Covid19 and Personal Finances

Where is your money going?

When total lockdowns started happening, so many things came to a stop. Movements were restricted except for personnel going to buy home groceries.

People normally spend their money on things like entertainment, concerts, etc. But for now all that has been shut down. People now need to use this time to educate themselves rather than be entertained.

The question I would ask now is, Where is your money going? Are you saving more or there is nothing to save at all since it is basically survival for now?

I read an article from CBC, entitled 'I'm spending way less': The caption says that the lockdown is leading to more savings for some Canadians. I don't know how it is for you wherever you are and in whatever country. Surely back here in Uganda, so many things have slowed down and I could say on a personal note, I have saved on travel since I can only walk or drive somedays to the nearest supermarket. I last fuelled the car with $27.

In their article Max Miller said, she is spending less with the exception of groceries but most of her discretionary expenses are almost zero. Another person, Jo-ann Trunzo said, their account balance was much higher and that they realized they don't go out for dinner or shopping and that it's amazing to realize how much money you spend that you really don't need too. For some people, I also know their account balance could be less or non-existent since they work every day and it's a hand to mouth affair. There are people who don't even have emergency savings at all. This situation has hit hard in so many places world over.

What I have Heard Other Households Say

When the Lockdown was looming, people went into panic buying and I remember telling people to buy but to also know that what they buy would eventually get spent. However, the word SAVE has resonated on the mouths of people, others have said, we won't waste. In Uganda, people have a practice of throwing away food and this is because we know we have plenty of it. But that attitude of wastefulness can hurt in the long run especially in hard times like this. 

Some of the people I know have chosen to plant food in empty plots or in sacks around their homes, some have learned how to bake bread, cakes, etc. so that they don't have to buy it from the grocery store. We only hope that this will become the new normal however, we also know that old habits die hard but it will take serious discipline.

So right now it would be good to ask yourself, where can I put the monies I had previously budgeted for. For me personally, I am thinking of putting my travel money into an investment like myxeno.com so that it can be invested. Travel money has been one of my biggest expenditures. You know we have to move from saving to investing, I am quite certain so many people know how to save, but to grow wealth the game-changer comes in investing. 

Many of us are baby boomers, Millenials and we can't let the consumer mentality continue to rob us. The good thing is the Lockdown doesn't require us to dress our best to show off, doesn't require us to drive to show off, right now is a time for mindset shifts and it would be good 

"Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use." - Earl Nightingale

Time To Restrategize 

• If you can pay off your debt.
• Convert your time into tangible products, Jim Rohn once said, "Time is more valuable than money, you can get more money but you cannot get more time"
• Determine what your needs are and focus on them, cut off wants for now.
• Grow your own food, if you can, it's high time we started using empty containers to grow food especially here in Uganda.
• Start thinking long term by putting aside money to invest, if you don't know where or what to invest in, save the money in myxeno.com because at least it won't just be saving but it will grow since it will be invested.
• Start envisioning your future post covid19, life won't be the same, there will be a new normal, somethings will change for good but what needs to change with you is your attitude towards money and how you will beat the trap of consumerism. Many people have realized that there are many things they don't need that are stacked up in their house and this is the time to declutter.

Invest In A High-Income Skill

More than ever, you and I need to invest in a high-income skill, we need to learn more about money than ever before. Dan Lok once said we don't have a money problem, we have a skill problem. A high-income skill comes through learning and applying what you have learned. It's not good enough for us to have all the knowledge on money and not use it. It is like theoretically knowing how to drive but never getting into the car to actually drive it.

Keep Those Promises, They Are Building Blocks To Succeeding In Your Venture

Keep those little promises

Successful people understand that every time you break the promises you make to yourself, you feed your identity as an impostor and weaken your self-confidence as a person of action. - Julian Hayes

I love sharing experiences about different things but I am drawn quite a number of times to this thing called money. Money is so crazy a thing that people will lie or work hard and smart to get it, it can be used to empower communities or to manipulate them. It continues to be one of the most talked about things, people are grinding everyday in tough economies, they go to bed thinking about how they can make more or how they can just survive or even how they use it to build generational wealth.

