I am always looking for any ‘get rich quick’ schemes that actually work. Unfortunately, there is no such thing. But I have found several ways that help you save money without really noticing it. Things like skimming are great, as I find I don’t really notice a few pence but they quickly add up.
The challenge!
At the beginning of the year there was a big hype about the 365 penny challenge. The idea is that on the first day of the year you save 1p, on the second you save 2p, on the third, 3p and so on. By doing this you will be able to save £667.95 by the end of the year. This is all well and good but I do have a tendency to tip into savings jars for things like parking, ice creams etc. So would this saving scheme be worth it?
My husband and I started the year very enthusiastically. We found a big jar and set about creating a table we could use to tick off as the days went by. As we started off we thought we could easily put in more that just 1p so decided to complete the challenge separately. This didn’t last long!
How it is going!
On the first day on the year we each put in £5, which took us to the end of January. We were left feeling rather pleased with ourselves, not only could this actually be a New Year’s resolution that we kept, but we had also doubled what we were meant to have saved.
As we went into February we were just as confident and were again able to save double. By the time April came the daily amount went over £1 resulting in the weekly amount reaching over £7. Finding double became more difficult so we had to stop and just focus on completing the challenge once. As of the end of last week (first week of May) we had managed to save £143.
Dipping in to the jar has been kept to a minimum. I have found it quite useful having a pot of coins in the house for those times when I need change. However, I have made sure that I keep a careful check on how much I have “borrowed” so that I can put it back. This seems to be going well and we are on track.
Savings
I am hopeful that we will reach our target of £667.95 and hopefully the extra we have managed to save will help us as the amounts get larger each day. To help keep us motivated I have been trying to think of something we can save up for. The usual idea of shoes and handbags has crossed my mind but they would not be essentials. So I thought about when we spend the most money in the year. That’s easy – Christmas! With an additional little one this year so I think we will be using the money for their presents and with a bit of luck a couple of yearly passes!
I was completely shocked at how much we have been able to save so far and we are only 5 months in. Although I am a little concerned how we will be able afford £3.65 at the end of the year, it is amazing how a little builds up! Is it worth it? It’s a resounding yes from me!
