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How much money will satisfy our desire for
wealth? Where would we
spend
the money and how would we spend it? There are
many ways to spend money and
I am sure that at a certain point, we would feel
that it
would never be enough. The
big question is can we spend money and at the
same time save? The answer is yes
we can but we need to take into account several
factors. First, we must plan our expenses.
Parents draw up a family budget every
month so that they will have some extra money
saved for a rainy day.
Planning
means setting aside a fixed sum from the
income to
pay for utility bills, the house
rent or loan, the car loan, food, children's
allowances, school fees, medication or
hospital bills, clothes, and entertainment. The
balance is saving. Saving is important
and children should be taught to save a part of
their allowance from a young age.
They should
be taught to spend money on healthy food and
drinks, stationery and
not on video games and other unnecessary items.
Different people have different
plans for their money but everything depends on
income and expenses.
Next, it is important to keep track of our
money even if we do not earn
much. Recording and updating expenses will keep
us from spending unnecessarily.
Students, for example, can keep a journal of
their daily expenses on food, drinks
and books while a housewife can similarly keep
one to track her grocery shopping
expenses. Both parties will then be able to keep
tabs on their monthly expenses
and at the end of the month, doing an analysis
will reveal if there was unnecessary
spending or the budget was successfully
followed.
It is also important that we should spend
according to our means.
This is
crucial if we do not want to end up with a lot
of debt or turn into a shopaholic.
It is good to spend moderately and buy only when
items are needed. We should compare prices and
opt for items when the best bargains are
offered, perhaps
during a sale. It is always prudent practice to
be alert to price discounts and best
offers before purchasing anything.
Further, there is nothing better than to save
a penny a day that will help one
on a rainy day. It is important to have savings
because we may suddenly require
money to pay a hospital bill or for some
medication or respond to children's needs.
We need to have spare cash for emergency
situations and this will stop us from
asking for money from relatives, friends or
neighbours. In addition, we should also
start early and save for our retirement.
It is important that we educate ourselves and
our children on how to handle
money wisely. Parents are the best role models
for their children to learn about
moderate spending, budgeting and saving.
They should
be taught the value of
money and should know how hard it is to earn a
living. They should know what is
important and what is not and how to
differentiate from affordable, extravagant,
luxurious and cheap.
In conclusion, our attitude towards money is
important. We must be able
to appreciate the value of money and adopt
prudent spending habits if we are to
enjoy spending money, and at the same time be
smart enough to save. |
