Why is saving money difficult nowadays?
Why is saving money so difficult for many of us? Even the thought of saving money feels like such a long journey that makes it hard for us to start.
When we think about saving money, we may think of it as making a sacrifice. And that’s tough when there are so many sales and new products being released every month. While it is partially true that some sacrifices have to be made along the way, we can reframe the way we look at saving money through the concept of delayed gratification.
What is delayed gratification?
Delayed gratification is the ability to resist immediate pleasures and hold out for more valuable rewards in the long run. Back then, there was a famous experiment often tested on children called The Marshmallow Experiment. You put a marshmallow in front of a child and you tell them they can eat the marshmallow now or wait 15 minutes and get two marshmallows instead.
The child who ate the marshmallow immediately didn’t get a punishment or anything like that. But, if the child waited a little bit more, they could have gotten even more marshmallows. The same concept applies to your spending. You could spend your money on upgrading your phone to a new model and argue that you’ll earn back the money anyway. Or you could continue using your current phone and save that money for something more valuable in the future like a house or your family.
“I’ve tried saving money but always fail to maintain the habit.”
Maybe you’ve tried but along the way, you got tempted by huge sales and felt like you’re missing out on great deals. The truth is that we are constantly chasing immediate moments of satisfaction. And shopping is the easiest way to achieve that. When we check out items into our shopping cart, we feel in control of our lives. However, do you realize that satisfaction is short-lived? Before we know it, we’ll see something new and we’ll spend money again – it’s a constant cycle. Therefore, most of the time, we may not necessarily want that product, but rather we want the feeling of satisfaction. Next time, try taking a look at the cost per use before making any purchase, you might be less likely to give in to impulse buying.
“How can I start saving money then?“
Saving your money is as simple as it sounds – you just don’t have to touch your money. The difficult part is changing your mindset.
Things you should know about saving money
The thing with saving money is that you don’t get the reward or results immediately and that’s why we lack the motivation to start. For instance, when you save your money in a fixed deposit account, you only get your interest after a certain time period. But with Versa, you’ll get see your account balance increase regularly. So, if you ever need a boost of motivation, the Versa app is only a click away!
