Salary Earners: 5 ways to curtail overspending

Yippee! It is month-end, salary enters, everyone is happy. Sneak peek into the next week, ALAS. Your account is swimming in red. Then your mind starts flashing back, what did I order? An iPhone X or a trip to the Mediterranean? A Friday night out with boys? Or the new baby boy in the garage?

It could get worse when you deduct your transport allowance and there is hardly anything left in your account except bunches of zeros and minus zeros. Not even a one to complement the zeros. If this is your story every month and specifically, this December, then smile. You have come to the right bus-stop.

Here are five ways to curtail overspending for salary earners:

Use the list: Definitely not the ministerial list. Using a list requires you to make a list of all your expenses against your income. That being done, you rearrange that list according to your scale of preference- what is most important so that you don’t overspend your income. This way, you only spend on what is necessary.

Invest: Make no mistake; money that lies fallow will never grow. So make use of Federal Government bonds and invest! Investing means that you are willing to take a risk with your money. Saving money alone doesn’t guarantee any growth rate. Take a financial adventure, try stocks, bonds, shares that are very safe and place your money. An honest risk with a little fund will change your worldview.

Fixed Deposit: If you want to be as conservative as Rohr, no; like a few friends that can’t take any risk, fixed deposit isn’t a bad idea. Or if you hate to lose money (and watch in horror as you are branded on the news as a top loser which you can always recover from), look no further- fixed deposit is your answer. You can also do better by identifying key fin-tech start-ups that offer a plan where money can be saved for a little while longer with interest after the gestation or agreed period.

Divert your money into a separate account: Now, money cannot be saved or spent if it is not safe from you. Yes, you the income provider. If you whine over how money cannot stay in your hand or account, and how pressed you are to withdraw every second you perceive chicken and chips, glance through an ad on snickers, definitely your money is not safe from you. Therefore no matter how much you invest, you still end up ignoring your list and buying barbecue.

How do you solve this emergency? • With a separate bank account. To make money safe from you as a big magnanimous spender, get a new account with a no-withdrawal policy. • This account must never have an ATM or even a Chequebook. Yeah, you read this right. • Set up scrutiny over the account that every time you have to withdraw, you get a date with your account officer. • Also make sure that account operates on a standing order policy, in the sense that when you get alert, money is automatically sent to this different account with no ATM or Chequebook.

You can bet that this is good advice. Throwing the key to your account in the sea. It’s harsh, but you will thank us later. Yes you will.

Always ask why: We have suggested a plethora of methods to keep your money safe from you. However, if you don’t self-regulate, money will be unaccounted for. And you know the popular proverb, money has wings. • So checkmate yourself. Debate with yourself. Would you rather take that KFC Chicken bucket over the frozen chicken in your fridge at home, which is quite healthy?

Always ask why. This way, you bring your pawns to the chessboard and checkmate yourself.

Money grows wings. It is your responsibility to get the wings that will last the longest than breaking down in the middle of the road, asking for help.