Maybe Saving Money Is Only Hard If You Think It’s Hard (Ahem)

I met some people this weekend who do an amazing thing. They go on trips together, each year, to a small city in South America and work on projects to help the community. They’ve known the people there for years and work alongside them. I told one of the boys who goes that I’d like to go one day. “You should,” he said. And then before I could mention about how broke I am and how in debt I am or how unable to save I am, which is my excuse and has always been my excuse, he said something that really got me thinking.

“You need to save $2,000 total, which is not a hard thing to do. You have a year to save up $2,000. That’s all you need. If you have a regular job, it’s probably super easy. I work part-time gigs and it’s harder, but I do it, no problem.”

He was so casual about it. Turns out no one who went on the trip had a lot of money. But this was a part of their life and they planed for it. To me, saving $2,000 seems like this impossible thing. But for him — and I’d say we have comparable financial situations actually — it’s a priority, something he plans for, something he builds in, something he just does. I keep thinking about that attitude. $2,000 by next summer. No problem.

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