Introducing The #52WeekChallenge 2019 Edition

For the last three years, we have been running the #52WeekChallenge, and it has been so fulfilling to see people set goals at the beginning of the year, and work through them till the last week of December.  This year promises to be the biggest #52WeekChallenge edition of them all, and I would like to invite you to join us.

The #52WeekChallenge is a progressive weekly savings plan, where the amount you save every week increases as you go.  The purpose of the challenge is to inculcate a savings habit (where we save small amounts from the money we would otherwise spend), and also to encourage each other.

Ever wondered why it is easier to spend than to save?

One critical factor that influences our spending habits is what we see. We have adverts everywhere for one, and secondly, we can see what our neighbours and friends are doing with their money – the cars they drive, phones they use, clothes they wear, where their kids go to school, where they vacationed (thanks Instagram!). These things are in our faces daily and they influence us. Savings and wealth, on the other hand, are not visible. In the past, your livestock or size of the farm were indicators of wealth.  Neighbours could spy each other and accurately assess whose savings were growing steadily, who was struggling etc. As such, there was positive pressure to grow wealth. Today, we store our wealth digitally (bank accounts, stocks etc), and we do not live in the farms we have bought most of the times. To make matters worse, talking about your savings and investments is often seen as bragging. For this reason, there is no positive pressure to keep growing our savings and investments. The #52WeekChallenge attempts to bring back that communal aspect of saving and growing together.

Here is how you can sign up if you have not already:

1. Set a goal for 2019. If the thought of new year goals carries some trauma of new year resolutions that you failed to carry through, please read this post where I suggest a different approach to goal setting.
2. Choose a way to track your savings. I offer a couple of options for this: If you are on Android, download the Money Box app. We have created this specifically for the #52WeekChallenge, and soon you will even read these posts directly on the app. If you are not on Android, download either the customizable Excel worksheet which you can set up and print or the 50 bob and 100 bob worksheets.
3. Decide where you will save your money. You want to pick a method that makes it easy for you to save, and a little bit hard for you to withdraw the savings. Some people usually divide their goal by 12, then set up a standing order to a savings account – this is ok. You may also use M-Shwari Lock Savings, a money market account, or even a piggy bank if you live alone.
4. Save! Week 1 is an easy one, make that deposit immediately.
5. Share the #52WeekChallenge with family and friends. Remember this works if there is positive pressure, so get accountability partners. If you are in a social group or investment club, you can even make the Challenge about an investment you would like to do together at the end of the year.
6. Participate in our bi-weekly #52WeekChallenge chats that happen on Twitter. Follow the hashtag and also tell us how it is going.

This year, I want us to set ourselves up to succeed no matter what, and my promise to you is that I will keep reminding you of the positivity and the energy with which we have started the year.

All the best!