8 Habits We Pursued To Became Powerful Savers
Estimated reading time: 14 minutes
We weren’t born savers but managed to build a savings mindset by adopting financial rules that we would stand by even after we became debt-free.
Once You Form A Habit, It Becomes Automatic
Start to talk about money, and everyone is all ears because not everyone is as rich as you think.
Over the years, I’ve come to realize that not everyone who wants to know about how savers get their money motivation intends to do the same.
Reading about success stories for some people who want to become savers is like getting high and slowly coming down because they never take their goals to the next level.
Mrs. CBB had her friend over the other day who happens to be far younger than her, but our sons have grown up together.
They are best of buddies, so we see them often and celebrate milestones together.
Although we could technically be their parents if we got pregnant at the same age they have, twice, I know, right?
They have two children under the age of 3, and they are barely out of their teenage years.
They bought a second-hand, newer model car, rented a basement apartment, went to school, and worked full-time.
Who does that?
Many people do, and it’s not a backward way of planning. It’s a life choice they made.
Asking People About Their Net Worth
She asked Mrs. CBB the other day a question that sparked me to write this post because people who genuinely want to become savers wish to learn.
Her question was point-blank, “How much money do you have”?
Mrs. CBB replied, “Never enough” because we don’t know what will happen.
Then, they laughed about becoming Value Village Savers because they’ve become thrift buddies and help each other find bargains.
This means there is hope and that the millennial generation wants to learn about building a portfolio rather than learning everything they need to pay off debt.
Great news; however, not every young person knows about money-saving tools or budgeting.
Possibly, it seems too grown-up for them, but soon enough, they’ll wish they tracked their money like a pro.
So many people don’t care about their money until there is a debt to pay.
Then they find out every rule in the book, under and around it, to fight the battle.
There is so much blood, sweat, and tears for those struggling with overwhelming amounts of debt that I often ask myself why they hadn’t put all their energy into becoming savers.
The answer is often because they didn’t need to at the time. It’s easy to go to work, get a paycheque, spend it, and do it all over again.
Debt Is Not Your Friend
Then, debt enters the picture.
I’ve talked to many people through social media about their money situation, only to have them disappear from the radar.
I often wonder how they are financially and if anything they’ve learned from CBB has helped them become better savers.
Budgeting is about How to make money, spend it, and save it.
Discipline is the only way to get it done.
Essentially, you are balancing money to keep the boat moving and stashing money away for a rainy day.
Not everyone sees it that way because they haven’t adopted the saver’s mindset.
Starting From Broke
If you get ahead of being broke and meet up with debt, you must create success.
By this, I mean it’s up to you, and if you can’t handle the ups and downs of beating up debt, you’ll never survive.
It won’t be easy, and days will be challenging and seem like they won’t get better, BUT they will if you give it time.
Although we never suffered debt without an income to pay for it, we did have it under our belt, which meant it had to get paid.
Mrs. CBB had a bank account with only $3000, retirement savings, and equity in her home when she went to sell it.
Let’s forget about the equity here because that’s not relative, especially for those who sell to buy again.
She had $3000 saved up in case of an emergency, and that was all she clung on to, but at least she had it.
It wasn’t near enough, but instead of creating debt, she started to learn as much as she could about building wealth.
So did I, which is another reason we clicked with the financial fire we had flaming inside us.
It was a passion to hold back guilty, expensive pleasures until we reached our savings goals.
This meant there was no jetting off on expensive March Break holidays or buying fancy cars just because we could.
There was always a moment to reflect on how the money could be used better and what our alternatives would be.
Savers like to watch their money grow
Some people get a high from saving $2 off a case of Coke, and others do the happy dance when their investments take a significant leap in the right direction.
Then others get rocked by it all and do anything to save money, even if they have money saved.
Just because you have money doesn’t mean you don’t need more.
You’re not being greedy; just finding ways to grow your money and enjoy it simultaneously.
What you don’t want to do is enjoy it too much before you have completed debt freedom.
How we became such great savers is no mystery to us, but for our readers, I wanted to share what we consider our motivational money bible.
