If your income is not always enough for you, the idea of saving money may seem like a joke to you. You may even be in debt at the ending of every month and you are thinking how on earth can I come out of this quagmire. If someone mentions savings to you; you may even get angry and tell the person that he or she will not understand. But for you to really make progress in your finances, you have to start saving anyhow; whether you earn enough or not, if not you will not enjoy your life as you grow old.
Saving money is worth the effort as it will give you peace of mind in the long run as well as the opportunity to create wealth via investment and business. Consistent savings no matter the amount may just be what you need to break out of poverty that has been holding your progress. And for you to start thinking in terms of business and investment, you have to start saving money now. I will recommend a minimum of 5 per cent of your income for a start. And this should not affect your charitable donations and spiritual obligations.
Below is the simple savings strategy I recommend for you, even if your income is not enough for your upkeep:
Be honest with yourself
Do you really want to start saving money, stop borrowing every month and if possible pay off your debts? If your answer is yes, then you need to be very honest with yourself to determine your financial status. You have to review your income and expenditure for a month to see your true position in terms of financial balance. You’ll be able to see how your money is going and where and how it is coming every month. You may be tempted to justify some of the expenses your mind may be telling to cut for your savings strategy to be achieved. Just be honest with yourself so that you can really determine those expenses you have to cut down or even stop. For instance, if you think there is no expense that should be cut down or removed entirely after your review; you may not be truly honest with yourself if there is a Pay TV bill of even N1, 800.00 there because if you are honest you will know that you can do without the Pay TV to achieve your aim.
Decide the percentage of your income to be saving
Once you have honestly reviewed your income and expenditure for a month and decided on the adjustments to make in other for you to start saving, you should go ahead and choose the amount of money to be saving every month. And, you should never compromise on saving less than that amount every month no matter the challenge you may face along the line. Note that I have earlier recommended a minimum of 5 per cent of your income. And, just know that even if you decide not to save in any of the months; your financial condition for that month may not be better than other months you saved. So always make sure you save what you’ve decided to be saving each month.
Start saving immediately
Once you have decided on the amount to be saving each month, start saving the next month. Do not wait for the right time as there is no such thing as the right time when it comes to making drastic decisions.
I will recommend you start saving with a registered and trusted cooperative society if you can find one or open a dedicated savings account for it.
Start thinking how to increase your savings
Once you start saving consistently, start thinking on how to increase your savings. This will make you start thinking on how to increase your income. And once this thought comes, you will start seeking the knowledge on how to make it happen; and once you get hold of the knowledge, you will definitely make it happen.
Stop borrowing and start paying off your debts
If you were tempted to be borrowing to meet up with some expenditure that you thought you couldn’t do without; or you had a debt you’ve owed for long, once you succeeded in increasing your savings, the next good step is to stop borrowing or to start paying of your debts.
There are a lot of things you can do to create avenue for you to start saving money no matter your financial state. There are articles written about it with various suggestions. But the truth is you can decide to make a change in your financial life. There is always a price to pay especially if you want good things.
If you have to downgrade your apartment from 3 bedrooms to 2 bedrooms or change your children school from private to public to achieve this, go ahead and do it. Do not ever consider what people might say especially when it comes to a thing like this; for your future will tell the story very well, no matter the choice you make now.