I am a lover of planning, lover of making budgets but I do fall short just like anyone else and many times I know that because I did those right things, they set me up to succeed in one thing or the other. The problem comes when you start breeding familiarity, when you start saying I already know what to do or when you start saying I will do the plan in my head. 

Experience teaches us that it is always good to document because it becomes easy to follow up with what has been clearly written down in a defined and understandable manner. We have had this truth said before, write down your vision, so that those who see it will run with it. People who plan are people who prepare and those who don't are worse than animals who at least know what to do.

Julian Hayes makes some resounding statements in his quote, he says that successful people understand that every time you break promises you make to yourself, you feed your identity as an impostor, this got me thinking, how many times do I say I will save this amount of money, I will invest in this or that and end up not doing a thing at all. 

Our desire to not follow through with some of these habits we know have worked well over time has cost us a lot, we become complacent and keep postponing what we know will definitely build bridges that we and the generations to come will cross on. 

When it comes to money, I do encourage us to get back to the basics, seek to read, seek to understand, seek to make plans that you will act on, if we do that we can win and be successful. Remind yourself that you are the difference between success and failure because you are the one who will call the shots.

#Transform #Impact #Empower

Why Being Goal Oriented Is Still Important – part 2

On the 5^th of February 2016, I posted an article titled “Why Being Goal Oriented Is Still Important”.

It’s one thing to set a goal and another to work it. Goal setting is like making a marriage proposal and committing yourself to walk through the journey of love in both the good and bad times, choosing to love no matter what, adjusting and changing yourself to accommodate the other person in your life. It takes work, time and commitment to realize what you put your heart into.

“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible” – Anthony Robbins

As I had written in that article, my wife and I had the goal to build our home however we knew that for us to have a home, we needed a plot of land. We were able to get the land in our first year of marriage. It really took us making some deep sacrifices, we chose to live a modest lifestyle, nothing flashy but still happy within our means.

“If you don't have any goals in life, it is high time you start thinking of some and start living by them, you will live a life of purpose and bring fulfillment not only to yourself but also to those around you” – Arthur Kmo

Moved into our home

On the 8^th of April 2018, My wife, children and I moved into our home. The home is not done up to standard however the basics of power, water, plastered, undercoat painting, windows, doors, and roof are all there. We thank God for enabling us to get to where we are. His word says you shall build homes and live in them. We took that in the literal sense believed, worked hard, putting money aside so that we could be able to do what he promised in his word.

As we live in our home now. We know very well that the home needs maintenance, bills still need to be paid for but we also know that we aren’t under any pressure to pay rent. One of the things that pushed us to leave was the fact that rent had gone up and we told ourselves that we would rather use the rent money to keep doing finishing bit by bit.

You can not develop without a loan

I grew up knowing that for development like building a home to happen. It was impossible to do this without a debt. Almost everyone who said that, after doing some research, many of them have never really had a saving culture. What I heard is that you can only get a loan to invest in an income-generating asset or build a home. However I read up on some who have done that impossibility and I realized how frugal they were, how they patiently multiplied their income by creating other streams. I chose to follow the advice of the latter. I even read in the bible, that the borrower is a slave to the lender, I told myself that the only way I won't be a slave is to avoid debt at all costs.

Life is indeed about lifestyle choices. I strongly believe what Dave Ramsey teaches about personal finance. He says that it is 80% behavior and 20% head knowledge. We did and continue to do a lot of reading it has helped a lot. We surely live in an economy where the urge to borrow is so strong. Debt is sold to us at the highest level possible. While driving your car, you will hear all sorts of adverts pulling you to go get a bank loan. We get so happy while getting the loan but are so gloomy while paying it back. I agree that loans have helped very many people develop, but my story is different, my wife and I made some hard sacrifices to make sure that our home was 98% debt-free. We got some money here and there to push us, but we are grateful for what we have, the state it’s in, we shall only get better. This experience has taught us the value of working together, saving together and putting these ideas into reality. It is possible to develop at your pace without debt if you can avoid it please do if you can't seek as much advice as possible so that you can get good rates and understand what kind of agreement you are getting into with the bank. So many people who have used their loans well and put it to good use, they are there to tell you what it takes just seek them out.

