Last year I started a £5 note money jar. It’s traditionally a savings tactic (like a piggy bank but for one chosen denomination of coin or note so you remember to save it). It’s also a great tool to improve the way you feel about money. How you feel about money affects the level of comfort you have when costing your services & products, selling, chasing payments, negotiating rates... you get the picture - The feels affect the bottom line basically.
I filled the jar with lavender so it smelt special. Every time I received a £5 note, it had to go in the jar. It felt fun! I even started taking money out of the cash machine (old school) so I could pay for something & get a fiver for my jar. I could feel a respectful & strong partnership growing between my jar & I.
A year on & I’ve just counted it!! Honestly, it felt like adding up my millions!! I was so excited!
In our efficient cashless/ card only society there are of course lots of money saving apps out there. However I can’t help but feel like it puts more distance between us and our relationship with money. It feels like in losing our literal physical grip on money, we are losing our emotional grip on it too. It’s over there or in our phone. I’m not advocating for boycotting banks and stashing cash under the bed! However, I do believe that maintaining a physical connection with cash in a small and playful way can benefit us in a big way.
If you feel like your relationship with money would do with an injection of playful energy, (as opposed to serious and heavy vibes that money can stir up) why not start your own money saving jar?
Find your collection container. I recommend choosing one where you can see the money through it. An old glass jam jar is perfect.
Get creative. Decorate your jar (inside and/or out). The aim of the game is that it’s fun and pleasant to look at and use.
Put your jar somewhere that means you see it every day.
Choose your denomination (£1 coins? £5 note?)
Start collecting and see how it plays out!