Whether you plan on relaxing, working, volunteering or vacationing, you might need an extra chunk of change for your spring break. Saving your money for a seemingly expensive trip is not as hard as it may seem! It might be daunting at first, but if you discipline yourself, you can save a nice bit of money for a trip or even something else you might be have your hopes up about. Here are five ways that I actually saved the money that I needed for a spring break trip.
1. Save half of every paycheck.
I know that this sounds intimidating at first. It seems like you are very limited with the money you do have after splitting it up, but this is worth it in the long run. If you simply put half of your paycheck into your savings account, the money in that account quickly adds up. I found that I wasn’t putting my whole paycheck to good use and by putting half of it in a different account, I had a clearer idea of how much I had to spend on other things. Just try this and if you need to, you can always take a little out of savings!
2. Take any odd job you can.
Whether your grandma asks you to clean her house, or your neighbor asks you to walk their dog, take the job! This money adds up quickly and gives you extra spending money when you are putting most of your money into savings. You will thank yourself for taking those random jobs when you have that extra $100 that you needed to book a flight.
3. Start early.
Even if you aren’t sure exactly what you want to do for spring break, start at least a few months before your trip. The money will add up and the time will fly by! Try your best not to get discouraged if you don’t have a ton of money to work with right now or that the trip is months away. Continue to consistently put half of your paychecks in your savings account and the trip will be here before you know it!
4. Budget per month.
Estimate or calculate the total you want to have for your trip and write down how much money you will need per month. This way, you know a clear amount that you want to have in your savings or have paid off each month. This helped me a lot and I was not overwhelmed by the large amount since I broke it up by month.
5. Keep a daily reminder of why you’re saving.
Simply keeping a picture of the place you want to go can motivate you on a daily basis to keep your good habits up! This way, you have a reminder about what all of this money is going towards, and that it is worth it to keep saving in the long run. It will be tempting to break your habits, but I promise it pays off!