To find out some of the things my wife and I did, you will possibly need to read these articles and many more. Enjoy!

1. Invest in your mind
2. Attitude 
3. Attitude towards money and the value of work
4. Make sense of saving
5. Don't stop planning
6. Decide today
7. Pay yourself since no one is paying you
8. Deal with consumerism
9. Deal with debt

#Impact #Empower #Transform

How To Brace Yourself For Worse Economic Conditions

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay 

I have been reading a lot lately and also hearing so much about our economy in the news. We all know that the Parliament of Uganda has passed the Tax on Social Media, Mobile Money Tax, and many others.

We have come from a recent economic meltdown where a bag of cement was going for almost 40,000 UGX or $10.6, the cheapest you would get was probably 35,000 UGX or $9.28, it has reduced but it's affecting the development of infrastructure, I know of people who have put the construction on hold just because of these high costs, imagine if you wanted to move to your place, what would you do? some just go in however bad the situation is, others wait.

They say our taxation hasn't hit a high ceiling but even when you are buying a loaf of bread or fueling your car, you will realize that the normal fuel of 20,000 UGX or $5.30 can no-longer do you good like it used to, now you need 10,000 UGX or $2.65 more on top of the $5.30. We also know that there are groups that are fighting this tax tooth and nail.

We have seen political actors try to increase or double their pay, remember they don't even pay taxes but this is when we see some of them rise up like never before, this what Robert Kiyosaki said, 

"History reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis". 

Imagine the pressures in a home because certain needs can't be met, couples are failing to support one another because it's the other person's duty, my encouragement in this area is finding a way of working, for us Our Motto is "My money is her money, and her money is my money, so it is our money" this enables us to plan together. This combined force has enabled us to sail through hard times.

These economic times are going to demand a seriousness on your side like never before. If you haven't been a good planner, it might teach you to become one, if you haven't thought of passive income, that could also be an awakening, if you haven't thought of investments, it could be the time to reevaluate and cut back on consumerism. I read this statement and it made it a lot of sense 

"Man is born free, and everywhere he is in debt" - Paul Mills

The debt our country has is bad but the debt individuals have is bad too.

With all this conundrum happening in our country today, I sit back and ask myself, "Will things get any easier?" and my answer is, "I don't think so". The people managing this economy probably have forgotten where they came from. Almost every corner around Kampala or in areas that we live in has someone running a mobile money stall, some of you on this platform are affected too. Can you imagine how many will be kicked out of business especially in a time when unemployment is so high? 

While listening to Radio-one talk-back, interesting views came in concerning this issue and I agree that this tax should be scrapped however we are at the mercy of the leaders of this great nation Uganda.

In other words, I am writing to let you know that as much as the economy won't get any easier, this is also when the best entrepreneurs arise, especially when our backs are against the wall. 

Could you be that person beaming with some creative idea, my prayer is that you will stand strong and not waver. It takes hard work to prevail through certain things, don't stop digging those wells even if you are chased from one after the other, you will eventually find one and have peace with it and you draw your own water that you will use to replenish others as well.

Let me end with this quote from John Mcain

"You raise taxes during an economic crisis time, as we did in - back in the time of Herbert Hoover, you send the country into a depression "

Remember this, A FOOL SPENDS WHATEVER HE GETS (Proverbs 21:20), don't be a fool.

