Congratulations on your new job!
You may have many questions as you prepare for your first day on the job from impressing the boss to figuring out the social landscape, but do not forget that a new career move also represents a major financial transition.
Starting a new job can affect your finances in ways beyond just your salary. It also brings new responsibilities. As you prepare for your first day, it is critical to start thinking about your financial discipline.
Here are tips to make each step along the way of your new career adventure:
Learn to Budget
When you are starting your first job, it can be difficult to learn how to budget your money. So, you can start with simple steps.
Budgeting is one of the most important things you can do to prepare yourself for a successful financial future. Maintaining a written plan or record can help you stay on track on your day to day and monthly budget.
Budgeting ensures you are not spending more than you are making, allowing you to plan for short and long-term goals and expenses. There are two types of expenses to evaluate: fixed and variable.
Fixed expenses are the more prioritised monthly expenses. Starting with your fixed monthly bills, mortgage, car loan payment, takaful protection plans, etc.
Variable expenses can vary from time to time. This might include entertainment, small day-to-day expenses, birthday gifts, etc.
However, after determining your monthly fixed expenses, this can give you a rough guideline on what your disposable income is for these variable expenses.
Start Saving Your Money
Earning your first income is liberating, but before you start spending your first salary on a shopping spree or travelling (after prioritizing your fixed expenses of course) – consider saving.
Saving money from your salary should start from that very first paycheck, ideally around 30% of your salary. When it comes to saving, your focus should not be on how much you earn, but on how much you can save. The more the better.
One of the best ways to save money is to save with a purpose, whether you’re planning on building/renovating a house, your wedding, or an early retirement. With a lot of these purposes, you can find financial plans available that can provide systematic assistance. For example, Takaful Brunei Keluarga Sdn Bhd’s (TBK) Walimatul Urus Takaful for that dream wedding you’ve always wanted.
You can also put your savings money in a separate account, that you can access when needed.
Protect Your Income
There are various ways to protect your income. Having an emergency fund is one of them. You can keep yourself out of abrupt financial trouble, large or small, as these unplanned expenses often feel like they hit at the worst times. Like home or car repairs.
Setting up a dedicated emergency fund through savings is a good way to ensure you have access to funds without disrupting any of your other savings or income. Your emergency fund should be enough to cover three months of expenses. However, the longer the duration the better.
Another form of income protection is to participate in takaful products. TBK’s protection plans provide various products to help you in the event of total or permanent disabilities that prevent you from earning income, large medical expenses or even death. It’s important to understand you have to be very prepared for uncertainties, no matter how uncomfortable the topic may be.
Start a retirement plan
When it comes to building a post-retirement life, the earlier you start, the better, even if that seems like ages away.
Whether it is travelling the world or opening your own business, TBK’s Retirement Takaful plan is designed to help you meet your retirement income needs which in turn could be used to fulfil your retirement dreams.
Not only that, TBK’s Retirement Takaful plan is more than just savings plan, it will also help loved ones in the event of unexpected death or permanent disability through its Takaful Protection coverage.
This article was first published on 21 May 2022 in our Weekly Epaper issue 194 |
THE BRUNEIAN | BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