Now that we can look back, there was a strict path we chose because becoming savers was only the beginning of our debt-free success before we hit our 40s.
Related: How we paid our mortgage off in 5 years
What we didn’t know is that if we hadn’t adopted the savers mindset, we might have suffered a debt crash as so many people do.
It’s hard to get out of debt, but not impossible even if you are late to the savers game.
All you have to do is one thing: DON’T GIVE UP.
I don’t often advise on this blog, but if I had to, I would say don’t let anything get in your way or take over your emotional state with money.
Fight it, find ways, and keep looking for alternate ways to become better savers and rid yourself of a debt crisis.
It’s better to be broke and debt-free than with a shovel and a mountain.
Savers Rules For Success
I put together a small chart to outline how we became savers and the mindset that we assumed along the way.
This all didn’t happen overnight, but if you want the savers mindset to guide you to success, then you must embrace it.
No BS excuses; do it.
Discussion Question: What are some Savers rules that you’ve created to reach your financial goals?
Another Week At The CBB House
This was a big week for us as we put a big hole in our net worth, which I will talk about in our next net worth update for August.
It was no surprise expense but certainly planned for years.
We’ve also been exploring local programs for our son, who will celebrate his third birthday.
So far, we’ve talked about karate, daycare, and YMCA programs for toddlers.
What we’d like to see happen is that our son gets involved with other kids since he mostly stays at home with Mrs. CBB.
You will see a dent in the budget as we signed him up for soccer this year to give it another go now that he’s a bit older.
We don’t regret putting him in soccer before he was two because it exposed him to teamwork and listening to his coach.
Our little guy has also mastered the potty in the house, but we are still putting pull-ups on him when we go out.
He doesn’t potty outside of the house yet, though.
Any tips would be appreciated.
Work Life
Other than that, I’ve been swamped with building new programs for work that must be done as soon as possible.
Starting a new job, even though you’ve done it for years, is challenging, especially when you find out what you didn’t do when you were a contract worker.
This tells me that not everything is as it seems. You certainly have more responsibility on your shoulders going from contract to full-time.
It is understandable but, at the same time, deceiving. I love the new role, though.
Things might get hectic on the blog until I’m sorted out because I can’t be everywhere, but I’m doing my best.
Blog Design Update
As mentioned, I hired a new designer for the blog, and any suggestions are welcome.
Please don’t wait to speak up, as I can’t go back and make significant changes to the design and layout once it’s done.
What’s missing from CBB that you’d like to see?
That’s all for now, everyone!!
Happy Long Weekend, and embrace Autumn as it feels like it is already upon us.
Mr.CBB
CBB Published Posts
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Top Post This Week: How Much Should My Grocery Budget Be?
Top Finance Weekly Read
This week, I had a cup of coffee reading about what frugal living expert Lauren Greutman had to say about “Why the Starter Home Should Bother You” because we live in what was once perceived as a starter home.
Some people might never own more than a starter home, but their starter is there forever.
Does size matter? Only to you and no one else.
There is something about owning a bigger home or property that motivates people to sell and buy bigger.
Then we don’t care to buy a bigger house in the city just because we can.
Our starter home is just fine and has enough room for the 3 of us for now, and it’s close to our son’s soon-to-be school.
I agree with Lauren because the home we live in now is our home, not just a starter home.
Great read.
Making a Difference (MAD) 2017
Welcome to the 2017 Making A Difference series!
Join the networking movement of Personal Finance Bloggers around the world.
If you are a personal finance blogger and would like your blog to be featured, drop me an email.
I’m currently booking October 2017-Limited spots.
Hello from Los Angeles! My name is Logan Allec.
I am a full-time accountant and part-time personal finance blogger at Money Done Right, where I teach my readers how they can reach financial independence sooner than they think.
Thank you to Canadian Budget Binder for allowing me to tell its readers about myself and my blog.
I am personally not financially independent—yet—but I feel that I have played my cards right by living below my means, dealing with my student loans, saving money when I can, side hustling, making smart career moves, and aggressively investing in the stock market and real estate.
