a decent chance your mates owe you a fair bit of cash. According to a 2018 study from bill-splitting app Beem It (worth a download), we don’t pay back our mates to the tune of $1.6 billion every year. And no, that isn’t a typo. Shouting a coffee here and there adds up when you do it on the regular, especially when you pay for all the food on a group trip but then forget to ask your friends to pay you back (it’s obviously more common than we think!)

Start Negotiating

Whatever your necessary costs are, start comparing your options and negotiate a better deal. It may feel uncomfortable at first, but this is a serious savings goldmine. If you need to make a big purchase, you don’t always have to accept the retail price. Negotiate, bargain and see how much you can stretch your dollars. You’ll be surprised how many nifty savings you can actually make by shopping around online, and getting savvy with promo codes.

Bring Home More Bacon

It’s time to start thinking how you might be able to earn some extra income. Think about everything you’re good at and how you might be able to turn that into a side project. Are you decent at social media? Maybe you are a bit of a wizard with Photoshop? Do you take a decent photo? Start freelancing your skills immediately via communities like Freelancer. Even if you don’t think you’re ready for that just yet, you can try things like Airtasker, Uber, Pawsome (where you get paid to take care of people’s pets! No joke).

Buddy Up With A Bestie

All of the above can be a bit tough to manage by yourself, so chat about it with a mate or two and make it a team effort. Maybe you both set saving goals, plan nights in together and just generally hold each other accountable. You can even go one better and use rewards if you both achieve your goals. Doing things together is always more a bit more exciting, and you’ll win, lose, cry and laugh at the same time. Time to start hitting up the group chat!