Mosa Ngcobo
Manager: Member Education Services
Alexforbes
Money tips for the millennial and the pitfalls to avoid
Clock5 minutes

By Mosa Ngcobo, Manager: Member Education Services at Alexander Forbes Millennials are said to have been slower than previous generations to put away money. When you have and manage your money well you are more likely to have a stress free life, allowing you to focus on things that matter.

#MillennialRetirementPlans recently trended on Twitter, highlighting millennials’ anxieties about their future and pessimism that they will be properly prepared for it. Browsing social media, I had viewed a post from a celebrity asking people about their dislikes in adulthood. Those responding had cited paying bills and debit orders - basically managing cash. 

Here are some money tips to assist millennials in managing their money and the pitfalls that can be avoided. Managing money may sound like an impossible thing to do as financial situations keep changing, but you can start by simply:

  1. Keeping a budget record – prepare an annual budget by setting annual goals. This is key to financial success as it will help you track spending habits which are blind spots. 
  2. Learn from your money mistakes and don’t let them discourage you on your journey to building a financially sound life. 
  3. Educate yourself on good debt and bad debt so that you can make sound decisions when taking on debt. 
  4. Annually evaluate all your insurance benefits to ensure adequate and appropriate cover relative to your needs. 
  5. Educate yourself about money management, insurance and investing and don’t rely on others. Find a certified financial planner to offer sound advice rather than asking friends or family. 
Saving, especially in the current economic environment may seem difficult, but it’s important to find ways to save as much as you can by following these tips:
  1. Start with saving what you can, whether its R50 or R100, at the beginning of the month when you still have funds available. While you are working on your budget that will in the long run assist in freeing up a few more rands, you will already have gotten into the habit of saving. 
  2. Building up an emergency fund that you can dip into when life happens. That requires the same discipline as highlighted above - do not wait until you have lots of money to start. 
  3. Learn to pay yourself first 10% of your earnings and channel that to the emergency fund, once you have created a budget and have some money left, you may use that to save up for other things you may desire or need in future. 
  4. Take advantage of rewards and points systems, they can save you money which can be channelled to your savings. 
It is never too late to start putting your budget together, as this tool will help you see where your money is really going.  
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Financial