My plan is to save a million naira saved over the next 12
months so that I can invest it according to the advice given by the
millionaires in this Nairametrics article.
As a Nigerian with not much coming in “yet” in cash, saving isn’t
something we tend to be good at. This is because almost all the money we spend
is gone even before we actually see it in our account. I don’t know if to blame
our lifestyle or our economy for this but I am sure there is a problem
somewhere.
It has been shown and proven that even the smallest of
savings done consistently over time can really add up to something significant
over time. All it takes is the right steps to begin to see success in saving.
It is always hard to start, but once I started applying some
or all of these steps listed below I saw some ease and improvements in my saving
journey.
Having a Written
Plan
In order to have any success with saving money I will need
to have a plan. This plan would help me prioritize and find a balance between
money for spending and saving.
This plan can run for a whole year or on a monthly basis (I like
planning on a monthly basis). In order to create this plan comprehensively I have
collated my debit card statements, bills and other regular expenses including
rent, transport and even airtime.
God knows I spend a
lot on airtime.
Within this plan I have also outlined a section specifically
for savings, I have heard to also consider savings as a regular expense (I am
still working on the mindset tho). Looking at my expenses, they aren’t so high
but if yours is, you should consider cutting back on things that you don’t need
or just continue through the list as there are some key gems here.
Keeping Track of expenses
This would definitely not be an easy task to do, as I would
have to register each transaction or charge I receive. I do recommend using an
excel sheet as it’s been helping me stay on-top of my expenses recently.
Think Savings before Spending
I used to be that guy that had plans to save but by the end
of the month I had nothing left to save and this is because I was thinking of
the whole savings formula upside down. Now that I truly desire to see my
account balance grow over time, I always save first and spend what is left. I
definitely think you should do this too as its suicidal to your finances if you
do it any other way.
Give It Time #30dayrule
Instant Gratification is a monster you should never feed if
you are serious about your personal finance journey. Is that shirt, wrist
watch, Tv really worth it? That’s what I ask myself before I put my card down
to buy anything. Right now I follow the 30 day rule and I find that after a
month of seeing an Item I had previously liked, I really don’t feel the need to
purchase it. I feel this rule doesn’t apply to things that are urgent to ones
life or can be justified as a feasible investment. An example of this would be the
purchase of an efficient laptop by a programmer, the laptop would lead to a
higher ROI for the programmer.
Is it
cheaper Before or After the Season
Have you noticed how fruits in season are cheaper than when
they are not? I noticed this and I saw it happens in a lot more industries like
smartphones, clothes and other electronics. While shopping sometime in December
I saw that clothing items sold for considerably less than during the whole
year, I was elated I bought a lot of things formerly worth almost 100k for just
30k. I plan to make a habit off tracking prices and buying things when they are
cheaper.
Reduce the
trips to Fast-foods or buying of junk food
It is better to learn how to cook a few dishes at home that
spend all the money on fast food restaurants. Over the years I have
transitioned from an avid junk food lover to cooking more at home. Don’t get me
wrong, I still make few trips to get pizza or dine out with a couple of
friends. I make sure that I stock up on non-perishable foods and I make sure to pack lunch if I have to go out
or be somewhere for a long time.
Negotiate
Everything
Being a great negotiator has always been something
associated with women in Nigeria. I can remember a couple of months back when I
wanted to buy something from a woman and she basically asked me “Are you a woman”
all because I was trying to get the best price possible fr the product she was
selling. But I am a firm believer in negotiating everything as long as there is
someone to talk to about it, no other skill in the world will save you money as
much as being able to negotiate the best deals for yourself.
Make savings automatic
Automating
your savings can help you save money easily. Piggybank has helped me save a lot
just by me automating the app to collect 500 naira on a weekly basis into my
piggyvest account. Its been an amazing experience and I plan to keep this up
and save more of my money.
Split The
Bill
Some days as the good guy that I have been, I have always
treated my friends to a night out or bought food for everyone while chilling.
But from this point onwards I will reduce my spending in large amounts on
friends. This can come in the sense food, carpooling, grocery shopping etc. I plan to have all my friends split the bills
with me anytime we hang out or meetup.
Conclusion
Applying these tips I definitely do hope to have a lot more
to put away into my savings. Obviously these tips are mostly for me but if this
inspires you to start saving please pick one and stick with it as much as you
can.
Lets save and start growing our money.
Comments
Post a Comment