Money is an essential medium of exchange that we have either to buy goods or services. Think of foodstuff that you buy at your local market, at the grocery, and at neighbourhood kiosks. What about the school fee that your parents or your guardian pay for you, the haircut or salon fee that you pay at the salon or in a kinyozi, the bus fare to town, the counselling fee, etc, these are all services that you use money to get.
Whichever way you spend your money, in acquiring either goods or services, you need to pre-plan so that you can avoid unnecessary spending. Learn to be a disciplined person who has self-trust and is an organized personal financial manager of your finances. That way, this virtue will lead you to financial stability and propel you to prosperity.
That said and done, here, I want to submit to us at least five financial literacy tips or rather guides that will assist you to manage your money, regardless of the amount you may have.
(i.) Work and Earn Money
Before you spend money, work hard and justly earn money! Be an active and industrious young person who wakes up early in the morning, after you have prayed, fold your sleeves and do something to earn money. Mchagua jembe sio mkulima, the Kiswahili saying tells us so; don’t be choosy in matters of work or job.
Even if you have studied a certain white colour job related course and you haven’t gotten an employment opportunity of your choice, do not stay idle. Look for a casual job no matter its type, as long as it is a good job, take it up, work hard, and definitely, you will get some money. The next thing is to plan for your money.
(ii.) Budgeting
after working and earning some money, sit down with a notebook and a pen. Basically, guided by the total amount of money you have, break down the amount of money into different areas of expenditure in descending order, starting with most important, and thus reasonable. With a budget, which is now your spending guide, you will be able to buy goods or services that are essential.
(iii.) Prioritize Needs
here, you must focus on essentials and not on wants. Mostly, wants are luxurious and not necessarily a must. You can do without them. So, be disciplined to obey your budget to the letter. Buy only what you see that you can’t do without it. This will help to avoid or stop impulse buying habits. For example, buy a pair of shoes, not headphones, pay for a career guide seminar, and not for a movie, buy nice clothing, not a cyber game, etc.
(iv.) Savings
why do we save money? Among other things, we save money for emergency needs. It is, therefore, wise to keep aside a little amount of money so that we can be financially secure when a need may arise. Do not be the kind of person who earns money and spends all of it at a time; this will keep financially unstable, and never ever develop a saving habit that is key to your financial take-off to a higher level.
(v.) Invest
lastly, though not least, make sure the money you have saved for quite some time needs to be put into a business that generates income, which can be either for goods or service providers. This depends on your preferences and tastes when it comes to business. Before you invest your money do thorough research in the areas you are passionate about and then dive into it as a courageous risk taker. Do not be afraid to take risks!
My dear young people, work hard and spend your money wisely, even if it is a small amount. Do not let yourself be trapped in the easy-way-of-getting money by idling by or doing dirty business to get rich quickly and in an unethical manner. Work, earn clean money, be organized and achieve financial prosperity.
Article By:
Ben Njuîrî.
