It’s never too late to start saving.

I’ve been on a long savings journey and now, I’m very glad to tell the world about how Barclays has helped to improve my saving behaviour. Trust me; all things are possible if you change your thoughts and attitudes the way I’ve changed mine. I can’t say that adopting savings behaviour has been ‘easy’, but it is easy if you change your thoughts and attitudes and get some motivation (whether a person or a good reason) to start saving. Barclays has mentored, motivated and encouraged me to start saving and, trust me, I can now enjoy the fruits of this saving!

After writing my first post, How Savings can transform your life into Financial Freedom, I got encouraged to really start saving. Barclays became my mentor and motivator on my saving journey and I can now say that savings has become a habit.

Now, Let’s look at how far I’ve come on this journey and How I developed the habit of Saving Money – I hope this will motivate and encourage others to start saving too.

Having a goal is the best way to maintain your savings. I dreamt of owning 10 acres of land, which I’m planned to invest in agriculture. I decided to save ten thousand shillings every week in order to buy the land. Having a target has pushed me to save.

 Changing my habits and getting my money under control wasn’t a simple task and it took me a while to adjust to my new savings habit. Although I faced a lot of hurdles throughout my journey, I managed to overcome them. All that was needed was a change in thoughts and attitudes – I started treating my savings account as a bill I had to pay every month.

By setting a budget and limiting my unnecessary expenses, I managed to save a lot of money. I can’t say it’s ‘enough’, but it’s an achievement for me.
All in all, my savings behaviour has yielded results. Here are some of the results of my saving:

I have bought the 10 acres of land that I’m planning to invest in agriculture. The profit I make from agriculture will be put into savings and be used to cover my basic expenses;

After generating profit in my businesses, I will be able to afford to build my own house for my family and me.

My savings behaviour is making me financially stronger.

 I repeat: starting a savings journey is possible if you change your thoughts and attitudes the way I changed mine. You’re not alone, and you’re not late. Start now. For those who have been with me on the savings journey, tell me about your results so far.

Follow the Barclays Savings Challenge and discussion on Twitter and Facebook. Share your own experience by using the hashtag #AfricaSaves. Visit the Barclays website for more information about their savings account.