Hello to all my friends!
Thank you for tuning into our podcast! I am grateful to have an audience to share and learn from.
It has now been 6 months since the first Coronavirus outbreak. Let’s take a moment of silence for the many lives that are already gone too soon due to this pandemic.
I want to encourage everyone else to practice caution and follow the health advice from the health authorities. I am praying you are doing well!
Let’s get into another interesting topic that has left so many worried around the world specially around this time.
The topic for this podcast is money. How much money do you have right now? How are you saving your money? What’s your credit score? Are you prepared financially in case of a disaster?
I want to give some pointers on how to respond better when a financial crisis hit home. The first question was how much money do you have right now? This question will have different answers depending on your financial ability and your finance education. Some people have less than others and this is ok too. You don’t have to compete with anyone. This is your future no one else’s.
There’s a Haitian proverb saying: “Mezi lajan w’, mezi wangan w’. Kwoke makout ou kote menw ka rive” meaning your money’s worth, your merchandises’ worth.
I want you to get in the habit of putting your bag where your hands can reach it. Always be mindful of how much you have so you can spend and save accordingly.
The popular 50-30-20 budgeting method recommends you reserve 50 percent for your bills, 30 percent for other spending, and 20 percent toward your savings. You can save more but it is not recommended that you save less. I believe if anyone would practice this method, it will definitely help in a moment of despair. There are several other methods that you can research online as well. The most important thing is that you are headed in the right direction.
The second question is how are you saving your money? There are many ways that you can save your money. You can put it in a savings account that you can get interest paid toward your dividend, invest to the stock market or invest toward your retirement. For savings, I recommend listening to Dave Ramsey. He has a YouTube channel with very good advice on savings and getting yourself out of debt. You can also take advantage of his Financial Peace University. I like his view on money because it’s not just for the rich it’s for the everyday blue-collar workers as well.
If you have a bank account, I recommend having a checking and savings account. That way you can split your everyday spending up from your emergency fund.
If you are just starting out or don’t have much to contribute, you might want to consider the old school method of putting your money in a jar or piggy bank until you are financially sound enough to bank with a major institution. Also, the community banks provide free checking and saving accounts when you don’t have a steady income but still need digital banking.
The third question was what’s my credit score? You can find out about your score right now on annualcreditreport.com. Federal law allows you to get one free credit report from each of the three national credit reporting companies (the Experian® Bureau, Equifax®, and TransUnion®) once every 12 months through a central source. You can also use a popular mobile app called Credit Karma available on both iOS and Android devices. It offers free credit monitoring, tools and education, and member reviews.
The last question is are you prepared in case of a financial disaster? I believe if you are able to answer yes and have funds from the previous two questions, there is no need to worry about your financial future. Now if your answer was no to the previous two questions it’s ok but we have some work to do. Remember to who much is given much is expected. I’ve given you the knowledge and tools to work on your financial future. Set goals and try to achieve them.
This wraps up today’s podcast. In our next series, we will talk on the value of your credit score, how to maintain it, and being a wise stewardship with your credit cards. Do you know any tools you want to share with us? Don’t hesitate writing us online or share on our social pages your recommendations.
I hope you will find these tips useful and share with others.
Let’s listen to “For the love of money” from The O’ Jays (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll3uipTO-4A) as I am closing.
Until next time your friend, mentor, and brother.
Kedler
- Hello to all my friends! Thank you for tuning into our podcast! I am grateful to have an audience to share and learn from. It has […]
