How
often have we heard that, ‘the sooner you start saving, the better it will be’?
Early savings will only bear sweet fruits, it will never cause any harm.
People,
who are unable to save early, often wish they had. They share their experiences
that saving early would have helped them avoid the mounting of the credit card
debt, as well as help them be wiser with their expenses.
Let
us share with you, a few imperative money lessons. These would be largely helpful
for the readers, currently into their 20s.
1.
Keep a check and control over credit card expenses
Credit
card – a magic card that lets you pay for everything you want with just a
single swipe. Credit card purchases may be intriguing. However, before piling
up things with this wonder card, you must actually decide whether you need what
you are buying by swiping that magnetic strip.
The
sooner you come out of your dream world to realize that nothing comes for free,
the easier and better it will be.
2.
Never make a comparison
Comparison
is never the smartest thing to do. Rather than comparing, one should lay his
entire focus onto setting his own goals, and live up to the same. For this, you
will have to prepare your own way, and patiently follow it.
Many
times, this comparison leads to peer pressure. Peer pressure leads to not so
smart money decisions like costly phones, accessories, extravagant outing…
3.
Best time to begin saving is now
Saving
may sound a painful process, and we often tend to delay it. However,
procrastinating to save can prove to be even more painful in the longer run.
Therefore never wait to make a start, rather make an early start, to this
fruit-bearing activity. In place of squandering up any of your extra cash at
month-end, think over putting the same aside.
An
SIP, can be a perfect way to start your financial journey with. You may even
put aside 10-15% of your pay as emergency fund accumulation for an unexpected
urgency. You may even start with your retirement fund, just to be sure of the
time of skimpy salaries.
4.
Invest for yourself
Twenties
is the best time to enhance your knowledge levels. Rather than investing all
your time in a job that does not pay as much as you deserve, you must invest
the same time doing a professional course and earning a masters’ or a doctoral
degree. This is something that will truly bear results down the road.
Remember
that 20s is the best time to learn and upgrade your resume. Make the maximum
utilization of this time.
5.
Be prepared for life’s big changes
20s
are undoubtedly that decade of everyone’s life, where you will be witnessing
the maximum number and levels of changes. This may include getting married,
owning your own home, and having children.
Therefore,
it is important to think over these aspects of life while planning your
finances.
6.
Live Basic
There
is no harm in living a basic and economical lifestyle. Being conscious of your
expenditures is and will, never be a bad idea. You can cut on a few expenses
such as a PG accommodation, cooking and cleaning for yourself, shopping at the
local stores, etc. These little things will help you cut down on your extra
costs.
7.
Free yourself from all debts
It
is impossible to survive for the first couple of decades, in our life, without
any kind of debt, whether that may be from our parents initially. As expenses
are an inevitable part of survival, the only option one can turn to is
borrowing money.
Getting
completely out of debts that may also include bigger debt like repaying loans
or mortgages may take two or three decades. However, you must ensure not to add
more debts, and do your best to free yourself from the existing ones as soon as
possible.
20s
are the most significant years of everyone’s life. Make the most of it, along
with planning well so that you do not have to anguish later in life. For
becoming a well disciplined investor and achieve your financial goals, you need
to focus of creating a financial plan.
Author Bio:
The author is
Ramalingam.K an MBA (Finance) and certified financial planner. He is the
Director & Chief Financial Planner of holistic investment planners
(www.holisticinvestment.in) a firm that offers Financial Planning and Wealth
Management. He can be reached at
ramalingam@holisticinvestment.in
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.