This is what James Abola said on 24 June 2016, principles could apply today see video

Helping The Youth Understand Personal Finance

Satisfaction Comes From Helping others

For a whole month now, I have been interacting with the youth in S.6 Vacation at Bugolobi Church. We have had an interesting talk on personal finance, the series ended yesterday and we dealt so much about habits and mindset change. The testimonies that came in yesterday were so amazing. These young guys are determined to do whatever it takes to improve in this area starting now.

Everything else is taught in school except financial literacy. I never had the opportunity of being taught about money, the only thing I would hear from my dad is that, "Money isn't picked from trees".

When we use the Jewish model of teaching the young people, we are preparing them for now and the future.

In his book, SMART MONEY, SMART KIDS, Dave Ramsey talks about a middle aged lady who walked up to him after he had just finished a seminar talk on Financial Peace. In this book he writes, 

" I’m sure as that first person—a middle-aged woman—walked up to the book table, she saw a young speaker relieved that his big speech was finished. I will never forget her comment. Holding my little book, she looked at me and said, “Dave, that was great information. Why don’t parents teach their children about money? Why don’t we teach basic money skills like this in schools? Our kids need to know this information.” "

Indeed Children, Youth, Young Adults are being taught everything else and this is one part that is almost forgotten. I believe that if we raise young people who are disciplined, corrupt tendencies will be dealt with, laziness will be dealt with etc

"From age five on, I operated on one general rule about making money: Work, get paid; don’t work, don’t get paid. That’s a basic principle that a lot of parents miss with their little kids. If a child can understand that money comes from work at age four, then she’ll be ready to hit the “real world” running at age twenty-four" -Rachel Cruze "

Nanjira Daphine, Awana Aitaa Carl Laban, Fortunate Ashabire, Joel Kadaya, Mich Mitchell are some of the young people I have had some good time with. They are already budgeting, planning, putting aside the little change, gaining skills like making bungles, T-shirts, etc

In the Picture, they were watching a short video by Myles Munroe 

Check out the video they were watching 

#Impact #Empower #Transform

Don't Stop Planning

It has been said before that if you don't plan for your money, someone else will. To get through life without a plan is just a big time tragedy.

Sometimes people will tell you, just live by faith or let life take it's course. There are so many things taking out money faster than it came in. If you don't put a front foot and have clear goals, make some sacrifices towards financial peace, then you will remain in the same pit of living from pay cheque to pay cheque or hand out to hand out.

The jobs we have keep us in limbo, we believe we are secure yet it isn't entirely true, you can be fired any time or fall sick and they can only go as far in taking care of you.

Many times you will not feel like leaving the job because it's the only source and hope you have. As you work put some money aside, have a long term plan, mind your business of becoming financially free as you work for someone or an organization.

People seek better jobs but also that is still tying yourself and freedom down, I have seen that on top of the list of job seekers that many of us are, we keep looking at a bigger bank account yet we remain in-disciplined in planning and being faithful with the little money, how sure you that more money means a better life. Remember that as money increases, those who spend it also increase, the banks will come running, you will desire a new car, a new apartment, better clothes, better this and that etc

Your Discipline is Key

Too many people skip the discipline and try to go straight to the enjoyment. That’s a recipe for disaster. That’s how so many people get hooked on playing the lottery or go broke in a horrible get-rich-quick scheme that falls apart. Wealth building is a marathon, not a sprint. There really aren’t any shortcuts. That’s why most people don’t do it; if building wealth were easy, everyone would be rich! - Dave Ramsey.

You can not get any far in your personal finance goals if you aren't disciplined. There is a lot of pain involved, a lot of falling and rising up, a lot of not hitting the targets, but you don't have to give up. Sometimes you will find that your money will get wiped out on a bad deal, you will probably be conned but all these become life lessons that make you wise, you don't have to lose sight of what you have to do to get where you believe you should be.

