I remember when my husband and I first got married….I was ALL about saving money and he was ALLLLLLLLLL about spending money.
I can’t tell you how many times I talked him off the “I’m gonna blow my money on (fill in the blank – big screen tv, iPad, Macbook, etc)” ledge.
But it was a lot.
A lot, a lot!
Finally, when he was deployed to Iraq {and had no way or means to spend money} we had the chance to boost our savings.
Our first goal was just to have $1,000 in our savings account which was inspired by Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps.
Our goal gradually increased where we eventually saved up to 12 months of our expenses in cash. You might think that sounds like a TON of cash on hand. And I agree…it’s a goal that took us over 5 years to reach. But it was what made me feel comfortable. It also allowed us to do things like build our dream home, adopt and plan for lots of unexpected expenses that have come up along the way.
You’re goal doesn’t have to be 12 months of expenses, but wouldn’t it be nice to boost your savings?
To get it to the point where you finally feel “comfortable” in case something comes up?
Starting Small – The 52 Week Money Saving Plan
We can’t take credit for this concept. In fact, we aren’t even sure who came up with it. All I know is that I’ve seen the 52 Week Savings chart everywhere and it’s blowing up Pinterest.
How does the 52 week money saving challenge work? It’s the easiest way to boost your savings that I’ve ever seen. Seriously.
The 1st week you deposit $1 into your savings account. The 2nd week you deposit $2 into your savings account. The 3rd week you deposit $3.
You get the picture?
By the 52th week after you deposit $52 you’ll have accumulated $1,378. And that’s not including interest!
But in case that isn’t much of an incentive to start saving, what if we offered you real cash?
Do we have your attention now?
If so, read on….
Double Your Savings Account
The hubby and I are excited about getting people to REALLY start saving. With him being a financial advisor and with me being the household money manager…we saw this challenge as a way to get a lot of people inspired to get their savings account back on track.
We are hoping that you see how SIMPLE it is for you to save money.
And because we wanted to do something that would REALLY make a difference in someone’s bank account we added another angle to this challenge.
You ready?
For those that make the entire 52 weeks we want to reward one lucky person with an awesome prize.
We want to double what you’ve saved and match your $1,378.
That’s right. One super lucky person that personally saves $1,378 will be awarded the same amount.
Now are you inspired to save? WE hope so! 🙂
Want to know how excited we are?
This excited:
So excited that we took a selfie holding a piggy bank minutes before we were rushing to get our kids off to school. 🙂
Rules of the Competition
First, you’re more than welcome to take on this challenge without following the below steps. BUT….if you want to be eligible for the “double your savings” cash reward, this is how it will go down:
- Step 1: Leave a comment below announcing you’ve joined the challenge.
- Step 2: Open a *FREE* brand new savings account with Capital One 360.
- Step 3: Coordinate with your current bank to facilitate the weekly transfers
- Step 4: Winners must provide confirmation email showing the new account opened and a screenshot of the balance in their account after the 52 weeks
That’s it! Taking on this challenge will finally get your savings account to a level it’s never been AND you have a chance to double it.
All for taking action right now.
A few questions you might have.
Why Capital One 360? There are several online savings account you can choose from. We just think they are one of the best. It’ s free to setup and super easy to open. Open an account today and see how easy it is.
Why does it have to be a new account? We want this account to be separate from any other savings account you have so your less tempted to touch it. How many times have you started a savings account only to raid it for some purchase? This will hopefully prevent that.
Can anyone sign up? Not quite. You have to be at least 18 years of age and a U.S. Resident.
When’s the deadline to sign up? You have until January 31, 2014 to get started. You have plenty of time BUT don’t procrastinate!!
Want This Free Download?
We created this PDF to keep you inspired for the 52 Week Challenge.
Download the Free Worksheet and you’ll also get access to a ton of other free resources that Jeff has created for y’all!
Share the love?
Inspire your friends and family members to join this challenge with you.
I’ve joined the 52 Week Savings Challenge at GoodFinancialCents via @jjeffrose & @houseofrose Click HERE to Tweet
Make this YOUR year that you get your savings on track!
