Whether they knew it or not, our mothers instilled the culture of financial savings in us at a very young age, some of us started off saving 50 Naira, a noodles pack or maybe a fancy toy from getting destroyed.

I cannot forget the delight I always felt when I had to eat the cookies I’ve waited all week for, it was exciting and taught me the essence of value.

As we get older, it is important to remember the little things that have got us this far, and I have to admit it isn’t always an easy choice to save; especially when you have immediate wants but this is where the scale of preference comes in.

Read More – Finance Friday- Should A Full House Wife Have Savings

For a lot of young working Nigerians, saving (talk less of quarantine saving) isn’t always the first thing that comes to mind and this isn’t because they do not want to. It’s mostly because from everyday transportation, feeding, bills and turn-ups we barely have enough to save but how can that be changed?

How can we build our lifestyle around saving, especially now during quarantine?

Not to worry, because with the simple tips we’ll mention, you are off to a lovely start.

Five Simple Tips For Financial Savings During Quarantine

1. DIY Kolobox

Let us take it back to when we were babies, I’m sure you had a storage box for all your dolls, game characters and others and you kept each and every item in that box safe by putting under your bed right? Well using that same practice now as an adult but just replacing the content in the box with some cash or money…and if you please some action figures as well.

It is quite easy to have some excess cash at hand or in our houses, sometimes you never even know how rich you are because you have a lot of money loitering around the room. Simply getting a box, it could be a shoe box, bag box, hair box or even a random carton clean enough to store your money.

Personally, I put all my extra N1000/N500 notes in my kolobox and they save me on rainy days. If you also want to have a fancy box, you could maybe spray paint what you want and draw some designs on them or maybe have it made for you by your neighbourhood carpenter or an online vendor. You could check out @mykolo.ng on Instagram for some beautiful kolobox ideas.

2. Take Advantage Of Fintech Savings Plan

Thank goodness for technology and the ease it gives us with money transactions.
There are a few Fintech platforms that are set up to help us save and if you ask me, that is pretty innovative. FinTech companies such as PiggyVest, Cowrywise, and Kolobox are constantly bridging the gap between an economic failure and better finance management for young Nigerians and others in the diaspora.

They have multiple financial savings options from daily, to weekly and monthly and it is convenient.
It is as simple as signing up, and registering on a savings plan that would have your profile
credited with the said amount you have set it on. It works precisely with your timing and one of my personal favorites is the feature of being able to turn it off whenever you want to.

3. Reduce Impulse Spending

This is probably why you’re running out of money. The more things you buy impulsively the
less cash you have. So if taking your card outside with you makes you buy things impulsively, then please leave it at home. Besides, how else are you going to progress in you financial savings journey?

4. Stick To That Budget

How many times have you said to yourself ‘oh I have a budget this month, I can’t buy that’? You can’t remember, can you? And I know because I have been in your shoes more times than I can count too but if there is a better time to draw up a financial savings budget and stick to said budget; now is the time. Quarantine is the best reason to save, especially with the shutting down of things.

If the budget says, N5000 for airtime this month then you buy N5000 for airtime alone, and if need arises for me it has to be justified(remember, no impulse spending).

5. Family Plan Subscription Services

It is very easy to get caught up on multiple subscription services, from cable subscription, to data, Netflix, Apple Music, Video Editing apps and a lot more.

Most of these subscriptions offer a family plan that allows for 2 or more people to be on it, for example Netflix allows up to 4 people to have a family account which costs N1000 per person in a month as opposed to paying N4000 by yourself.

Getting on a family subscription as a financial savings plan allows you to not only cut down on expenses but also have something fun to share with your friends and family.

Let the savings begin and remember to keep safe!