Here Is The One Thing To Do In 2018 – The #52WeekChallenge!

It is that time of the year when we make plans (I prefer to call them plans, not resolutions) for the new year. As is the tradition for the third year running, the #52WeekChallenge^TM  2018 is here! The Challenge has three goals:

1. Nurture a savings habit by helping you set a savings goal, then working towards hitting it.
2. Curb unnecessary and impulsive spending. In its purest form, the Challenge encourages us to save our spending money. This is why it is not a monthly Challenge, but a weekly one; we are paid monthly, but we tend to spend on a daily/weekly basis. By embracing habits such as carrying lunch to work and eating out less, we end up with more money to save.
3. Encourage personal finance learning in our monthly #52WeekChallenge Twitter chats and the Telegram Group, where we discuss various personal finance and investment topics.

The ultimate goal is to build habits that will see us achieve financial independence, in a fun way.

Here is how it works:

1. Decide where to start. What is your savings goal? Ideally, saving to invest works towards our overall goal, and spending on experiences is more fulfilling than buying stuff but you know what? Save for whatever you want. Especially if you are saving cash that you would otherwise spend. Be it for vacation, school fees, a new phone, to buy stocks. Go for it! If the #52WeekChallenge is your only saving avenue, I advise that you have some investment goals.
2. Download and print the #52WeekChallenge  2018 worksheet that resonates. You can go with the 50 bob worksheet below, download the 100 bob worksheet, or even customize one using this Excel worksheet.   
3. Decide where to save your money. In the past, I have recommended M-Shwari Lock Savings because it is convenient, you may also use a bank account or even a piggy bank. The most important thing is for the money to be stashed away. You do not want to spend it on impulse.
4. Start saving and ticking off the weeks as we go. This is Week 1, so it is bound to be easy, do it now!

To stay accountable, please join the Telegram Group, and the Weekly Mailing List, where I will be sending weekly reminders.