Have You Planned for Your Retirement yet? (2)

After the release of Have You Planned for Your Retirement (1) there are a lot of feedback on this topic, therefore I’ve decided to continue with part 2.

For those that have missed out the first part, here is the link:
http://www.stevengoh.com/lifestyle/have-you-planned-for-your-retirement-yet-1/

On the first chapter, we had discussed about the biggest monetary wastes:

• Extravagant dining
• Gambling
• “Premium” coffees
• Cigarettes
• Credit card interest

For this chapter, we will be talking about budgeting and controlling

Budgeting for necessities

A budget helps us to identify where we are overspending on necessities. Have you asked these questions upon your spending?

Food

• Do you do your supermarket shopping without a list?
• Do you choose where you shop?
• Do you shop when you’re hungry?
• Do you make use of coupons or loyalty cards?

Electricity

• Do you have the habit of leaving light on all the time?
• Do you leave all your room doors open when the air-conditioner is on?
• Do you use high efficiency bulbs?

Petrol (Most of the people are having this problem, inclusive Bb community, Merdurian and myself.)

• Do you jump into your car three times a day just to run errands?
• Do you pump petrol on a really hot day?
• Do you need to change your fuel guzzler to a more economical car?

A budget helps you to develop a healthier attitude towards money. There are three things you can do to start an attitude change immediately:

Start prudent bill payments

• Pay your bills on time. Send your cheques a weeks before the due dates to avoid late and finance charges.
• If you find hard to remember, arrange for auto debit facility with bank for bill payment.
• Have you checked your bill details? Do you pay for something that you don’t recognise?

 

Manage compulsive buying behaviour

• Keep less cash in the wallet. You can’t spend what you don’t have.
• Try to purchase gift during off peak season.
• Shop with a list, avoid window-shopping to prevent impulse buying.

 

Start to save regularly

• Pay yourself first every month
• Write a cheque to yourself every time you pay your bills
• Review your cash-flow monthly statement and draw up your financial position over time.

If you constantly having problem with deposite money in saving account, maxed-out credit cards and ever-present monetary anxienties, take some time now to draw up your budget and list actions to help you change your attitude toward saving money. These small steps will ensure your long term happiness, financial security and more money at the end of the month.