And I can proudly say that as a Millennial who graduated in 2009 with $35,631 of student loan debt when the economy was in the toilet, I have been able to boost my net worth to $850,000 and am on track to hit $1,000,000 by the age of 30—without a high-paying job or financial assistance from anyone.
And I want to share with my readers how they can do the same.
Goals For My Blog
My goal with Money Done Right is to teach people how to, well, do money right.
This means earning, saving, and growing money so that they can reach financial independence.
If my readers take just one of my earn, save, or grow recommendations every month and put it into practice over the long term, they can retire millionaires sooner than they think.
Financial independence is about baby steps.
It’s September right now.
Let’s say that this month, a new reader commits to a new side hustle (earn money).
In October, they commit to putting an extra $5 a week that they would have spent on something useless toward paying off their debt (save money).
During November, they commit an extra $5 weekly into an investment account (grow money).
And then they pick something new to do every month.
Those little changes add up over time, and barring extreme circumstances, they are almost guaranteed to reach financial independence if they keep up these good habits.
This is the vision I have for myself and all of Money Done Right’s readers.
So, to help my readers make positive financial changes, I craft practical articles with the top money-making, money-saving, and money-growing tips that I’ve personally used to boost my net worth and propel me on my way to financial freedom.
Thank you, CBB readers, for learning about me and Money Done Right today.
If you have any questions, feel free to catch me at Money Done Right or post below in the comment section, and I’ll do my best to help you along your journey and, well, make money right.
Fan Money Brag
Please send me your brag to [email protected].
Every brag, whether posted on CBB or not, gets an entry into a yearly draw for gift cards or cash!!! It’s that easy.
Hey Everyone,
My husband and I went this morning to hit some garage sales while the kids stayed at my parent’s house.
Outdoor Christmas decorations, 12 rolls of Scotch tape, 200 Zip-lock bags, Crayola twist-able pencil crayons
$13 (asking was $15).
Thanks, Jen
Note: What a great score, Jen, as those candy cane lights are expensive.
CBB Words of Wisdom
You ARE worth it.
Top Chef Recipe Pick
Shauna and Stephanie at The Best Blog Recipes have the perfect Fall cheesecake I had to share.
They share a Pecan Pie Cheesecake drizzled with caramel that I can’t stop staring at.
I love making cheesecake and find it a fun process because it’s not hard at all, just a bit time-consuming, but the results are worth it.
What is your favorite kind of cheesecake?
Mine is a classic cherry cheesecake and most likely this gorgeous beauty.
Check out the recipe and give the ladies a high-five from Mr.CBB.
DIY Weekly
Stephanie Cornwall over at Making Of A Mom created this inexpensive, fun Halloween spider craft for the kids during craft time.
Stop into your local Dollar store and pick up what you need for this fun Spider made from Popsicle sticks, craft glue, paint, pom-pom, and eyeballs.
We made this with our son this week, and he had a blast.
Also, we plan to make a few more to decorate for Halloween, as he is pumped and ready for trick-or-treating already.
What other cool kids’ crafts have you tried for Halloween?
Saturday Search Term Giggles
Always begin and end your day with a SMILE!- Mr.CBB
Every week, thousands of people visit Canadian Budget Binder because they did a search online and found my blog. (SIC) means I’ve copied the text exactly, and it has spelling errors.
Most times funny, Sometimes serious.
- Who is that lady to get you out of debt?– I can assure you it’s not me… I’m Mr.CBB.
- Boona Tomato Salad– Now I have to go look this up because it’s not on my blog
- My wife is always out and spends– Maybe you should talk to a relationship specialist and not a financial expert.
- How addictive is oxycocet?– Oh, I’d say it’s addictive.
- Are Canadian groceries cheap? – Since when were groceries ever cheap for anyone?
That’s all the fun for this week; thanks for dropping by, and we’ll see you all again next Saturday.
Mr.CBB
Don’t forget to Follow me on Social Media and Subscribe to the blog.
Hey…if you see any mistakes, let me know.
I’m not an editor, just a guy who likes to write, and yes, I make mistakes.
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