JuanDeDios:

I understand you better now - it's actually what I suspected. I will tell you something; I don't know if you will get it but I will say it. "Never ever borrow money" is a sound advice, one I will dish out to a middle class salary earner like you. But there are other categories of people out there and there are a whole lot of permutations to life. Sometimes borrowing is inevitable. Sometimes it's even the smart thing to do. But how would you know all that? So you think there is a formula to life and will have everyone in a box. You will even accuse anyone of a seemingly contrary view of having a weak constitution. You may yet learn that different things do work. That something else, mentioned in op, and not necessarily borrowing, was what did in your colleague. You may learn.

imas:
I agree with you, except on point no 4, who asked you to pay tithe ?

Bollinger:


There are some rules in life that are golden rules. It is up to you to choose to follow them or not. Don't drink and drive is one, but do people listen? No. Don't borrow money and live within your means, but will people listen? apparently not. How is borrowing money a smart thing to do when you would have to pay it back from the same income?[ The logic escapes me.

JuanDeDios:

No, it's not. That isn't my recommendation, but you continue to miss the point.

JuanDeDios:

"Never ever borrow money" is not a practical recommendation.

vickoozy:
Nice post in other news am in love with aminat508

Datevilme:
It is a known fact that a substantial percentage of Nigerian Graduates are Unemployed, and from the few that do have jobs, many of them are underemployed and payed stipends that barely see them through to the end of the month. Here are 10 ways you can maximize your low income.

1. Cut your cloth according to your material. Acknowledge the fact that you earn a low income, don't spend above your means. Minimize your spending as much as possible. Bare in mind that your current status is only for a while, you will blow eventually.

2. Try as much as possible to ensure you do not spend too much on transportation. Transportation as we all know takes up a great chunk of ones earnings most of the time. If possible find someone who owns a car and plies your office route, and tag along with them. You have to be jovial, and make them like you, so that you wont be a burden, but rather good company.

3. If you are ever going to break out of your tight financial situation, and not be the type of person who lives from hand to mouth, you need to develop a culture of saving, yes! you need to save. No matter how little, you can make up your mind to save between 10 and 20 percent of your earnings. In the event that you lose your job, or an emergency comes up, you will have something to fall back on.

4. Pay your Tithe and Give cheerfully. The saying "Givers Never Lack" is one of the most accurate sayings ever. Try it and you will be surprised, it works like magic!

5. Dedicate a Fraction of your stipends to self development. Your chances of getting a better paying job will definitely increase if you have more skills, certifications, etc.

6. Check your Relationships!! Guys, is your girlfriend milking you dry? Girls, is your boyfriend feeding of you continously? The hard truth is that if you are going to move ahead, you need to cut off those that are constantly pulling you back. If they truly cared about you, they wont keep demanding, knowing fully well you don't earn that much.

7. Feel free to add up...

Aminat508:

Datevilme:
It is a known fact that a substantial percentage of Nigerian Graduates are Unemployed, and from the few that do have jobs, many of them are underemployed and payed stipends that barely see them through to the end of the month. Here are 10 ways you can maximize your low income.

1. Cut your cloth according to your material. Acknowledge the fact that you earn a low income, don't spend above your means. Minimize your spending as much as possible. Bare in mind that your current status is only for a while, you will blow eventually.

2. Try as much as possible to ensure you do not spend too much on transportation. Transportation as we all know takes up a great chunk of ones earnings most of the time. If possible find someone who owns a car and plies your office route, and tag along with them. You have to be jovial, and make them like you, so that you wont be a burden, but rather good company.

3. If you are ever going to break out of your tight financial situation, and not be the type of person who lives from hand to mouth, you need to develop a culture of saving, yes! you need to save. No matter how little, you can make up your mind to save between 10 and 20 percent of your earnings. In the event that you lose your job, or an emergency comes up, you will have something to fall back on.

4. Pay your Tithe and Give cheerfully. The saying "Givers Never Lack" is one of the most accurate sayings ever. Try it and you will be surprised, it works like magic!

5. Dedicate a Fraction of your stipends to self development. Your chances of getting a better paying job will definitely increase if you have more skills, certifications, etc.

6. Check your Relationships!! Guys, is your girlfriend milking you dry? Girls, is your boyfriend feeding of you continously? The hard truth is that if you are going to move ahead, you need to cut off those that are constantly pulling you back. If they truly cared about you, they wont keep demanding, knowing fully well you don't earn that much.

7. Feel free to add up...

Bollinger:

I'm confused. Isn't the above from you?

franklingud:
But naira no get value na!

JuanDeDios:

el oh el
You should read the whole of this post calmly and you will understand. Avoid debts is a sound advice but what is wrong with your position is that you put everything and everyone in a box. You assume, for instance, that everyone earns enough to save those textbook percentages you reeled out or that everyone needs those percentages. How can someone earning N50k and spending N15 on transport save three months salary? You fail to realise that those lessons were tailored to suit the middle class salary earners who constitute the staff of your company; that if the training guys are staging the same seminar for a group of millionnaires or for some poor folks who just left prison the content would be different. So you assume there is a golden rule for everyone when, in fact, there is none.

Ok, let's go to school. Imagine you are a fresh graduate earning N100k in Lagos. Luckily you found a room to put up at your brother's place. