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-   -   $3 a day TFP Saving club (https://thetfp.com/tfp/general-discussion/151286-3-day-tfp-saving-club.html)

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 11:23 AM

$3 a day TFP Saving club
 
Many of us talk about being able to save, some of us can save but many cannot.

This is to be very much like the weight watchers thread, put in a goal and track the goal to completion. This is about creating good and positive habits.
  • You will save $3 dollars per day in cash.
  • Each dollar will be placed in two piles: $2 for saving, and $1 for Investing/or donating to a cause.
  • There are no membership fees or anything like that. To be a member of the club simply set your $3 into each pile every day. We’re working on the honor system.

Quote:

First, take $21 out of the bank so you have about one week's worth of savings ready to go. Truthfully, most people don't carry much cash around anymore. You don't want to get in a pinch where you don't have money to put into the savings fund each day.

Second, take the $20 bill and break it into singles. You might need to buy something small like a coke and get $18-$19 back in change. Ask to get the change in all singles. If your bank will give you $20 in singles that will work even better.

Finally, get 2 paper clips to hold the money. Then get 2 slips of paper and label each: Savings, Investing/Give-Away. This way you can track each pile of money.

You might also think about where you're going to place your piles of money. Try to pick a place where you'll see it everyday. That way you won't forget to add money to it.
You can do this for as long as or as short as you need.

I don't do Christmas club savings, but for some of you it may be the right time to start saving for the holidays if you haven't started already. The stores are already starting to put up Christmas decorations and it's not even past Halloween!

This is simple, write down your goal and what you want to spend the goal money for (if you are saving for something to purchase.) Estimate the end time to hit the goal, example $250 to go out to nice dinner on Valentine's day with spouse will take 125 days. If you start today, you're going to have to make up a few dollars since it is 133 days until Valentine's day. You can use the Calculator: Add to or subtract from a date to help you calculate date goals.

Why $3? Because this is as simple as the story of the tortoise and the hare. Yes, we can take windfalls and put them towards savings, but the reality is that windfalls rarely happen, or get spent on other "emergencies" or "luxuries".

Further, $3 isn't painful. It's skipping a couple coffees or sodas. Maybe getting a smaller lunch option, or skimping on something for cooking choices.

The point of this exercise is to be reminded every single day that you should be saving $3 towards your goal.

If for whatever reason life hits you where you need to dip into it, dip into it. Post how much you had to dip, and readjust your goal accordingly.

Visit the thread at least once a week and post your progress.

My goal:
Ipod Touch 64Gb $399
Friday, April 23, 2010

Xerxys 10-05-2009 12:44 PM

This is cool. My savings strategy has always been "If it brings you joy, you can't have it".

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xerxys (Post 2712517)
This is cool. My savings strategy has always been "If it brings you joy, you can't have it".

This is exactly how I feel about it too.

Pick something that brings you some joy, and save for it, and actually spend it and buy it for yourself. That's kind of my point of this for myself...

Daniel_ 10-05-2009 01:09 PM

How do you reconcile this with free online porn?

mrklixx 10-05-2009 01:13 PM

Where does the extra dollar go?

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrklixx (Post 2712536)
Where does the extra dollar go?

thanks! fixed it. see how bad at math I am.

It's supposed to be $2 for saving, and $1 for Investing/or donating to a cause. The original idea came from 3 piles, one for saving, investing, or donating to a cause. We all are such instant gratification folks that saving only $1 a day would take so long to get towards a goal and discourage people.

mrklixx 10-05-2009 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cynthetiq (Post 2712545)
thanks! fixed it. see how bad at math I am.

It's supposed to be $2 for saving, and $1 for Investing/or donating to a cause. The original idea came from 3 piles, one for saving, investing, or donating to a cause. We all are such instant gratification folks that saving only $1 a day would take so long to get towards a goal and discourage people.

Whew, I thought I was missing something there. ;) I read it like 3 times before I asked. Then I was thinking that it was like the Missing dollar riddle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Or it was a "transaction fee". :thumbsup:

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 01:30 PM

hahha send the $1 to cynthetiq via paypal. that's a great idea and I can get to my savings goal even faster!

eribrav 10-05-2009 03:37 PM

I don't get the part about taking $21 out of the bank, then spending some to break the $20 bill.
So you're taking your own savings out of the bank and wasting some of it right off the bat, all the while aiming to be wealthier?
Surely there are better ways to do this?

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 07:27 PM

most people don't bother to ever KEEP money in the bank. it's a rotational space so that they can pay bills and that's it. if people were actually SAVING money in their bank accounts they'd have some savings. Also, if people tend to take out MORE for the week, for whatever, the point is to take a portion of that and put it towards savings.

We're a bunch of people who are relatively smart here, yet there are many who cannot save anything at all.

Simply put, take $21 every and save it. Each and every week.

Grancey 10-05-2009 07:29 PM

I was so confused about the extra dollar. I think I read the OP four times before I quit and decided I must really be stupid if I can't figure it out. No one else had posted so I was waiting to see how others did the math. Thanks all.

Cynthetiq 10-05-2009 07:51 PM

so no one willing to commit a goal of saving $3 every day?

Plan9 10-05-2009 08:09 PM

Don't need this given my inability to spend the giant pile of useless government ooh-lahs in my bank account, but I think it's a great idea for others.

Tangible money is less likely to run off if it's in mason jars labeled "NO!"

...

Also: Some banks, such as Wachovia, transfer $1 to your savings from your checking every time you use your debit card.

An indirect way of saving money if you use your debit for regular reoccurring expenses such as fuel, cigarettes or parking.

Grancey 10-05-2009 09:59 PM

I need $1000 on March 1. At this point $3 a day won't do it. So, to follow the scheme of the thread I could save $3 a day to have a part of it, or I could increase the amount per day that I save.

Xerxys 12-07-2009 09:46 AM

I refused to commit to this scheme because I was convinced I would not keep up with it. Well, I did, in fact get ahead of it because of my strategy mentioned earlier and then some.

How many people do their own laundry, i.e. not use a Laundromat? Well, I made $5. How ... this jar filled with pennies, gets me 5 bucks at food lion's coin counting machine.

http://i764.photobucket.com/albums/x...oqueez/Jar.jpg

Cynthetiq 12-07-2009 09:51 AM

GREAT!!!

I have $192.

$128 towards my savings goal, and $64 to invest or give away. There's a homeless guy that I walk past from time to time. Normally I drop a quarter into his cup when I walk past. It's going to be nice to hand him a $20 a few times.

LoganSnake 12-07-2009 10:16 AM

I don't know if I would keep with it. I just collect change. As of last night's count, I've saved up $67 in about 13 months. It's not a lot, but I use my credit card too often.

kutulu 12-07-2009 12:41 PM

I should totally do this. Perhaps once I get my escrow caught up I can funnel some of that toward this.


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