Is there a smart way to save?

Babe, why have you stopped posting on your blog?
When is your next post?
What are you going to write about?

All these and more were questions I got during the week. I want to use this opportunity to thank everyone who has come to this blog to read my posts. I also want to implore you to help share with your friends and family(after all, the more the merrier, or don't you think so?) Smiles...................

So let's get back to the matter.................

Of the discussions I had with people, one thing stood out for me, the second greatest excuse people give after "I don't earn enough to save from" is "I don't have the discipline to save in the bank, and not withdraw from it". Frankly, this was shocking, but then I realised that some people would rather keep things( money inclusive) out of their reach in order to keep it safe.

So when I got answers like " If I save in my bank account, I will be tempted to withdraw when I want to buy something soooo bad".  I decided to give at least 3 ways in which people can save without drawing from it.

Kindly see them below:

                                                  

• Start an 'escrow' account:  In this case, you designate a 3rd party whom you trust as the keeper of your money. Every month, you deposit your savings into this account, guarded by the trusted party. Under no circumstance will the person give you the money. The agreement should be such that, it takes a long process for you to collect your money when you need it, so you are discouraged to want to collect the money anytime you think you need funds, In a situation, where you don't have a 3rd party whom you trust, open a bank account solely for this purpose (this is what I do). Please make sure that, you have no easy access to withdrawing funds from this account, but you can deposit into the account with ease (smiling). This makes it easy for you to pool funds together.If you think, you don't have the discipline to do this without being tempted to withdraw funds, then the following two are for you:

• Esusu savings: This is similar to "Ajo" or local contributions. You join an esusu club/society, where you make monthly contributions, and also gain unlimited access to credit loans (similar to a microfinance). In this case, you can get easy loans, at cheaper interest rates, and can also keep contributing monthly(effectively killing two birds with one stone). This also helps because the funds are not with you, and you can't withdraw as you wish (tongue out), especially if it's to buy that new pair of shoes.

• Ajo: This is the last option, I will be posting tonight. It's also a form of local contribution, which can be done daily or monthly. The contributors then reap/pack the proceeds of the contributions according to a schedule which has been agreed on. The good part of this is that it helps keep your money, but only for a short while. The down side is that you can decide to 'blow' your proceeds from the contributions all at once, when you collect it.You can also decide to invest the proceeds into something meaningful. Again, this depends on you, and your needs.

So, is there any best way to save? I say: Not really. In the end, it's your decision to make. You choose what savings pattern works best for you. All that matters is that you save consistently.

It is important for me to also point out that we should save at least 10% of our income consistently. If we can do more than 10%, well then......... By all means let's do it. We all need to get to a point where saving doesn't become a big deal to us. Where saving becomes routine. It is at the point, we can now begin to think bigger than we always have.

I'll stop my epistle here today.

Till next time.

One Love!!!!!!!!1