6 tips on saving money and achieving financial goals

At times it can seem like it’s impossible to get ahead and on top of your finances.

With temptations hidden around almost every corner attempting to save your money can be a bit like going on a diet.

Just as that cake dripping in gooey chocolate calls out to you, so too do those shoes that you can easily buy online.

But whether you earn N10,000 or N1 million a week there are simple and easy steps you can take to save your money so you can be your own boss.

It doesn’t matter what you want to save for, you just have to make the commitment to do it.
Here are Heritage Bank’s six tips to save money and achieve financial freedom.

1. The first thing you need to do is get your budget under control, which you can do by simply reviewing your finances. In addition to this, once you start saving you should review your finances once a month to see if you need to make adjustments.

2. Following on from this, you need to continually track your finances so you know what to budget for on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. There are several budget tracking/personal finances apps that can help with this. These apps work like a financial diary, which will help you understand where and what you’re spending your money on.

3. Most Nigerian banks encourage their customers to set up automatic deductions to divert salary to a special savings account. This takes the hassle out of transferring money, helps prevent you from having seconds and makes you more disciplined in achieving your goals.

4. Start by making small contributions to your savings account. This will allow you to assess how much you can truly save. If you start small then you can always build up to more once you’re totally in control of your financial destiny.

5. You have to be frugal and cut down on all the extras. This may seem obvious but in our weakest moments it can be hard to say no, especially when friends are involved.

6. Don’t stop. Once you start saving or once you reach your goal, keep going and continue to implement your good saving habits to improve your life and those around you.