It’s resumption week for schools and a lot of parents are possibly finding it hard to manage their income and taking care of their families.
On #WakeUpNigeria this morning, Habiba Balogun who is a consultant talked on how to make proper budgets and make financial life easier.
She started off by explaining budget as weighing life goals with financial plans; looking at your income, expenditure and every money spent.
She importantly noted that there are two basic mistakes which people make which are;
- The first is that they only calculate their salary as their income which is not. She explained that every money that comes in including tips and others are considered as income.
- The second mistake she mentioned is that people calculate how much they spend on big things only as expenditure leaving out NEPA bills, the ones they borrow out and all. “Every thing money goes out on, including ‘saving’ are your expenditure” she said
She went on and likened money to rain which comes and goes out any time. She said:
“Money is like rain, some goes into the gutters and other places. It comes in and it goes out anytime. Other people are planning for your money. The proprietor of your children’s school, the petrol filling station, the telecommunication industry and so on. You should plan to keep your money too if not you will be a victim. Budget helps you to know how much you spend and how to manage your spending. If you don’t budget, you will run out of money which will bounce back on your children and family.
Advertisement
She concluded by giving rules to follow on budgeting which are:
- First rule:- Write it down. You can type on your phone or write on a notepad.
- Second rule:- Track your spending. Analyse all about your expenditure, that is, all you spend on or all money goes out for. “Your savings is part of your expenditure” she added.
- Third rule:- Stick to your budget.
She advised that ” If you will go out of budget, you need to weigh it well and think about the end result. You can help people but think about how much you can afford to give”
