How to Take Control of Your Finances

Have you noticed that as your income grows, so thus your expenses?  Have you been wondering why it seems you cannot save money despite increasing your source of income? How do you take control of your finances and achieve financial freedom?

I am a single dad with 3 kids and for so long these are the questions that I ask myself.  Today, I will share with you some of the lessons I found out and learned about.

Let You Be In Control

Most people would create a budget for all expenses first whenever they have an income and then the remainder will be savings.  This creates a problem since some of the budgets we are making might not actually be needed in the budget, thus it will affect our savings.

If you want to take control of your finances, the first thing to do is set an amount in percentage or fixed that will be allocated to savings.  After setting aside this amount then you budget the remained for all the expenses.

“Minimalism isn’t about removing things you love. It’s about removing the things that distract you from the things you love,” says Joshua Becker. True. And so we simplify. The lockdown has proven that we may have too much stuff we do not need. Owning less is better than organizing more.   #PassionPurposeProductivity - Francis Kong

Now, what if, it's not enough for the expenses? You should identify which expenses are really needed and which expenses can actually be removed from your budget.  Some expenses that are fixed include utility bills like water, electricity, and internet. Even if they are fixed, however, you can still cut some costs from them through planning a productive utilization by avoiding wastage.

How about a recreation and entertainment budget like Netflix, gaming, etc?  Ask yourself if you need them and if you have an extra budget for this? It can seem not a need but in times of pandemic, it can really be a need to preserve your mental health and avoid stress.  Be sure to account for what is needed and what is excess.

Achieve Freedom from Debt

Freedom from debt does not mean that you will totally avoid debt, it means that you should take control of it and manage them without being stressed out. You need to get out of debt that is controlling your life, what you should do is take control of it and make use of debt to achieve financial freedom.

Remember that if you will take a loan to check on how much you can really afford to pay.  Make enough room for you to move freely and don't forget that your target savings should always be your number one priority.

Debt should never control you.  Like what I always do and put in mind that it is better, to be honest about your situation to the creditors.  Tell them what is happening and how they can help. Do not make false promises which you cannot fulfill because this will only make them doubtful about your capacity to pay.

If you plan to apply for Credit Cards, remember to be responsible.  Instruments like these can put you in a lot of debt problems if you are not responsible.  Only use them when needed and again, be sure to check your capacity to repay your credit card debts. I do not actually recommend people to have credit cards because you can easily mismanage them.

Money is Meant to Be Spent and Invested

I believe that money is meant to be spent, it is not something that should make you uncomfortable or stressed.  Spend money on things that bring memory, happiness, and joy to you and the people you treasure.

"Transform your personal, professional, and financial life so you can be the best version of yourself." - Chinkee Tan

Invest money for the future which is unforeseen.  Save so that when difficult times come you have the money to spend. While you should not always worry about the future, you should prepare for it and make necessary investments.

Talk to people who are knowledgeable about investments.  Study investments first before putting your money there.  For example, there is a lot of news about Cryptocurrency especially Axie but is it right for you?  Study them well.  Know the risk and ask yourself if you are for that and if you can commit time.

You can also check and follow people that are deemed experts in investing like Chinkee Tan or Francis Kong. Learn from them and put what you learn into practice.

Thanks for reading and I hope you will take control of your finances and live a fulfilling life every dya.