October must be the month of money saving challenges!
I’ve seen multiple savings challenges among bloggers and have even had random companies tweet me asking me to join their challenges. And you know me, I like challenges!
But instead of partaking in someone else’s challenge this month I’ve ultimately decided to create my own. After all nobody knows my budget like I do.
Do Money Saving Challenges Work?
Money saving challenges can often work. Especially if you’re following a long with a group of like-minded people. The others in your group can motivate you to keep pushing on even when you don’t feel like it. It’s true – there’s power in numbers.
There’s just one little problem: you’re the only one who knows what you need to work on. When you join a money saving challenge created by someone else you can feel left out at times. The creator wants you to work on lowering your grocery budget but you’ve got that under control! Or maybe the objective is to lower your cable and phone bills but you don’t have cable and are pretty sure you’re already paying rock bottom price for phone service.
So what do you do?
Create Your Own or Follow Along?
If you want to take a specific money saving challenge created by a company or a blogger, first check out the contents. Sign up and figure out what sections of your budget you’ll be working on.
If it doesn’t sound like a good fit then create your own challenge.
Here’s how.
Set a Deadline
First set your deadline. How long will your challenge be? It shouldn’t be too short or it won’t be a challenge. It also shouldn’t be too long or it won’t be accomplishable.
Anywhere from 15-30 days is a pretty good timeline.
Choose the Itinerary
Make a long list of everything you need to do and arrange those items in the order that makes the most sense.
Plan out your entire challenge with specific, measurable tasks that you need to do each day.
For instance your plan might look like this:
- Day 1 – Cancel DirecTV and sign up for Netflix
- Day 2 – Negotiate bill with cell phone provider
- Day 3 – Call credit card companies and get my interest rate lowered
- Day 4 – Create a New Budget
Tailor your plan specifically for YOU!
Find Support
And last but certainly not least find some accountability. You can start a free blog at WordPress.com and keep track of your progress, invite friends to join you, or post the day’s accomplishments on Facebook.
The more accountability you have the better you will do.
Current Challenges
Would you rather join a savings challenge instead of starting your own? Here are some challenges you can join and a few that you can do by yourself!
- 31 Days to Radically Reduce Your Expenses @Creative Savings Blog
- The Money Saving Challenge @Good Financial Cents
- The Clutter Free Challenge @Living Well Spending Less
- 6 Awesome Money Saving Challenge Ideas @Budgets are Sexy
Have you ever participated in a money saving challenge?
Alexa Mason is a freelance writer and wanna be internet entrepreneur. She is also a newly single mom to two beautiful little girls. She chronicles her journey as a single mom trying to make it big at www.singlemomsincome.com.