Foluke Sijuwola Falayi
No one prays for emergencies, but they do happen. We have heard of people faced with crises, especially those that have to do with finances and nobody comes to their aid. It is not because they are wicked or not credit worthy, but, sometimes, the people we are soliciting fund from may not have extra finances to spare, at least at the time we are seeking financial help.
Emergencies sometimes create embarrassment. Some can be disconcerting. It is not everyone who finds herself in such condition that has the effrontery to ask for favour. That is the reason some persons keep mute and are ashamed in trying times. You can imagine a situation that has to do with life and death. And you, having to beg, plead and explain to the lender the situation that warranted borrowing. This can be killing to many men and women.
In order to avoid embarrassment, you would agree with me, it is better to have savings. One of the advantages of saving is the confidence it brings to the saver. It also brings peace that you have something; somewhere. Besides, it brings joy and fulfilment that you are not eating with ten fingers.
Often, people affirm saving, but they complain what they are making or getting is hardly enough for sustenance. This is true and the reality of people throughout the world, it is not limited to Nigeria and people in a certain country.
Saving comes with discipline. A person with no self-restraint cannot save money. Saving should be a culture, a habit we practise in plenty and in scarcity. Out of the little and insignificant you receive through salaries, irregular and casual businesses, you can still save a little. Plan on the little, put aside your want and avoid frivolities.
Having two thousand or five thousand naira savings may look immaterial to you, but the day you are in a dire need of money, you would know it is gold. Come to think of it, we have heard how insignificant amount like one thousand or two naira have put some in trouble while leaving other folks in a humiliating and distressing state.
This brings me to why we have to save. We save for emergencies; what we do not plan for. We save for the future. We save for a project, a business, a holiday, a ceremony, a festival, the list is endless.
It is good to save every time, but it is better from the beginning of a year. You can imagine, saving five thousand monthly, how much it will be by the end of that year.
Saving is not left to a specific set of people. Salary earners, business men and women, dependents, children, students can save from whatever they get. It is even more advantageous for people who make money daily. The two hundred naira used to buy day-to-day junk, eating in between meals can be saved. When you multiply two hundred naira six in a week by fifty two weeks you would know, it is a lot.
What are those factors that undermine saving money? They include indiscipline, lack of plan, ignorance, wants, show off, unnecessary debts and over-spending.
Be careful where you invest your money inasmuch as you want to save. Do a thorough investigation before saving with any financial institution. And if you are investing, ensure you do with the right people, companies and other establishments. Numerous unsuspecting people have fallen prey and never recovered. So, save wisely and invest intelligently.
