6 Ways to Trick Yourself into Saving Money

Do you have trouble saving money?

Unless you have a plan, it can be difficult to get started on your savings especially if your savings is the money that's left over at the end of the month.  There's never any money left over at the end of the month, is there?

Here are some ways to help you save money without even really realizing that you're doing it.

• Pay Yourself First - Treat your savings like you would any bill and transfer it directly into your savings account as soon as you get paid.  Even better, make your savings transfer automatic, and you don't even have to think about it each month!
• Save Your Change -  Whenever you get change back from a purchase, put it into a savings jar rather than spending it.  Over time, the savings will add up, and you can deposit the money into your savings account.  With some banks, you can even enroll in a keep the change program if you use your debit card.  The bank will automatically round up your purchase and put the extra money into savings.
• Save Your $1's or $5's - If you have a little more discretionary income, rather than spending $1 or $5 bills , add them to your savings.  The money will add up more quickly than just by saving your change.
• Add Found Money to your Savings - If you get a tax return or a bonus at work, rather than spending the money without much thought, add at least a portion of the money to savings.
• Save Your Raise - If you get a pay raise at work and you're surviving just fine on your old pay rate, add the additional money into savings.  You won't even miss it since you're standard of living is just the same.
• Keep Paying Yourself - If you pay off debt (like a car payment), keep paying the amount of the bill - but to your savings account.  Your payments haven't changed, but now your savings is increasing.

Even if you can just save $10 a month, it's better than nothing.  Once you see your savings grow, you might be motivated to try to save even more money.

How do you trick yourself into saving money?