Start the New Year With a Money Challenge

If you frequent social media (or any part of the internet) you know that people are starting to talk about their New Year’s resolutions. Many people will resolve to save more money or get control of their finances in 2017. Some will take a challenge to do so.

A couple years ago online challenges like the 30-day squat challenge and the 365-day money challenge became popular. Internet communities were challenging one another to better themselves. One of the most popular had to do with saving money.

365 Day Money Challenge

The 365-Day Money Challenge is arguably one of the most popular challenges on the Web. In fact, it was so popular that most of the other money challenges you’ll find were created in light of this one. The 365-Day Challenge challenges you to save a little more money each day. On day one of the challenge you’ll save $0.01, day two: $0.02, day three: $0.03 and so on.

At the end of the 365 days (or year) you will have saved $668 (a good start for a savings account). If you want to try the 365-Day Money Challenge, you can print out the challenge here. You can also adapt the challenge so that you can save nickels, dimes and quarters instead of pennies.

52-Week Money Challenge

Like the 365-Day Money Challenge, the 52-Week Money Challenge helps you save money throughout the year a little bit at a time. Instead of saving money daily, however, you save money each week. Week one you save $1, week two: $2, week three: $3 and you continue to increase your saving amount by $1 each week. At the end of week 52 you’ll have saved $1,400.

Print the 52-Week Money Challenge out here. You can also try one of the  alternative challenges, including doing the 52-Week Money Challenge challenge in reverse.

Biweekly Money Challenge or 26-Week Money Challenge

The 52-Week Money Challenge doesn’t work for everyone though because not every gets paid weekly. For those people there is the Biweekly Money Challenge. It is like the 52-Week Challenge except it is only over the span of 26 weeks (biweekly over the span of a year). For this challenge you increase the amount you spend by $4 every other week. For week one save $3, week two: $7, week three: $11 and until you save $1,378.

Print the Biweekly Money Challenge here. If you don’t think these or any of the pre-made money challenges will suit your needs, however, you can create your own.

Creating a Money Challenge

You can make your own money challenge instead of going by one that someone else made. Obviously everyone’s financial situation is different so not everyone can save in the same way. However, setting up a plan and mapping out how much money you want to save can help speed your savings along.

Creating your own monthly challenge can help because it takes your budget into account and you can save daily, weekly, biweekly or even monthly depending on your personal needs. You can get printable money challenge charts on the internet for you to create your own chart or follow one of the more popular ones, like the 365-Day Money Challenge.

2017 is just around the corner and there will be plenty of people resolving to save more money and take on challenges of their own. Will you be one?

Photo: Global Panorama