It seems we Americans have a savings problem. According to the US Department of Commerce, Americans save a mere 4.2% of their disposable personal income.

The Germans, by contrast, save 10.6% of their disposable income, while the French put away nearly 15% of their money. Worse yet, a full 27% of Americans have no emergency savings at all, while only half of all Americans have enough saved to cover three months worth of living expenses.

So what are some of the ways you can trick yourself to save more? How do you make saving money painless? Read on to find out how you can put away more money in 2014.

1. Turn your liabilities into a savings windfall.

Every year we overpay for a variety of services from automobile insurance to cell phone service. Take a close look at your budget. Are there services you’re not using? Are you paying too much for cable? Could you get rid of your land line? Call and cancel underused services and negotiate lower rates on other services. Companies, like BillCutterz.com will even negotiate lower rates for you (granted they keep half of the savings). Now here’s the the important part. Place the money you save each month into a savings account. You won’t notice the difference while your savings will continue to grow.

2. Trade one behavior for a tangible reward.

We’re all told to cut down on small expenses because they quickly add up. It sounds easy on paper, but the truth of the matter is that it runs straight in the face of psychology. Our small expenses are often enjoyable. That latte or candy bar brings us a small measure of pleasure, making it hard to give up immediate satisfaction for a nebulous goal like saving for the future.

The website Ulive presents a way to make this easier by connecting your immediate sacrifices with a tangible reward in the near future. According to Ulive, sacrifice a specific behavior for a bigger payoff at the end of the month. Sacrifice your daily vending machine habit, for instance, in order to purchase that pair of shoes you’ve wanted. By sacrificing one behavior for a tangible reward, you’ll have more money in your budget for savings.

3. Ditch the dollar bills.

Here’s an easy one. Make a promise to never spend your one dollar bills. At the end of the day, remove the dollar bills from your wallet and stash them into a savings box. Following this dollar bill savings plan not only gets you into the habit of saving, but also discourages frivolous spending. You’re less likely to break a five dollar bill for a doughnut when you know the three bills in change will go directly into savings.

4. Use your change to change your savings.

Similar to the dollar bill savings plan, create a special place for all the loose change you accumulate. At the end of the evening, dump your change from the day into a piggy bank near your front door. You’ll be surprised at how fast quarters, dimes, and nickels add up.

5. Double the cost of your favorite indulgences.

Yes, those guilty pleasures can really get us into trouble. The morning latte or weekend trips to the movie theater can put a dent into our finances. Here’s an idea, whenever you decide to treat yourself, pay double. Pay for your treat and match the amount with savings. If you buy a $3 yogurt shake, $3 also goes into a savings jar. If you spend $30 going out to the movies, $30 also goes into your savings jar. This ensures that you only indulge occasionally, and when you decide to treat yourself, you can do it guilt free knowing you’ve put money into savings.

6. Make your cash windfalls untouchable.

What do you do when you get a raise or income tax refund? If you’re like most of us you promise to save it, but end up spending it. Why not make your cash windfalls untouchable? When you receive a raise have the extra amount automatically transferred into a separate bank account.

But, it can’t be just any old bank account. Use one without a debit card or ATM card associated with it. This forces you to physically go to the bank and withdraw funds which makes it less likely that you’ll raid your savings. Likewise, several online banks like smartypig.com feature savings accounts that accomplish the same thing. Because it takes several days for you to get the money from these accounts you’re less likely to withdraw from them.

You can also make your income tax refund untouchable. The government allows you to receive your rebate in the form of savings bonds. As a result, you’re more likely to save your refund than spend it. Check out the IRS website for more details.

7.Get Uncle Sam to force you to save more.

Speaking of income tax returns, consider this tactic to save more. Alter your paycheck withholdings so that you receive a larger tax refund at the end of the year. Some may rightly claim that this amounts to giving the government an interest free loan. But the small 1% or 2% interest loss you take by “lending” the government money is small considering that you’ll essentially be entering a forced savings plan that ensures you don’t waste your money.

8. Bill yourself.

We pay bills for everything from utilities to cable channels. While we’re busy paying everyone else, why not take the opportunity to pay ourselves. Create a monthly savings “bill” that you must pay just like every other bill. Direct a certain amount of your paycheck to be automatically deposited into a savings account. Start off small by saving 5% of your income and then gradually increase your contribution as time goes by.

BMWK, what do you do to force yourself to save more money?