I started sticking money in the savings account in September 2015 and the following is what I have been, and plan to continue to deposit into there...
Lump Sum
Happily I was able to kick off my savings account with my annual bonus which was a nice way to start - already got a couple of thousand!
Income from 'proper' job (that also pays for bills, food, fun etc.)
From my 'proper', full time job the base amount i have budgeted to save monthly is $750. I WANT to save more than that and where I can, I will put extra into savings, but that is the bare minimum I will transfer into the account each month.
Second Job - weekly pay - all into savings
I've started a second job in a bar and all my weekly pay is going straight into the savings account. I'm budgetting for my average pay to be lower than what I have actually been paid - I figure it's better to undervalue my income and hopefully get a small but pleasant surprise by seeing it all add up!
I've entered my average pay as $75/week... let's say with a day off here and there, I save $3000/year. I also get tips at this job which seriously blows my mind! Awesome! Last week I got $8.60, woah! Awesome! it all goes straight into my money tin:
Yes, that's an aussie $10 note!
In all srsness, even though it's not much, as anyone in the UK would know, "Every little helps" (thanks Tesco's!) and one day that $8.60 will be a bacon and egg roll.
1 year Forecast (to Sept 2016)
By end September 2016, which will cover 12 months worth of saving, I've forecast to save almost $15500 which isn't too bad, but realistically that could pay for my vehicle, insurance - and not much else! From my random bits of research I reckon I want to save at least $40000 to take on the road with me so after seeing how the first few months of my savings plan goes, I'll definitely need to revisit the budget a kick it up a notch.
I know there are going to be struggles with irregular expenses - the ones I can prepare for, like motorbike insurance, servicing, repairs, health insurance, birthdays and christmas; and then there's all those unexpected surprises too. I do have a second savings account where I tuck money aside for these things and I hope that account will CYA when these things crop up. The other thing I'm gonna struggle with is spending money on sh!t I don't need! This is a massive exercise in commitment, whoop!
