How I Make the Most of the Little Cash I Have In this Economy

Hey guys!

With the VAT sitting at 15% and the ever-rising cost of living, we as South Africans are definitely feeling the heat. Many people have resorted to finding a second source of income or a "side hustle" if that's what you'd like to call it just to make ends meet.

I’ve recently had a sit-down and actually looked at my finances because I always think I can't afford anything. I went to work every day and got paid yet I did not have much to show for it and my life was well... boring. I was always looking at my peers and wondering how the heck they can afford to be doing so much (never mind the ones with actual careers) and going out every weekend when I'm always broke and bored at home.

I convinced myself that the only way I would enjoy life is if I got another job. I have been job hunting for about 2 years with no luck so can you imagine how depressing that thought is... I had to do something different to change my money situation so I made a few changes.

Money is a touchy subject, I know! I earn about R4500 per month (It's not much) but I am grateful because it's still better than nothing. I live with my mom and I drive a small car. My only expenses are all the things that concern me personally which is basically toiletries, school and petrol. I do not even have a kid yet I was always broke and I just didn't get it. What was I doing with my money? Where the heck was it all going? After sitting down and looking at my bank statements I discovered a lot of my money was being wasted on clothes and things that I really didn't need. So I paid off my clothing account, reduced my shopping and discovered that I have plenty of cash to live the kind of life that I want. I can do more with my money than just pay bills and wait for the next payday.

I actually sat down and made a list of all of my monthly expenses and sorted them into fixed (the 1's that don't change monthly) and variable expenses. Writing it all down so you can physically see it helps to show you exactly what you are doing and where you might be going wrong. To my surprise I discovered that I was wasting money on ridiculous and useless things like snacks which left me with nothing to show; except maybe a fat belly (LOL). My salary hasn't changed but I found that by being conscious about my spending I can afford all the things I want and need.

I was excited to find that I can actually afford to get myself the cellphone that I want. My previous phone was stolen and I had been waiting for months for my mom to get me a new one (which made me feel pathetic; I am a grown ass woman and still wanting mommy to get me a cellphone).  I decided to do some research and guess what; I got me a new cellphone. My cellphone costs about R450 per month and I managed to get a gym membership for R479 per month. I saw that nothing had changed I just became more conscious about my spending. I was surprised at just how much money I had been wasting before because I honestly cannot tell you what I had been doing with this R479 before I joined the gym.

If you're like me and need a little help to get you started on managing your finances, there are apps you can download for free to help you keep track of your spending or alternatively you can make yourself a spreadsheet and capture all your expenses so you can actually see where your money goes. It will help a lot! When you can see your wastage it pushes you to be more responsible with your spending and make you think twice before you buy yet another pair of sneakers that you don't need. I used to be the type to buy at least 1 new clothing item every month end to spoil myself but now I save the money instead; if I can or contribute a larger amount to paying off my tuition fees. Whatever is left in my bank account when my salary comes in I also pay towards tuition.

Do not forget to include your entertainment budget when calculating your expenses that way you know you have an X amount of money available to have fun and spoil yourself and still be on track with the rest of your expenses. For example; I give myself R500 every month to have fun be it movies, drinks or whatever and once I've reached my limit; that's it. This helps so that I don't misallocate my funds and end up with a shortage of petrol money mid-month just because I wanted to see a movie. PRIORITIZE!

Remember that when it comes to things like clothing, do not buy them on credit unless it's an emergency and you need a particular outfit for a special occasion. If you can't afford it rather just leave it instead of racking up unnecessary debt. Another thing I do is to fill up my tank before the petrol prices rise if I can. There are petrol stations on my route to work so I pass by there and fill up without having to take a detour. I believe this saves me a few extra rands that I can use for other things. When filling up I try to target petrol stations that are partnered with other shops that I use regularly such as Clicks so that I can earn points for my fuel purchases. These points get converted to money that I can spend the next time I'm buying my toiletries from Clicks.

When you really feel like you're strapped for cash, find some of the old stuff that you don't need or use anymore and sell it. There are apps and websites such as Gumtree and OLX where you can price your items yourself and find buyers. Another tip I can give you is that if you have a little extra money and you see items such as laundry detergent, toilet paper, deodorant or anything you know you need on the regular on special, buy it! These things that don't expire can be stocked up, just be careful if you have a housekeeper that is left alone because stocked items have the tendency to disappear without you noticing.

Ladies! Ladies! Ladies! We all know how expensive sanitary products can be and they are a part of life that we cannot ignore. I mean a box of applicator tampons can set you back about 60 bucks a month depending on the brand you prefer but that's approximately R720 a year just on tampons alone and we need them whether we can afford them or not. I have switched to menstrual cups (read more about them here), they might be a bit pricey initially but believe me, they will save you tons of cash in the long run. You will only need one and it lasts for a while.

Facial skin care products are also a huge expense for me so I try to milk them to the very last drop. Instead of throwing them away when I can no longer squeeze the contents out, I cut the containers in half with a knife or scissors and use every last bit, I only throw them away and buy new ones when there is absolutely nothing left. Every. Drop. Counts. I do the same with all of my creams and lotions.

When it comes to washing your car, rather do it yourself if you have time instead of taking it to the car wash but use a bucket. You can kill 2 birds with one stone this way; clean your car while burning some calories. Try to pick rainy days for car washing, lather the car with soap then go park it in the rain to rinse off. This way you save water as well.

Yes, you might be making "peanuts" like me but you can also find a way to make your money work for you just like I did and start enjoying where you are in life right now; even if you don't exactly have financial freedom just yet. You just need to be aware of where your money is going. Most importantly you need to find joy in life and not just pay bills and wait for your next payday. Go ahead and pamper yourself a little!

There's this thing I read about called "the 50/30/20 Rule of Finances"; basically 50 percent of your total income should be spent on essentials and by essentials I mean your most important needs such as food, transport etc. 30 percent should go to what they call discretionary wants which are lifestyle related; these are things like clothing and eating out. The final 20 percent should be allocated to your financial goals; I'm talking debt repayments, retirement savings etc.

The best thing we can do is to minimize our expenditure and try to save as much money as we can.