This Valentine’s Day, Fall in Love… with Saving!

Know that feeling you get when you’re waiting on your most recent purchase to be delivered to your doorstep? Maybe you repeatedly refresh the tracking number just to see if your special item is getting closer to you. And when that cherished package finally does arrive, do you rush to get it like a kid searching for toys on Christmas morning?

Now imagine for a second that you got just as excited about saving money. What would it be like to have your heart pound at the thought of your retirement account increasing? Or what if you felt an adrenaline rush every time you contributed to your college savings plan?

Sound impossible? It’s not as far-fetched as you might think. Put the following tips to good use, and you may just find yourself falling in love with saving this Valentine’s season:

Make it Interactive. Give your savings strategy a little more pizzazz by using an interactive or visual tool to bring your goals to life. There are a number of savings apps and online tools available that make it easy to track your progress over time with slick charts and meters.

Give yourself “fun money.” Nobody likes “all work and no play.” Be sure to give yourself some fun money every month to spend on whatever makes you happiest. Whether it’s grabbing a bite to eat with friends, getting your nails done, or buying that brand new video game, fun money helps restore emotional balance to your budget.

Turn it into a game. Gamification can take any task and instantly make it more enjoyable. So why not turn your saving into a game? Give yourself a challenge like a “no-spend weekend,” where you try not to spend any money. Or maybe you can increase your savings by $10 every week until the end of the year? Little games like this will keep you on your toes.

Get others involved. There’s power in numbers. If you have a couple of close friends or family members who are interested in saving more, you could create a friendly competition or an accountability group. Talking to like-minded people about saving can provide a little added boost to help you reach your goals.

Make it automatic. Pay yourself first. When you set up recurring contributions to your savings, it’s like paying yourself. Even better, automatic contributions can make saving for what’s important, such as a college education or retirement, much easier since there’s nothing for you to remember to do. Just set it up and forget it until you want to check your return on investment.

Love that you’ve taken a smart step forward. This Valentine’s Day, you can love that you’ve already taken a big step toward saving for what’s important by opening a South Carolina Future Scholar 529 College Savings account for a cherished child in your life. Use our savings tips to make the journey more fun - and keep it simple by setting up automatic recurring contributions!