It’s hard to think about saving for a rainy day when, like me, you live in New England and are buried under two feet of the white stuff. So, I give up. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…in $5 bills!
Seriously, the dead of winter is actually a terrific time to focus on that one big thing you want to do or experience or maybe buy before the end of next summer passes by. And what better time than now to start saving your $5s with that particular goal or focus in mind.
When my children were young and money was tighter than it is today, I saved for our annual winter vacation in the sun by putting aside a little money at a time. Twenty dollars slipped into the envelope one day, fifty dollars the next, and before you knew it, I’d saved enough to book our flights just by cashing in petty savings.
What do you want to do or buy next summer? Rent a little cottage on the lake? Buy a Kayak or a Sailfish boat or a new set of golf clubs? Or maybe you want to pay off the credit card debt from the winter holidays by the Fourth of July. How much would you need to save between now and then to make that possible? Give or take a few days, by the way, it’s around 20 weeks between now and Independence Day, or July 4.
So what’s the goal, $500 for a top notch set of golf clubs? $750 to pay off the debt? $1000 for a week on the lake?
If it’s $500 you wish to put aside, that’s as simple as five $5 bills saved a week. $750 is the goal? That’s eight $5s saved a week between now and July 4. $1000? Ten $5s socked away a week. After twelve years of saving each and every $5 bill I get back as change in a cash transaction, I know that saving $5s has been the easiest and most powerful tool I’ve used to jump start my savings.
Here’s to an early spring in New England, and a flurry of $5 bills coming back at you and into your savings fund for that special thing you want to do or buy this summer.
Yours in Fives,
Marie
Save Money Fast With FIves 