Let’s face it. This pandemic due to the Corona Virus brought the global economy to a halt, sending panic mode to every individual, rich and the not-so-rich alike. With the closing of companies greatly affected due to the lockdown, how can the average Juan de la Cruz survive it all?
On the bright side, the pandemic opened opportunities for people to venture into doing side hustles for extra income. A lot of my friends (including me), became online sellers to make ends meet.
Now in its 2nd year and slowly getting up, we can now get back to our habit of saving for another rainy day to come. Emergencies arise once in a while and we should be financially prepared. But how and where do we start, albeit from scratch, to save under the new normal so to speak?
Mommshies, I had to chance to listen to Ms. Izza Glino of savingspinay.ph and I would like to share with you here her very insightful words about the subject. As we all know, judging also from my own experience, it is very hard to save money especially if you have only little to do so. And her tips and lessons, if you will adhere to them, will help you a lot during this crucial time. Read on.
How do you save more money?
- Review your finances. Make sure that you have an idea of your current financial
situation. One way you can do this is by calculating your net worth. It is essentially the
difference between your total assets minus your total liabilities.
- Make a budget. A budget is an estimate of your income and expenses over a set period
of time. Normally done on a monthly basis, budgets work to:
○ Allocate your salary/income/money wisely
○ Know how much is coming in and going out in your cash flow
○ Identify the areas where you can spend less to save more
○ If you don’t have a budget, now is the time to create one. And if you are already
budgeting, it’s best to take a look at how you budget your money and keep it as
effective as possible.
- Track your spending. This is one of the most overlooked ways to save money especially
but, super-effective – track your spending. Record where your money goes and match it
with your prepared budget.
- Cut back on unnecessary expenses. Take a look at your recurring expenses and see where you can cut them down. Is there a particular subscription you can omit? Can you adjust your utility bills and find ways on how to conserve your water or electricity.
○ With more people stuck at home, it’s easy for our utility expenses to go high.
Make sure that you talk with the people in the household and share with them
your goal to save as well. Through proper communication, everyone will get
involved and it’s way easier to achieve your objective to save more money.
- Learn to live within your means. Living within your means doesn’t mean limiting
yourself. To live within your means is simply making necessary adjustments to maximize
the limited money/asset you have.
- Set saving goals. Set your yearly and monthly financial goals now. Goals work as
motivational tools that will keep you from building wealth instead of the other way
around. Once you have a set of clear financial goals it will be easier for you to assess
your next action lists.
- Start small and make it a habit. You don’t have to make it big at first. Always start with
a small and doable amount.
○ Psych yourself and your wallet on saving 1000 pesos every month for example.
At the end of the year, you’ll have 12,000 pesos more in your savings fund.
○ Do not force yourself to save a lot of money at once, make it as gradual as
possible so you won’t slack off midway.
- Join saving challenges. A good way to force yourself to save money each month is to
join challenges. You can try the 52-Week Money Challenge, Invisible Money Challenge,
1% Money Challenge, and so on.
- Increase your income. Our savings can be limited because of our income. Thus, try to
increase your sources of income as much as possible. Engage yourself in extra income
projects that you are passionate about. Choose a side hustle you can work on along with
your full-time job.
Where to Put Your Savings
And this is the most important question now, where should you put your savings?
Cebuana Lhuillier Micro Savings is the perfect answer to the World Savings Day call to save
more, especially for our fellow Filipinos who don’t have the means to really save.
For one, the Cebuana Lhuillier Micro Savings account can be opened for only Php 50. Cebuana Lhuillier’s Micro Savings works like normal savings account wherein you can deposit and withdraw anywhere at your most convenient time to Cebuana Lhuillier’s 2,500 branches nationwide.
Your Micro Savings account is already accredited to almost 21,000+ Bancnet ATMs nationwide for easy withdrawal. What’s amazing is you can even use your Micro Savings account to pay at any of 350,000 Unionpay and Bancnet accredited retail stores nationwide.
Last but not the least, Cebuana Lhuillier’s Micro Savings account offers a competitive interest rate of 0.20%. This is higher than other savings accounts can provide. And because there are zero to minimal fees whenever you do your transaction, your money will keep on growing. Just make sure you reach the minimum maintaining balance to earn interest which is Php 500.
I am also slowly building up my finances again and I have a few remaining bank account savings but I would like to try other platforms and it is really very timely that I chanced upon the talk given by Ms. Izza. I think I will have to go with Cebuana’s Micro Savings this time given its remarkable benefits.
So, there now Mommshies, I can say that I am going to be a proud Iponaryo with Cebuana Lhuiller’s Bank!
