Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and we are sure many are in a rush to find the best mother’s day gift. Let’s pause for a second here and think what is Mother’s Day all about.
“She made broken look beautiful and strong look invincible. She walked with the universe on her shoulders and made it look like a pair of wings.”
This is a day to honor your mom, celebrate motherhood and above all celebrate the influence mothers have on our society. Often referred to as the “Finance Minister” of the household, mothers, among other things are great at managing finances. So, the best gift that you could give them is to show them that you’ve learned a few things from them. We are sure she is going to be extremely happy about it.
When we were children, we learned a lot of things about money thanks to our moms. We would observe and learn, and she would also help us understand why they are doing certain things in a certain way. Here are some money saving tips that you can learn from mothers:
Table of Content
1. Plan Your Month in Advance
The first thing to learn from mothers is better planning. You need to know how much money comes in every month and how much goes out. Only then can you figure out how to manage it better. So, the simplest thing to do is note down how much you earn at the beginning of every month. Deduct payments for rent, credit card, utilities, etc. Now you can make a plan for what is left over. If you are financially sound, you should be left with a fair amount of money. If not, there’s something to worry about.
2. Pay Yourself First
Many financial experts suggest that one of the first things to do after taking care of the necessary payments is to pay yourself. Yes, you worked hard for your money, and you deserve something for yourself. Before you get happy that this might be celebration money let me tell you what this “you” money is for. Every month you should put away at least 10% of your pre-tax income into a savings account and another 10% into an investment account. This practice will make a huge difference in the long run. The best way to do this is set up automatic payments from your account so that a certain amount is automatically deducted from savings.
3. Make Sure Your Money is Always Growing
Now that you’ve done the first couple of steps, it is important to make sure your money grows. The savings and investments that you planned out should be planned in a way that helps increase your total fund over a period. Modern investment products like Sqrrl’s SqrrlAway or Axe Tax can help you automatically save and grow your money and also save on taxes.
Instead of having it sit in a savings account you can move it to Sqrrl and earn 7-8% on it without worrying about a lock-in period. This means, not only is your money growing, but you have immediate access to it in the case of an emergency or significant purchase. You can have free withdrawals anytime and as many times as you want.
4. Do a Side Gig
Back in childhood we might have seen our moms love for painting, making soft toys or sewing and they used to be pretty good at it. While these activities were part of their hobby, they would soon start making small amounts by doing fabric painting for table cloths, TV and bed covers. So, if you have weekends off, it might be an excellent idea to pursue a hobby seriously so that it can turn into a side gig for you. With so many online platforms available now, selling something fresh and quirky is not difficult.
5. Carpool to Work
A good way to save money is to carpool. Back in the day, we would remember seeing our moms sharing an auto with their colleagues or friends. Fast forward to today, you might underestimate this but carpooling can not only save you money on fuel but also on maintenance and sometimes even on ownership! Besides, you can feel good about the fact that you are doing your bit for the environment as well.
6. Take Advantage of Off-Season Sales
Well, saving money doesn’t mean we stop shopping, right? There are typically two “End of Season Sale” periods for most brands in India, one in January and the other in June. A lot of well-known brands including those luxury ones go on sale ranging from 20-70%. This is a very good time to shop for great brands and incredibly low prices. Also, certain festivals in India also attract discounts based on what part of the country you are in. Take full advantage of the sale season!
We hope the above tips will help you save, invest and grow your money. Trust me. Your mom couldn’t have been more proud. Make sure you do the smart thing to invest and grow your money. Save time on thinking and researching, simply SqrrlAway with us.
