This is why you can’t stick to your savings goals

Have you ever tried to get yourself out of debt only to crash and burn a few months later? Or maybe you’ve worked hard to create a budget so you can start saving money. You get started (maybe buy a new planner or create an accurate spreadsheet) and a few weeks later the novelty wears off and you’re back where you started.

When this happens, it’s easy to blame yourself. I lack willpower. I have no discipline. I’m just bad at money.

I’ve been there before, and as a financial educator, I’ve seen many of my clients fall into this trap. I’m here to tell you that the reason you can’t stick to your money goals is probably not because you don’t want to. It’s because you’re not building the right habits. If a financial strategy is completely dependent on your self-discipline, chances are it will fall apart when life gets busy.

When I wrote my book Money out loudI shared what I’ve learned from teaching thousands of people how to build sustainable money habits. Our money goals should be tailored to us – personal and fun – but traditional financial advice rarely leaves room for flexibility. We stick to the habits we like – and you deserve to enjoy your relationship with money. That’s why I’ve come up with a number of methods that have helped my clients develop a healthy money mindset over the years.

Read more: I write about saving for a living. 7 insider tips that I share with my friends

1. Answer these 4 questions

It’s not enough to tell yourself, “I’m going to save money” or “I’m going to spend less.” To make a money goal stick, it’s important to dive into the psychology behind the goal. A simple way to do this is to answer these four questions:

1. What are you saving for?
2. Where do you want to keep your money?
3. How are you saving for this goal?
4. Why Is the goal important to you?

Here’s an example: Say you want to go to Greece next year and need to save $4,000 to avoid using your credit card to finance the trip. You do the math and realize you need to save $400 a month to save time for the trip. Now it’s time to plug it in What, Where, How And Why.

• What = A trip to Greece.
• Where = A savings account with a high return, specially set up for your holiday savings.
• How = You set up a savings rule to transfer $200 from your checking account to your vacation fund twice a month.
• Why = You planned this trip to visit your family who live in Greece, and you don’t want to get into debt.

Describing it this way can help you clarify why this goal is important to you and help you avoid falling into bad habits like using a credit card if you don’t stick to your savings plan. Reexamine these questions and your goal throughout your savings journey. You may notice that the answers have changed, and that’s okay.

You can use this process for any money goal you have, including paying off debt, saving for holiday gifts, or even building an emergency fund.

2. Pile money tasks on top of other habits

If you’re having a hard time making room to build financial habits, try adapting your money tasks to fit existing habits. This is called habit stacking and is psychologically proven to help you create sustainable habits.

Choose something you already do regularly and combine a money task with it. For example, before I open Instagram in the morning, I open my budgeting app to review the previous day’s transactions. If you exercise regularly, add a money task to your routine. For example, before you hop on your Peloton, make sure all your bills for the week are paid.

It’s easier than learning a new habit, and you’ll be surprised how quickly you master it.

3. Rethink the names of your bank accounts

Browsing through two checking accounts and five savings accounts to find the right one is not only time-consuming, but also boring.

You may already have nicknames for your accounts, but I recommend being specific with your account names. Something generic like “Holiday Fund” or “Business Savings” may be accurate, but it’s no fun.

Instead, think about how you’ll feel when you reach your goal and use that to help you name your bank accounts. For example, if you plan to start your own business and build a cushion so you can leave your 9-to-5 job, name your account “I’m Quitting!” can be more motivating than ‘business savings’.

Saving for a specific trip? That Greek holiday fund could well become your ‘Santorini and bikini’ fund. Pay off credit card debt? Change the name of your debt payoff savings account to something like, “I’m free!” Every time you add money to these accounts, you get an indication of your future success.

4. Find a money buddy

You may feel isolated if you’re focused on money goals, especially if you’re not eating out or attending events while paying off debt. A great way to stay on track is to find someone who will hold you accountable. This could be a friend, family member or trusted colleague. Find someone with money skills that you admire, or someone who is going through a similar situation. If you’re hoping to pay off your credit card debt by the new year, see if someone close to you has the same goal. You can encourage each other and help each other stay accountable.

I recommend scheduling regular check-ins with your money buddy to stay on track. You can schedule a weekly Zoom call or coffee date to talk about your goals and progress.

5. Gamify to achieve your goals

Let’s say you’re planning this trip to Santorini, but your friends have different savings goals. I know it’s stressful when you think about saving enough for an emergency fund, vacation, or the holidays. Why not make your savings goal fun with a game?

For example, maybe you and your friends avoid eating out together for a month to put more money in your savings accounts. You can hold each other accountable by exchanging meal prep ideas, sharing how much money you transfer to your savings each week, and even rewarding yourself with a group dinner when you’ve all achieved your individual goals. There are several savings challenges you can try together and you may feel less isolated as you work toward your goal with your friends. How much do high school students know about personal finance? Not enough

You can also find different savings challenges and connect with like-minded people on social media. Look for challenges like ‘no-spend-November’ that you can participate in with other people around the world who have the same goal.

6. Create fun ways to track your goals

Moving money from one account to another with each paycheck isn’t very exciting. If your goal seems out of reach, it may also seem like the small steps you take every week aren’t moving you forward. If you find yourself in this situation, get creative with tracking your goals.

If you’re someone who needs help visualizing goals, like me, different colored charts and trackers can help. You even take this one step further. For example, when I wanted to adopt a dog, I was overwhelmed by saving the total costs I needed for pet care and supplies. That’s why I made a physical savings card, in the shape of a real dog (like this one), and every time I put money into this cause, I colored it a little. I did this every day so that I could slowly see myself getting closer to my goal. It doesn’t matter if it felt weird: it worked.

Not everyone is motivated in the same way. You may prefer a robust spreadsheet where you can see your savings increasing and your debt decreasing. Or maybe you want to get your kids or partner involved to make achieving goals even more meaningful and fun for the whole family.

Make your money work for you

We’re going to have to deal with money for the rest of our lives – why not have fun with it? Make managing your money as easy and fun as possible. That way, no matter how tired or unmotivated you are, you’ll have a plan that won’t be difficult to stick to. If you make a mistake, give yourself grace and move on. Your future self will thank you.

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