How to make your money last to the next month and beyond

Financial education is a very scarce resource that only a few of us have been taught. With rising debt default rates and increasing cost of living, it is important now more than ever that we teach each other how to manage our money so we stop living from paycheck-to-pay-check.

By 2022, roughly 40% of the workforce will be millennials meaning that they have only had a few years of having access to disposable income. This means that there is a lack of knowledge on how to maximise their income so it lasts until the next month. Here are a few tips to make sure you understand how to maximise the impact of your income:

Set your debit orders all for the same day

This might seem like something negative and depressing but setting all your debit orders allows you to see how much you spend on your fixed expenses so you can critique them. You can also see how much disposable income you actually have.

Have an “Oh Snap” Account

An “Oh Snap” account is a fail-safe account that you only tap into when something goes wrong and “Oh Snap, now I have to use my money”. As a rule of thumb, you should be able to save 10% of your monthly income into a savings account.

Understand what Zero means

A lot of people fall into the trap of using overdraft facilities and so forth and thinking that it is actually money that you have. In actuality, that is money that you have borrowed from your bank. Understand how to income and expenses easily by downloading Old Mutual’s 22seven app. https://www.22seven.com

Last but not least,

If your company doesn’t pay for your lunch, you shouldn’t either

Don’t get me wrong, going out to lunch with colleagues is always fun but don’t do it every day. Rather make a sandwich. Or take leftovers from the previous day and heat them up during lunch. You could save, on average, R800 ($55) per month just by taking that extra 10 minutes in the morning to pack a sandwich.

If you’re an HR manager or just someone who wants to know more, look at more of our insightful blog posts like these at: https://www.istratgo.co.za/blog/