HOW TO SAVE MONEY FOR A YEAR

A wise man once said that you should "spend what is left after saving, not save what is left after spending"

Saving money is a very good thing, it is your saviour in time of lack and want. I am an advocate of saving money. Irrespective of how much you earn daily, it is essential for you to save something because...

 "Saving money saves you from scum, slum and scam"

There are several categories of people that saves money and their methods are different, as a Nigerian, I know you are aware of these methods but I'd like to show you a few methods that people use in saving money in this country.

Saving in Bank
Saving money in the bank has been proven to be the widest, safest and most secure way of saving money, and this has actually helped the banks to gain more prominence in the world generally. I'm sure if anyone mentioned that he or she had saved a certain amount of money, you'll have no hesitation to think that he/she was able to accomplish that with the help of the bank.

I love to save money in the bank too, in fact it is the best way as far as I am concerned, but then I realized that something was wrong the day I figured out that the rate at which I withdraw money from my bank account is actually not helping me accumulate the money but reduces it.

When you save in the bank, it is easier for you to withdraw, especially now that the automated teller machine (ATM) is available everywhere. It is also easy to purchase goods and services online because you have access to online/internet banking, which I discovered many of us buy things we really do not need for the now. So we end up purchasing things that doesn't really add value to our lives at the moment but we spend more because the money appears in figure and we don't really feel the implications even when we receive the debit alert until the money is withdrawn to remain a little amount left in the bank, then it dawned on us that we've spent more than we needed.…LOL

Saving in the Pockets 
Sometimes, we tend to keep money in our pockets where we have access and can easily take a reasonable amount to purchase whatever we want. People sometimes save money in their pocket not because they want to spend it, they just fear that saving in the bank is not safe, hence they save it at home by looking for one of their trousers or any cloth with a pocket. This method is not safe at all, as you can easily take the money, even an outsider who intrudes your house can take the money from your pocket, if he/she discovers that you save money there. Sad uhn?

Saving by Burying
Some people bury money by wrapping it up in a polythene bag, in a box and even in pot.
The danger about this method is that anyone can dig the same spot you saved the money. If it takes a while before visiting where you kept the money, there might have been some development on the land and you don't get to have access to it anymore. So be careful.

Saving with a friend/family/elder
This category was actually a bad experience for me, because I can remember I saved some money with an elder I was staying with some years ago, with the believe that I will spend the money on my admission to the higher institution but when the time came for me to collect my money and use it for the main course, I was denied access, and I almost died. (no joke)
So, in this case, trust is the major issue and we all know that whenever money is involved in a transaction, there is tendency for one party to fail and betray the other, so be careful when you save money with people, it's not safe.

Joint contribution
If every human on earth was truthful, faithful and everyone has the other's back, then it will be difficult to sly another, then this type of saving would have been the best as it help you meet up your demand and needs as at the time you need it, to use it whenever it pleases you.

But overtime, there has been series of cases where people tend to have a joint savings with other people and the collection rotates but when it gets to one of the people who is cruel and do not have the interest of the other people at heart, he/she runs away with the money, leaving the other people stranded. Too bad!

Keeping money in a piggy bank, iron/wooden/moulded safe.
This method is quite good and I endorse it, because using this method to save, you don't get to withdraw it anytime you want except if you are breaking it. Which I'm sure you know it's bad. For a very long time, I practiced this method

Saving online
Online saving is also a good way to keep your money in the hands of trusted bodies, organisation and companies. But what happens when the company liquidates, how do you get your money back?
Most times people don't even make proper research to know where the company is, if they have any physical office, whether they are registered or not, how they operate and all. I have been in this category before and I knew what I faced. So, be careful.

Now to the order of the day…

How to save money for a year without any interruption.

Purpose - Why do you want to save the money? You should ask yourself to know the purpose for your savings. Because without a proper reason to save and plan towards it, then you are bound to withdraw the money at anytime.

Commitment - When saving money, you must be committed to the business, no matter how difficult it may seem, you must always endeavour to save everyday, no matter how little, no matter how difficult things may be, you must save something.

Plan - You should know how much you want to save on a daily basis and work hard towards saving the money, there are days when it may seem difficult to save the stipulated amount, just do whatever you can to save whatever you have. As part of my proposed plan for this year, imagine saving 300 naira for the next 365 days, that's about 109,500 naira.
Have you ever thought of it?

Discipline and self control - When saving money, there is always a rise in temptation. You will be tempted to stop saving and use the money you have at hand for only God knows what reason. Sometimes you will be tempted to withdraw from what you've saved but until you are able to control yourself and remain firm and steadfast in your savings you may not be able to accomplish the task. So keep to your word, keep to your rule and be disciplined.

So, irrespective of where you want to save, consider the risk and the chances of you getting your money back before embarking on the journey, then follow the steps above and crown it up by having some self control in your savings and you will thank yourself later.

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