Keep Sacrificing

Without a sacrifice, you won't realize how important it is in getting you what you need. It could mean forgoing summer holidays to make sure you put off some money aside to buy land, invest in a mutual fund etc. Sacrifice many times will mean that your comfort will be disturbed. You can check out this link on  Make Those Sacrifices or Be Comfortable 

If you make some sacrifices, inject some discipline, and get intentional about winning with money, the future is wide open. You’ll be blown away at the opportunities you’ll have to serve and bless other people, and you’ll be amazed at what life feels like without worrying about money all the time. It’s a great place to be - Dave Ramsey

#Impact #Empower #Transform 

Start Now - What It Takes!

On Friday the 16th of March. I had a good time speaking with S.6 Vacationers about personal finance. They asked me to go share with them a few insights about this thing. I am humbled that young people are starting to think about this thing and I wish parents and schools were given such talks at the dinner table, in the cars or even in school parades, we can develop many young people who have good financial I.Q and the rewards could be enormous in the long run.

Never Thought About Learning Personal Finance

I remember while in my S.6 vacation, I never ever thought about learning anything to do with money and I was so humbled that this group of young people wanted to understand some principles that they can apply in their lives now. I asked them what they wanted to learn, and the thoughts ranged from learning how to save, invest, use their skills to make money etc.

Time: Start Early, Start Now

There is no better time to start learning something than "EARLY". Many of us at the time were either watching movies the whole day or just moving around going from one hang out to another (I understand it is a phase of life but if you are grounded with truth, you can understand your purpose early and start living it out). On a personal note I did some crazy things to make money but eventually it got wasted on drinking out, hanging out etc. You can learn more of what I did in this article. Now I pray I can help some of these young people avoid what costed me, they would rather make new mistakes but not the ones I made.

I told these young people to start now! I talked about how they needed to check their lifestyles. I told them that their lifestyles would dictate a lot about how money would play out in their lives. I reminded them that personal finance is 80% behavior and 20% head knowledge. When I asked them what they would do with money when they get it the first time, I wasn't shocked at their answers, everything showed the consumer mentality and there was nothing to show how they could earn, save or even invest. I asked if some had saved money before and they said that they did and I asked them what they did with it, the reply was a hearty laughter, some couldn't even tell in simple terms it was all consumed and nothing was invested. In my article deal with consumerism, I highlight how the culture is draining us more than ever.

I asked them a few pertinent questions like "Do you feel like schools are not really preparing you for the real world? " This was a question asked by Robert Kiyosaki. I told them to think deeply about these questions and many more. I reminded them that they should not just subscribe to the thought that, " I went to school to get good grades and get a job'' jobs are so few that we need entrepreneurs to create them, I said that as they study, they should think of how they will use that knowledge to solve problems, In solving problems they add value to humanity and in many ways they will get rewarded.

Get Practical

I encouraged them to get practical by writing down their expenses so that they can get to know where their money goes. I also told them to start having short, medium and long term goals irrespective of whether they are earning much or not or even still getting financial support from their parents or guardians or even well wishers.

I told them that they should have a budget and that their budgets should not only have airtime, data, hanging out, transport, smartphones, new shoes, new clothes (to keep up with the joneses) etc but that it should have an element that shows that they are working towards their goals, it could be things like tithe, a book, support to the needy etc.

Stop Wasting Time

I encouraged them to stop wasting their time and start converting it into tangible results. I gave them a challenge to read the book Make Sense Of Your Money and I will be meeting them soon to continue the chat.

Are you mature and haven't started thinking about this area of personal finance. It has been said over time that our mindsets play a big role. People are poor not because they were born poor but because they haven't made some hard choices. Others don't want to risk, others don't want to learn, others say ,"My parents are already rich, why do I have to work or even think about learning these things".

Lastly I told them thinking about changing the status quo takes work, I told them deciding to start being a good steward of money takes a mindset shift and that is work itself. I left them with this quote

“Hard work is always profitable in some way, it builds your character, your bank account, and your reputation. But when you’re one of those people who always make plans but never actually do anything about them, you will never succeed” – Jason Cabler