First published by Autumn on October 01, 2020
In this time of uncertainty, building good money habits is important to tide you through especially if your job has been disrupted. Here are 5 money habits you could develop. They are so simple but often overlooked!
Start by spring cleaning your finances to identify spending leaks. This can be as simple as going through your credit card statements to ensure you’re not paying for a service you don’t use anymore or that you’re not double-paying for a subscription.
Could it be a 3 months free subscription followed by an opt out for a service that you no longer need? Are they alternatives to a similar solution that are free-of-charge? And of course look for gift cards or reloadable cards which may still have some spare change in them. Then, make a plan to utilise them instead of having the money lying idle.
Next up, check your daily habits. Are you spending too much data on your mobile, can you switch to a cheaper plan with more data? Or could you delay that hair cut by another two weeks to stretch your dollar or even switch to a DIY hair dye.
Instead of gourmet coffee, could you switch to a local coffee which costs only one third of the price. You will be surprised how these small changes in your daily habits could make a big difference
Firstly, always prioritise spending on your needs over your wants.
A need is something required for survival. Needs are water for drinking, food to eat, clothing to keep you warm, and shelter to live in. Wants are there to make life a little more enjoyable. And yes, we all should be enjoying our lives.
It is normal to want things, and it’s not a bad thing. You may want to take a trip around the world or get the latest iPhone, so try to prioritise your wants and start saving up so that you can reward yourself with something you like.
But always remember that your wants are not essential and that you can live without them. By realising what are wants and what are needs, you’ll be able to cut some unnecessary spending and improve your financial situation.
In this climate, many merchants are rolling out special meal offers or discounts. Supermarkets may have special deals on certain days. Take the time to do research for the best deals.
And if you’ve got no time, there’s always CardsPal, which optimises your credit card usage and saves you more with savvy deals.
CardsPal tells you which credit, debit and even membership cards get you the most rewards and cashback for your spend, with just a click of a button. This allows you to whip up the right card at the opportune moment to reap the maximum benefit.
One unique feature is their Cashback Calculator. Simply select a brand that you’re keen to patronise, input the estimated spend amount, and instantly check out the cashback you can get with cards you own.
Since their app update in June 2021, users now receive a more holistic recommendation on the best card to use. Recommendations will be made based on 3 categories- the best card from cards you own, CardsPal’s pick and best cashback card with no minimum spend. For CardsPal’s pick, the app not only takes into account the cashback earned, but also other key factors, such as the card’s discount cap, minimum spend, cashback rate, and how they compare against other cards from similar categories.
For the deal hunters, CardsPal also features deals from various categories such as shopping, dining and leisure, which can be filtered to those valid for your cards.
Savvy apps such as these make saving easier, giving you finances a boost.
If you are out of job, it’s a good opportunity to assess your skills and experiences. Reframe and start thinking of what problems you can help solve. Then identify areas or industries where you could contribute.
If you have strong copywriting skills, you could tap on gig economy platforms such as fiverr.com which gives you access to the global market.
Companies are increasingly looking to cut costs so they will be looking at such platforms for freelance talents who cost less than an advertising agency. So, this is a perfect time to start a side hustle which not only gives you income but helps you stay relevant.
As you start to have additional sources of revenue, it is important that you maintain a close watch on your finances. Use an app like Autumn to have a bird’s eye view of your information from local and overseas banks, CPF account, property, debts as well as insurance policies, The app also empowers you make better financial decisions with a Retirement Calculator, Aspirations Planner, assessment of the best home loan rates available to refinance/reprice, highlighting your insurance gaps and more.
