A great way to stick to your budget this year is by taking on a savings challenge. Turning saving into a game can make it more enjoyable and help you save hundreds. One challenge is the 100-day envelope challenge: on day one, put $1 in an envelope (or a high-interest savings account), then add $2 on day two, and so on. By day 100, you’ll have saved over $5,000. Another similar option is the 52-week challenge: save $1 in the first week, $2 in the second, and continue for a year, ending up with over $1,300. For something more fun, try the weather Wednesday challenge: every Wednesday, check your city’s weather forecast and make a deposit equal to the temperature. If you want to save more, use the temperature in Fahrenheit; if you want smaller deposits, use Celsius. You could also go the old-fashioned route and take out cash each month, and restrict yourself to using only that money for the entire month. This might get a little tricky with fewer places taking cash, but you can try the idea with a prepaid card to keep you under your spending limit.
