Top 10 excuses why you aren’t saving money

I have said every single one of these things. Read on and weep.

I don’t earn enough money

As someone wise said, unless you’re working in a sweatshop, that excuse really doesn’t fly very far. Firstly, you’re probably spending money on unnecessary expenses. Consciousness in what you’re spending is important, tracking your spending will reveal where the money pits are. Save first, then spend.

I’m too young to save

It was a heartbreaking day when I realized I currently have the most disposable income I’ll probably have for the rest of my life. When is better to start saving than when you have no mortgage, no debts and no children?

Your retirement years will be infinitely better if you start providing for them now.

I deserve some luxury, I work hard enough for it

Yes, you do. And a life without little excesses would be miserable. That doesn’t mean that you have to blow every pay check on Dior perfume and chocolate. Remember when you were a kid, and you needed to save for an item?

You could do it then, you can do it now. Earn your luxuries through saving, not through your attendance at the 9 to 5.

I’m not good with money

Mmm, just not true. This is the one I really liked to use. The sad thing is, you’re either not good with money because you deliberately avoid thinking about it or haven’t learnt how to deal with it yet. Read a book, read a blog, talk to your friends.

Getting informed is step one, and it really is only a matter of learning. No one is genetically poor with money. So unless you are a new kind of genetic abnormality (and you should tell a geneticist about that, so they can start researching), this reason is just self-deception.

I’m waiting on the Lottery.

I’m not even going to engage with this one. If you like mathematical proof that this will never happen, read here.

I’m living on my own

Wow. I am deeply shame-faced writing this one, courtesy of Studeconomics. I whinged constantly that I couldn’t save because I was independent, irregardless of the good wage I was earning at the time. The 5 night a week entertainment I was scheduling probably didn’t help that whole savings gig.

You can’t take it with you

No, you can’t. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you should live a life where all you do is scrape by. This is not about the relentless pursuit of wealth for its own sake, but about the need to live a life comfortable and free from debt.

I can save when I need to

Ok, so when is that? When it’s crunch time and you’re skint? Living like a king for three weeks of every month and starving for the fourth does not count as an ability to save.

I’ve got rich relatives

Ok, I can honestly say that I’ve never used this excuse, potentially I don’t really have anyone to inherit from.

Relying on someone to cark it so they can make your finances easier is a bit bent. Ditto on marrying someone for money. Definitely avoid saying these things out loud, and probably work on not even mentioning them to yourself.

Why save? I’ll just spend it

I think the answer is in the question on that one.

What excuses do you give for not saving money?

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