6 Money Mistake You Should Avoid If You Want To Be Financially Free No 6 Will Chock You

In this article, we will be highlighting the 6 money mistakes everyone should avoid if they really want to be financially free in 2019 and beyond.

Money is something that is very crucial to our everyday living as it forms the bases to how we are able to meet our needs. Money is needed in virtually everything we do or need.

From the basic amenities of human beings which includes food, clothes and shelter to living a luxury life where you are able to afford whatsoever you need all boils down to money.

Most people focus solely on how to make money but don’t care much on how the money is been spent. This is the major reason why lots of people are in debts.

If we look around us, we will be able to point out one or two people in our neighbourhood who sometimes ago used to have money but now it is just as if the money developed wings and flew away.

This is as a result of carelessness.

I have a question to ask.

Have you ever received money and after a couple of days or weeks the money has finished and when you sit down to evaluate how the money was spent, you found out that you did not do anything really useful with it? Well, that can be said to be a money mistake.

Making money and spending it recklessly has never benefited anyone. But it has only made people broke and live in past glory “I used to have money” and like the pidgin proverb that says “I get am before no be property”.

Most people have a mindset that if they are able to make more money they would be able to escape falling into the money mistake hole but that is false, if you are unable to set your priorities straight and develop a working strategy for money it would be like pouring water into a basket. 

As we start the second quarter of the year 2019 and for everyone that is ready to be financially free this is the best time for you to start making good financial decisions.

Here are the 6 Money mistakes you should avoid if you want to be financially free

1. Having No Financial Plan

The number one money mistake most people make is spending as they receive. Most people feel it is useless to have a financial plan as they find it very difficult to stick with. The truth is if you don’t draw out a plan or what is called a  budget you will not be able to keep track of your money. For you to be able to achieve financial success, you must have a plan. With a plan, you will be able to know the thing things you need and want. The moment you receive your salary you should first sit down to outline those things that are important for you and your family. making your financial plan as simple as possible will help you stay focus so as to achieve it.

  2. Having No Savings

Believe me, nothing is guaranteed not even your job and with the situation of the economy of the country if anyone is going to escape the recession you must imbibe the culture of saving. This may not be easy as the money you earn might not be able to meet your need which is why if you are just starting out, I advise you start with a little fraction of your salary. Example let’s say you earn ₦100,000 and because of the bills you need to pay and other things you need to take care of, you can start by saving ₦3,000 a month.

This might look small but let’s do a little maths if you start saving ₦3,000 from January, by December you would have saved ₦36,000 and in 5 years you would have saved ₦180,000. This is extra money you can use to start a business or solve any other problem that may arise.   

3. Living Above Your Means

I see this a lot around my neighborhood and it is more common with your people. Everybody wants to live flashily they want to wear the latest fashion, drive a luxury car and travel the world. The mistake take make is not realizing that their present financial state can’t foot the bill. The moment you find out that your outflow is more than your inflow you are living above your means. When this happens, there would be no room for savings and you will find yourself running into more debt.

The best way out of this is to stop looking at what others are doing and focus on yourself. Whatever amount you earn to make a budget for it and stick to it. With time, you would be able to afford everything you need.

4. Investing Blindly

Like the popular saying “you use money to make money” investing is a way you can use to make more money. The negative side of investing is investing blindly. On regular bases, we see investment opportunities and most people just jump into it without even knowing what they are going into. In Nigeria, lots of people have lost their money to invest in Ponzi schemes without taking time to educate themselves on how it works. All they focus on is the huge return on investment and they are ready to put in their life savings. Investing is the best thing anyone can do with their money but you will have to first get the basic knowledge on whatever you intend to put your money into. If you are investing in a company let’s say coca cola, you will have to first do a proper research on the company so you don’t lose your money at the end of the day. if it’s a product you intend to invest in, make sure you do market research in other to ascertain if people are searching for that product or not.

   5. Late Investment

When it comes to investing, now is the best time to invest. Due to fear lots of people have delayed that chances of investing which would have brought great return on investment. There is no reward without risk which is why you should start investing as soon as you have a reasonable amount of money set aside. Looking at MMM, you can tell that those who invested in it early made a good amount of money while does who invested late where the once who lost their money. You can start investing your money in shares, stocks, mutual funds, real estate etc. the key to investing is making sure that you get the right knowledge of the business you are about to invest in.

6. The Little Things That Takes Our Money

There are certain things that we spend our money on that looks simple but takes our money. The number one thing is the data subscription. A lot of people spend all day on social media and this can only be possible when you subscribe. The average Nigerian spends over ₦2,000 on data subscription. I am not saying it is bad but you should learn to cut down on the amount you spend on data. Another thing that takes our money is food.

Eating outside is inevitable most especially when you go to work, the least you have to spend on feeding at work most times may be ₦500 which might to look much but little things do add up. Let’s do a little maths if you spend ₦500 on feeding at work, it will amount to ₦2,500 a week, ₦10,000 a month and over ₦120,000 a year. This is not to include breakfast and dinner. For you to be able to cut down on the amount you spend on feeding, you will have to cut down on the number of times you eat at work. if you are able to prepare food and take to work it will also help. For me, I imbibe the 101 method which involves either eating only breakfast and dinner or launch and dinner. You should focus on what works best for you.