How to Trick Yourself Into Saving Money By: Bean Jones

A week ago, I started reading Marisha Pessl's novel, Special Topics in Calamity Physics, which I had borrowed from my workmate, Meg. I was really getting into the novel when a crisp $10 bill floated out from between the book's pages.

Out-of-the-Box Savings
Bemused, I tucked it back in the first page and finished reading the novel. Later when I returned the book, I told Meg what I'd found.

She shrugged and admitted that she used whatever came handy as a bookmark. A photo, or her shopping list... Sometimes it would be whatever bill she had on her at the time.

Knowing that she was a proud bookworm, I became curious about just how much money we would actually find hiding in her bookshelf. I was amazed to learn that her "book deposits" added up to about $800 last year.

"It's not hard to save up when you think you're not doing it," Meg told me. "Some of my friends think I'm nuts to stash bills into my books. But, hey, I had an extra $800 last year. That's not bad at all."


Hidden Rewards
Meg's financial philosophy--if you can call it that--is echoed by Walter Updegrave, author of How to Retire Rich in a Totally Changed World: Why You're Not in Kansas Anymore. As such, he lists the ways through which we can "fool" ourselves into saving money:


1. Hide the Money. Money you don't see is likely money you won't spend. Updegrave suggests signing up for an automatic investment plan. This service is actually offered by most mutual fund companies. Once set-up, money will be automatically transferred from your checking account to your chosen mutual fund.

2. Stash unexpected windfalls. Instead of spending your refunds or rebates, deposit them into your savings account as soon as you receive them. You might be surprised how much you will end up saving this way.

3. Keep paying off a debt--even after you've completed payments. Once you're done paying off your debts, keep writing checks you can deposit to your investment or savings account. Since you're so accustomed to paying this amount off anyway, this "extra" money can go a long way towards helping you achieve your financial goals.


Small Start, Big Rewards
Updegrave's (and Meg's) advice gives me some hope. You see, I'm not too strong in the savings department. I really need to figure out what kind of saving strategy will work for me. Fooling myself into saving my cash may be the answer to my dilemma.

For starters, I'm now off to empty out my coin jar. Since I don't spend the spare change, I'm hoping that there's at least a $20 in there. Hopefully, this would be start of a habit that would give me the best reward of all: financial management smarts. Because I sure need it. (Or maybe I really just ought to re-read Simpleology 102's the First Law of Money: The Law of Input and Output.)

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