The fifth video in the series of Financial Planning for Your Future gives new ideas about retirement. Here is a great perspective that may give hope to those close, and not so close, to retirement age.
Week three: Retirement- Reinvent yourself
Showing posts with label goal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label goal. Show all posts
And the Winners Are. . .
Virginia Saves is pleased to announce the 2nd Annual Piggy Bank Pageant Winners!
The goal of the Piggy Bank Pageant was to inspire children to create savings goals and to develop the habit of regular savings for their future by engaging in building their own savings bank. Children tend to be early adopters of social campaigns and can be a great influence on family behavior. Money has power because it gives people (older and younger) decision making opportunities. Teaching wise spending and saving has a great impact on your child’s financial future than investing.
BB&T donated savings bonds for Virginia Saves to award as prizes in the Piggy Bank Pageant. BB&T has been an active partner with Virginia Saves. BB&T created new accounts for our Virginia Savers. These special accounts will really grow dollars that are saved.
The Savings Bonds provided by BB&T will be presented to the winners of each category.
· $100 Savings Bond for the 1st Place Winners
· $75 Savings Bond for the 2nd Place Winners
· $50 Savings Bonds for the 3rd Place Winners
A BIG thanks to BB&T for the prizes and their support of Virginia Saves! Eight winners will receive the Savings Bonds.
2nd-3rd Graders
Tied for 1st place: Myra
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Name of bank: Piggy
Why savings is important: ‘So you can get what you want.’
What are you saving for right now? DSI
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Tied for 1st place: Brooke
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Name of bank: Pepper
Why savings is important: “so you can buy a home.”
What are you saving for right now? A real dog
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2nd place: Jacob
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Name of bank: Hotdog
Why savings is important: For College
What are you saving for right now? PSXL/College
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3rd place: Erin
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Name of bank: Piggy
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4th-6th Graders
Tied for 1st place: McKenzie
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Name of bank: Pigy if a boy; Swirl if a girl
Why savings is important: “So you can go to college.”
What are you saving for right now? A horse
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Tied for 1st place: Shenan
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Name of bank: SD Bank
Why savings is important: “Because if you need money, you have some.”
What are you saving for right now? Phone, electric scooter and a car
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2nd Place: Paige
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Name of bank: Meatloaf
Why savings is important: College, a car, a house
What are you saving for right now? A car
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3rd Place: Hilary
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Name of bank: Miss Pink
Why savings is important: “You can save for something coming when you grow up.”
What are you saving for right now? A car
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Congratulations Winners!! The entries could be any style or theme. You were very creative and have great savings goals!
Parents can find more at Parent Resources for more information about instilling smart money habits in children while they are still young. By the time teens take the Personal Finance Class in High School, they have already established their 'money values'. Use fun activities like the Piggy Bank Pageant to talk about money with children!
Virginia Saves will be coordinating efforts with other areas of our great Commonwealth to include a State wide Piggy Bank Pageant in 2012.
More is 'Caught' Than 'Taught'
Virginia Saves equips Savers with the resources needed to pay off past debts, pay for current needs and wants, and invest for the future. As adults, we actually have to reprogram how we deal with stress and create a new plan. The spending plan is a powerful tool to help reach goals!!
Part of this vision is to supply ideas to parents. The next generation is watching and learning how to handle money. More is ‘caught’ than ‘taught’. If children develop healthy spending and saving habits as young people, they can avoid some of the money troubles their parents have experienced. Take advantage of teachable moments that will instill good money habits with our children.
How can children learn the value of money?
· Be realistic. Tell children that they cannot have everything they want. Wants will always outnumber available dollars!
· Give commission. ‘If you do not work, you do not get paid!’ Teach children the value of work and that work produces money.
· Have a family spending plan. Living on a budget needs to be modeled to children. This may involve telling the adults in the family that wants will not fit into this month’s spending plan.
· Require calm money discussions. Talk with respect and without emotional outbursts or manipulation when talking about money in the home.
· Set family financial goals. ‘When debt free, we will save to go to Disney!’ Get everyone on board to think of strategies to reach the goal.
· Have fun while cutting back. Have a camp- out in the back yard and make S’mores. This spring break, have a ‘stay-cation’ and visit the sights close to home. Do not forget to pack a picnic lunch!!
Her are a few great resources for parents with young children:
Kids Count- many links to great parent resources Children and Family- articles from Crown Financial Ministries to help train children (and parents) Children and Finances Part 1
Children and Finances Part 2
Handipoints- training good behavior in children through fun activities
Money Lessons for Children- Great resources for parents and teachers for financial skills
Thrive by 5- great activities and lessons you can use in your home to train pre-schoolers in financial basics
Money Mammals- website to help encourage both savings and giving for children.
Parents are a child’s first teacher. They will learn more about how to handle money from you than from a high-school Personal Finance Class. Talk to children about smart money choices and help them develop good money habits!
Enroll at www.virginiasaves.org/enroll to receive a monthly newsletter full of saving ideas.
LIKE Virginia Saves on Facebook!
Start small. Think big.
