Hey guys! I wanted to make a different goal every month this year to teach myself better  discipline. My first goal of the year was to find a simple way to save money.

Refraining from Spending Habits

I took part in ‘No Purchase January‘. I only spent my money on necessities such as food and Uber rides (since that is my main form of transportation). This was a big challenge for me as I spend a lot of my free time shopping. I work in a shoe store located in an extremely busy shopping district, so I had to fight the urge to go browse the stores daily on my break. While it was challenging at first, I saved so much money and realized I still had everything I needed. I challenge you all to take a week or month away from shopping as well.

Mint

One of my favorite apps is the Mint budgeting app. This app connects to your bank account to track your spending. I made a monthly budget for me to follow based on my shopping habits. Mint then sends me a weekly update on how much money I have spent and whether I am within or over budget. This has helped me tremendously as I have not had to worry about checking my bank account to see how much money I am spending regularly. With this app, I can check my graphs to make sure I am spending within what I allocate myself monthly. Although I am in college and do not have major bills, Mint also shows you your bills summary and will remind you to schedule and pay. Another big reason I love this app is that it shows you your credit score and gives tips on how to improve the score! I would definitely recommend this app.

If you all have any money saving techniques, please share!