**UPDATE: We have picked and verified a winner for the 52 Week Savings Challenge as of January 2, 2015. The winner is Heather Black. She has been contacted and sent the money!! A huge thanks to everyone who participated and we hope this helped you boost your savings!
I’m signed up and I can’t wait!
I am doing this challenge, I already think I’m a pretty good saver but I’d like to be a lot better…challenge accepted!
I am in very excited
I am in the challenge
Hello, I am joining the challenge! My boyfriend and I have talked about doing this and this totally gives us the extra push we needed. I am super excited to see what my savings goals will be like in 2014 – I am ready to be debt free and in charge of my money!!! Thank you!!!
Excited to complete this challenge!!
I’m in! Just waiting for confirmation steps and the capital one account will be alive!
I’m joining the challenge!
I’m in! My husband and I talked about doing this last year, but that’s as far as it went. The account has been created now!
Looking forward to doing the challenge!!
My husband and I had already talked about following this plan. We have two goals in place for our new year – continue to reduce our debt and actually start saving. This little challenge to actually double our money is a great way to keep us on track. We are terrible savers so this savings goal will be a tough one for us. I hope with this added incentive we can meet our goal. I’ve already opened the account so heres to a new year and to putting some money away for those unplanned expenses.
Just signed up with Capital One 360. Challenge is on!
Account created! Challenge accepted!! I can’t wait to start saving!!! =D
I am ready for this challenge. My husband and I are really trying to take hold of our finances because we would like to buy a house in 3 years, God willing 🙂 thank you for doing this.
Just got an account! One question…at the end of the 52 weeks does there need to be exactly 1378 or can there be more?
Challenge accepted! Need some motivation, and this is it!
I’ve joined in!
I have joined the challenge! I’m really hoping to become a better saver in 2014! Thanks for helping us do this!
On board! Such a brilliant yet simple way to start saving and become financially wiser. Watch out 2014!
I just got my account set up and I can’t wait to kill this challenge. I
Hi! I’m heading over to their website now to set up my savings account! I’m the worst saver ever- so, I’m excited to get started and start finally saving!
Challenge accepted!!
omw to 360 now. challenge accepted.
I am all in! Just opened my CO360 savings account! So excited!
Opening an account now! I’ve been wanting to do this for a while. Challenge accepted! 🙂
Account is created and I’m ready for the challenge!
I’ve joined the challenge! I’m a college student that will be graduating in two semesters and I’ve never really thought much about savings, even though I knew I should. I think this will be a great way to kick start myself a savings account!!
I accept the challenge! I created my account at Capital One 360!
I’m i’m in for the challenge.
Challenge accepted.
WOW this is such a great way to get people to start saving! I cant wait to get started =)
I recently opened the 360 account. Can I still participate?
I’ve always been a money-saving slacker. Excited for this challenge!
I wanted to do this last year but fell short. I will be doing it this year!!
Opened my Capital one 360 savings account last week and I’m ready to start saving from here on out!
Challenge totally accepted!!
Challenge Accepted!!! We just set up our Capital One account and are so refreshed and excited about this saving adventure!
Opened my account and I’m ready to start saving1
Challenge Accepted!!!!
I’m in! I’m excited!
I really want to try this challenge. I’m super excited. I am always looking for great ways to save a little extra money for my student loans or to spend in my beautiful baby girl.
I am most definitely excited to begin this challenge!!!
I’m joining the challenge!!!
Challenge Accepted!! Can’t wait to give this a try!
Challenge accepted! Excited to give this a try!!
Challenge Accepted! Can’t wait to give this a try!!
Joining the challenge!!
I have joined this challenge. My husband sounds a lot like yours. He spends money like it falls from the sky. This year I have decided that it is 1) time to start saving money and 2) time to pay off our credit card debt. We have been married for 10 years now and I have tried every year since we’ve been married. This year it has to be done.
Hi! Thanks so much for the motivation–I’m in and on my way to Capital One now!