“Lack of Savings” is not due to “Lack of Money” 
It is due to “Lack of Objective, Planning and Discipline”

How many times have you said yourself “Now, I’m going to save”. 

And just when you start doing it, an unforeseen event pops up and you spend everything. Or worse, you don’t even start and thinking that it’s an impossible task.

Many of us had a piggy bank when we were kids. And it was easy to save, as there was nothing much to spend on. But as responsibilities grow, expenses and debts end up with all our money, or at least we feel that way.

We even derive conclusion that only people with a lot of money can save. Or assure yourself to start saving, the day we grow in income.

Often, following thoughts and questions on saving, keep striking the mind:

• It’s impossible to save
• I’ve never been good with savings
• As soon as I save something, anything happens and I spend it
• Once I start to earn more, I’ll be able to save
• Why can’t I ever save?
• If I can’t save a penny, how can I?

These thoughts are very common. But do you know what – it doesn’t have to be like this.

We generally believe that the amount of our savings has something to do with the level of income we have. And, if we earned more, then we could save more. 

However, the surprising thing is that, such thoughts are common with people with extremely high incomes, with middle class people and people with lower incomes. And most people say the same thing: “When I have more money then I will be able to save”. 

But no matter how much more they generate, they never save. On the other hand, there are people who, regardless of their income level, high or low, generate large savings, allowing them to live as they wish.

You have to understand that the lack of savings is not due to lack of money, it is due to:

• Lack of goal/objective
• Lack of planning
• Lack of discipline

Let’s understand how:

Lack of Objective

The first thing you need to start saving, is not more money. You need to have a clear and perfectly defined goal in which the money you want save has a destination.

You need to define:

• What you want to do with your saved money?
• How much money you need?
• When you want to do it?

The mistake that many people make is that, they do not know how much they need and are desperate for not having clear how much is enough. And the other big mistake is that they put absurd target, like saving in 2 months what they have not saved in 10 years and become demotivated instantly. 

Do something that motivates you and is really worth it, so that every time you separate that money you feel good.

Note: Do not confuse saving with accumulation of money. Saving has a specific purpose such as pay for your studies, buy a car, a trip, a house, i.e. anything you need to make it worth separating that money. But the accumulation of money is simply collect money. Whereas, in saving there is always a clear goal.

Lack of Planning

Once you have set goals that motivate you, it’s time to put your finances in order. See how much money you can really set aside for those savings and not be left without eating or paying rent for having saved. 

It is important that, you start to separate your money and that you know where every penny you generate goes. Remember that, if you don’t plan what you will do with your money, someone else will do it for you. And you will end up buying things that you don’t need.

Planning will help you identify how much money you can really save right now and how long it will take you to meet your goal. It will also help you make the necessary cuts and put your finances in order.

Lack of Discipline

You can have fixed goals and do very detailed planning, but if you don’t have discipline, nothing will ever work. The important thing is that you start saving at least 5% of your monthly income. It is more important to generate a new habit to start saving huge amount. Of course, if you can save 60% each month, it would be much better.

Now, suddenly it began to become very fashionable that what you have to do is not save. Because saving is throwing money in the trash. What you have to do is invest to grow your money without losing on with the inflation. But remember that every investment has a risk and higher the returns on investment, higher are the risks. 

And this doesn’t mean that you should not take risks. But if you are investing in risky products, you must be aware of all the pros and cons related to profit and loss.

There are also platforms in which you can save by investing with a low risk. It’s just a matter of starting to investigate what’s in the market and which one is best for you.

Define at least one clear objective:

• How much money do you need?
• When would you like to meet it?
• How much do you need to save each month to meet it?

So it’s time to get started, start saving today. After all – it’s your life, so make it worth.

Author Bio:

Hi, I am Nikesh Mehta owner and writer of this site.

I’m an analytics professional and also love writing on finance and related industry. I’ve done online course in Financial Markets and Investment Strategy from Indian School of Business.

I can be reached at [email protected]. You may also visit my LinkedIn profile.