5 Minute Savings

Picture by RAWKU5

I like money. I'm not afraid to say it. I love being able to feel secure and knowing that if I really want something, I could buy it. I love looking at a saving's account, and seeing the amount increase. I love getting paid in big wads of cash when we do private teaching in China. In short, I like the green stuff (although the red ones are the ones to get here!).

Having said that, I don't often think about money. I have no need to, since I don't have to worry about it. That is because we've been both lucky (finding jobs) and careful (don't buy too much we don't need). What I do think about, is how to save up little bits for future plans or emergencies.

While thinking about what next to write for this blog (as I do most days), I thought of how 5 minutes could be all you need to set up a fund of savings for the future.

You could do this two ways: you save 5 minutes per day, or 5 minutes per hour.

Both are based on the same calculation. Think of how much money you make per hour (on average, or exactly) and divide that by 12. That way you'll know exactly how much you make in 5 minutes. You could set this amount aside, or multiply it with the amount of hours you work in a day, and set that aside every day. 

Saving a certain amount of money every hour, day, week or month, is a great way to save. You have a guarantee that your savings will keep growing, and it doesn't feel like you're taking big sums all at once. 

Some ideas of what you could save for? A trip you'd like to take, a new computer you don't really need, a trip to an expensive restaurant, a special gift, ...

5 minutes of an hour is about 8%, if that's easier to calculate. You could up it to 10% if that's easier, and say you work 6 minutes out of each hour for your savings.
Keeping in mind you're working for yourself, and paying yourself (and not your grocery store or bank) for the time you work, can be a great motivational force.

What would you save for? Do you have a piggy bank or something similar?