What is the difference between a dream and a goal?
A dream is a vague idea with undefined steps. “I want to travel to Italy.” This is a dream with no action steps to make the dream a reality. A goal is specific plan with defined steps. “I want to run a 5k on July 4th and I will run one mile, three days a week until the day of the race.” This goal names the ‘what’ and the ‘how’. It defines the desired result and the steps to achieve the goal. Virginia Saves encourages people to create a financial goal and make a plan to achieve it.
When enrolling at Virginia Saves, new savers make a savings commitment. The form asks for a goal, amount saved per month, number of months and total saved amount. A good savings goal has 3 parts: the amount to be saved, the period of time and the purpose of the savings.
Here are two examples:
1. I will save $30 for 12 months for Emergency savings.
$30 x 12 months = $360
That would be a nice emergency savings. The emergency savings is money set aside for unforeseen problems that arise.
2. I will save $25 for 10 months for Christmas.
$25 x 10 months (February through November) = $250
Christmas would look pretty Merry with $250 set aside for gift giving. A family with children in the home will enjoy the money saved in December for holiday gifts. In January, the Ghost of Christmas Past will not visit when the credit card bill is opened.
Both of these examples will help a family’s financial situation.
Success is will be more likely if the goal is realistic.
- The amount should be 10% or less of income. Attempting to squeeze the budget too tight to save quickly can hurt long term motivation.
- Start Small. The first savings goal should be relatively small. A new saver should try a small savings goal which can be achieved quickly. A successful experience will add confidence.
- Total amount saved should cover the expense of the goal. Saving $100 for a plane ticket will not help if the ticket will cost $150.
Here is an example of a goal that needs some adjustment:
I will save $3 a month for 12 months for a reliable used car.
$3 x 12 months = $36
That is not going to buy much of a car! If the goal is a $2000 car, then the monthly amount saved will need to be increased and the length of time to save will also need to be extended.
A great saving strategy is to ‘Pay Yourself First’. Save money out of each paycheck before paying bills. Another great strategy is to make savings automatic. Set up a direct deposit or transfer savings from a checking account in a savings account.
The amount saved is not as important as starting the habit of saving. Increase the amount saved each month when possible. Send a portion of a tax refund to savings with the split refund.
Start an Emergency Fund! Money set aside for the unexpected is the first step to a successful financial future.
What is your savings goal? Let Virginia Saves motivate you to discover for yourself the peace of mind that accompanies having money in the bank.
Share your savings goal at virginiasaves@gmail.com!
You know you should . . . but do you?
You know you should save money, but do you put money into savings every month? Do you have a savings goal? It is easier to stay motivated when working toward a goal. The best goals are well defined. Check out this Savvy Saver article about creating a saving goal.
Here are some steps you can take today to become a successful saver.
1. Open a Savings account. Virginia Savers can open free or low fee savings accounts at local banks and credit unions. Check out our partners. These banks and credit unions offer no fee, low beginning balance ($25 or less) accounts.
2. Make saving automatic. Set up automatic monthly transfers from checking account to savings account.
3. Start contributing to workplace retirement plans. Many employers match a portion of the fund saved in retirement funds. Try to at least save enough to receive the employer match; it is free money! There may even receive some tax savings.
4. Save the tax refund. Use the IRS’s Form 8888 to directly deposit part or all of your refund into a savings account. Visit www.Form8888.org for more information.
5. Save raise or bonus this year. Jump start savings with money that will not be missed.
6. Enroll as a Virginia Saver. Savers receive a monthly newsletter full of tips and ideas to increase savings.
The key is to start today! Start small. Think big.
Kick Start Your Savings Series - Emergency Fund
This post is part of the Virginia Saves Kick Start Your Savings Summer. Each week we'll
focus on saving for a particular savings goal or how to save on everyday expenditures.
To kick start your own savings click here.For beginning and more advanced savers, nothing is more important than the emergency fund. As the cornerstone of your savings plan, an emergency fund is your protection against unexpected, but inevitable, expenses.
Step 1- Figure out your goal & a place to save. Having an emergency savings fund may be the most important difference between those who manage to stay afloat and those who are sinking financially. That's because maintaining emergency savings of $500 to $1,000 allows you to easily meet unexpected financial challenges such as a car repair or medical bill and avoid high interest, short-term loans. With your emergency fund goal in mind, decide where you want to save it. Do you need to open a savings account? Do you want to add to a savings account you already have? Determine your goal and where to keep your emergency savings.
Step 2 - Save automatically. Have a portion of your paycheck, as little as $50 a month, transferred automatically from your checking to savings account. Individuals who save automatically are more than six times more likely to be successful long-term.
Step 3 – Track your progress. By enrolling as a Virginia Saver, you can utilize the Virginia Saves Savings Tracker for free to record deposits and monitor your progress. If you’re not sure where to find the money to start saving, cutting down expenses can be easier than you think. Institute a “no-spend day” and for each dollar you don’t spend, add to your emergency fun. Stay tuned for next week for even more ways to save on everyday expenditures!
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