Why Is Saving A Challenge?

We’ve all probably heard we should save money over the course of our lives, but how many people are actually sticking to it? Perhaps the better question may be, how many people are saving correctly? A January 2022 Business Tech survey showed that 35% of respondents do not save at all and a further 41% save less than 15% of their salaries. In this article, we’ll discuss how you can overcome your challenges with saving, through savings challenges and go over some savings challenges Franc has started to help some of our users.

Saving is difficult for a number of reasons. Some people are unable to save because any disposable income they have goes to paying off debt, while others can’t save because they don’t have enough disposable income left at the end of the day to simply put away. However, there are also people who don’t save because they might not have the discipline or motivation to or lack a reason to save (but trust me, there’s always a reason to save). If you’re one of those people, then you should look into joining a savings challenge!

What is a savings challenge?

A savings challenge is a challenge where you save a certain amount of money over a certain amount of time. Savings challenges accomplish two things - the most obvious is that your savings increase, however the second and perhaps most important aspect is that you get to build the habit of saving. There are many kinds of savings challenges, you can save R100 every week for a year, or save an increasing amount every week/month, it’s all up to you!

Though, if you’re like me and need a bit more motivation (and accountability), you can join a savings challenge with other people. The intention behind it would be to save towards a reward you all come up with or just for the camaraderie of doing an activity with like-minded people.

For people who would rather go at it alone, just remember to be clear about your intention behind doing a savings challenge. By setting a goal, you’re less likely to deviate from it because you know exactly what would be at stake if you dipped into those savings.

If you’re starting your first savings challenge, you can start small. Remember that the most important part of this exercise is building the habit of saving, so try to save a small amount or maybe save for a short period of time. Once you feel comfortable and confident in your saving habit then go for larger amounts and larger periods of time.

How can Franc help?

If you’re looking to start a savings challenge using your Franc account, then follow these tips to make it way simpler for yourself:

1. Set up a goal. There are a number of goals to choose from if you don’t have one immediately in mind to inspire you.
2. Set up a recurring deposit. You can now set up a recurring deposit from the Franc app so that you don’t have to think about depositing money into your account every month or week. You can also set up a stop order from your bank account.
3. Lock your goal. If you feel you might get tempted to take out money at the slightest minor inconvenience (like changing that coffee order from a short to a tall) then consider locking your goal for the duration of your savings challenge.
   

We’ll be running a monthly savings challenge starting on the 1st of August 2022 and ending on 31st December 2022 , so stay on the lookout for more details to come very soon. You can also stand a chance to win an extra R3000 into your Franc account to keep you motivated on your savings journey!