It's Time!

How to make it through the tough times

The economy is as stable as a beach whale in a balance beam. It’s another 3 weeks before your next payday and you fear for the global economy, your career, personal finances and what not. What’s a Juan dela Cruz gotta do?

1.Panic NOT. Whether or not you panic, the issue will remain to be the same and it will not help at all. Panic disrupts proper thinking and might worsen your personal financial state.

2.Save while you can. They say that the safe, least amount of savings a person should have, in case of sudden unemployment or illness is at least 3 months’ salary worth of savings. If you belong to the group who does, never waste the chance to automate a part of your salary to an account. Some local banks offer automatic savings scheme, and there is also the matter of using this savings to pool money for Mutual Funds. This doesn’t only “push” you to save, your savings get to earn more.

3.Quality versus Quantity. The common notion that more is more is not entirely true all the time. If you invest in quality items, may it be for household, business needs, personal or investment alike, the duration will always be better than items you purchase in a giveaway price.

4.Do away with the expensive non-needs. Like carpark carwash services. When it has been advised over and over again that it’s the little things that drain savings away, it’s true. The “latte factor” is not a popular theory for nothing.

5.Stay away from the sharks. Credit cards, if not paid full and promptly become loan sharks, just like personal loans that’s gone awry. Minimize your CC use, or keep it to zilch. Pay everything, cut everything up but one. The last one keep in the fridge. If a matter of life and death comes along, at least you have a lifeline — after 5 minutes of waiting for it to thaw, that is.

6.Enough of the mental talk. So you promised mentally that you will pay yourself next payday, cause you really gotta, gotta have the newest gadget in stores. You bet your friend’s head and yet, come payday, you have yet another wish. While it is good to always pay yourself, it also encourages you to spend more. Buy only the basics.

7.Buy low, sell high. When prices go down, the uninformed ones usually race to redeem shares, not knowing the implications of this action. When your share prices go down, it will not be truly realized until you redeem it. Remember, investments are worth the long wait and were not made for you to be rich tomorrow.

8. Choose to be protected. Review your medical coverage, health insurance benefits and see what you can avail of in times of need. Make sure your investments serve multi-purposes and can save you from the worse days ahead.

Author: Patricia Galvez