What will your future self think of your spending habits today? <\/strong><\/p>\n Will you be impressed at your discipline and bank balance, or horrified at how frivolous you are now with your money?<\/p>\n We take a glimpse into the crystal ball to find out what 50-year-old you wants you to know and you\u2019d be well advised to listen to your older self.<\/p>\n Will your 50-year-old self be impressed, or horrified, by your spending habits today? Picture: Getting Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Opening a savings account might seem like a very obvious suggestion, but it might not be so obvious to the 35% of Australians who currently don\u2019t have one. <\/span><\/p>\n Having only one bank account is fraught with danger, as every cent you earn ends up in there with your disposable income, making it very hard to save.<\/span><\/p>\n According to UBank\u2018s research from the\u00a0Science of Spending and Saving Experiment<\/span>, one in three Australians spends every cent from their paycheck by the time their next payday rolls around.<\/span><\/p>\n So open a second account with a higher interest rate for your savings, and put a percentage of your weekly earnings in it. It doesn\u2019t have to be a huge amount \u2013 anything is better than nothing.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Saving money on your energy<\/a> bills means more in your saving account:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n The key is to leave your savings alone and avoid dipping into it because you\u2019ve emptied your day-to-day account and desperately want to buy something.<\/p>\n Around 57% of Aussies dig into their savings account each week to make impulse purchases and pay bills, amounting to a staggering $2.6 billion each month, according to UBank\u2018s research from the\u00a0Science of Spending and Saving Experiment.<\/span><\/p>\n Rather than ploughing through your hard-won savings, be disciplined and cut back your spending for a couple of weeks until you\u2019ve built up enough in your everyday account to make that purchase.<\/p>\n Around 57% of Aussies dig into their savings account each week to make impulse purchases and pay bills. Picture: Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Mention the word \u201cbudget\u201d and most young people\u2019s eyes glaze over. Budgeting isn\u2019t sexy, and the fact that almost half of Australians don\u2019t have a weekly budget proves it.<\/p>\n But making a simple plan for your finances and sticking to it could be the quickest way for you to put yourself on the path to wealth later in life.<\/p>\n And with hundreds of smartphone apps that make budgeting ridiculously easy, there\u2019s no excuse not to have a handle on where you\u2019re spending your money.<\/p>\n It will make it easier for you to set aside a certain amount each week for savings, as well as identify areas where you may not realise you\u2019re hemorrhaging money, allowing you to cut back and save even more.<\/p>\n A budget will make it easier for you to set aside a certain amount each week for savings. Picture: Getting Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n With smartphones, iPads, credit cards and other technology, people today are accustomed to being able to access what they want, when they want it.<\/p>\n But what that means is that many can no longer accept having to scrimp and save in order to buy something \u2013 they\u2019ll simply go out and empty their bank account, load up their credit card or take out a loan<\/a> in order to get it.<\/p>\n Please forgive 50-year-old you for sounding like your parents, but it\u2019s hard to appreciate what you\u2019ve got if you haven\u2019t had to endure the hard yards to get it. You\u2019ll value the things you have far more \u2013 and be in a much better financial position to enjoy them \u2013 if you hold off on making those major purchases until you can truly afford it.<\/p>\n UBank\u2018s recent research from the\u00a0Science of Spending and Saving Experiment<\/span> project measured the reactions of people as young as 22 as they made financial decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n It found that something as simple as presenting them with a computer-generated image of their \u201cfuture self\u201d brought a significant change in attitude towards money.<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, after seeing the older version of themselves, there was a 150% increase in attention paid to the moment of choice between spending money or saving it, while 72% of participants actively shifted their mindset towards wanting to save their money, versus spending it.<\/span><\/p>\n Try visualising yourself in 10, 20 or 30 years time, and start to shape your financial decisions around where you want your \u201cfuture self\u201d to be.<\/span><\/p>\n
\n <\/p><\/div>\n Realestate au <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"![\"young](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.realestate.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/30123535\/young-people-spending_2000x1500.jpg?resize=2000%2C1500&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nOpen a savings account<\/h2>\n
Don\u2019t dip into your savings<\/h2>\n
![\"woman](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.realestate.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/25141543\/woman-banking_800x600.jpg?resize=800%2C600&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nMake a plan<\/h2>\n
![\"young](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.realestate.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/30123527\/young-couple-budgeting_1500x2000.jpg?resize=1500%2C2000&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nLearn to accept delayed gratification<\/h2>\n
Think ahead<\/h2>\n