I have to apologize right up front. I was being a little facetious with that title. This is not an article about one incredible, magical money saving trick that will put hundreds, if not thousands of dollars into your bank account.
But, while you are here, there’s something I’d like to say about saving money:
Magic tricks don’t exist.
If you are in a financial “tight-spot” like we are, the sooner you learn this the better.
See, when we first made the goal of paying off our house in three years on my husband’s apprenticeship wages, the first thing I did was run to Pinterest for money saving ideas. My eyes caught enticing titles like, “How we saved $2,000 in one day”, “100 ways to save $1000 a month”, “95 Easy Ways to Save Money”, etc.
Now, over a year into this journey, I’m realizing something: there is only one “trick” to saving or making more money: diligent, hard work.
Before I hurt anyone’s feelings, there is legitimacy to those articles, but they do cause a certain mindset that I, and I’m sure a lot of you, have fallen into.
It’s the thought that by finding and following all the latest and greatest money saving “tricks” you will be able to reach your financial goals with ease.
Just as with losing weight or accomplishing any big goal, what it really boils down to is how much you are willing to sacrifice and work to make those dreams true. The sooner we accept this and buckle down, the sooner we stop wasting our time on methods that disappoint.
Another thing about following those promising money saving tricks: A great business owner, Hilary Rushford of Dean Street Society taught me the unbelievably valuable lesson of “keeping your eyes on your own paper”.
Meaning, stop looking at what everyone else is doing to reach success and focus on what your needs and your circumstances allow, something that is really hard to do in this social media driven world where everyone’s methods and victories are displayed like billboards.
Once we were able to look at our own financial “paper”, we found the financial journey to be much less tedious and discouraging. Comparing to others is like deciding to pick up a backpack of bricks that weigh you down as you hike along. Look at what works for you and rejoice in your own victories and accomplishments.
So, I’m sorry if you clicked here hoping for some great money saving trick that will pull you out of debt, save for your retirement, and give you a better quality of life. The fact is, that magic trick isn’t possible. Achieving those goals takes a lot of hard work and diligence. It takes daily sacrifice and determination to succeed and cannot happen by following any other formula. Keep your eyes on your own paper so you can stop wasting time and getting discouraged by the successes of others. The ideas that are so readily available to us with Pinterest are great, but in the end, don’t lead to the essence of what really must be done to win: hard work.
I love this!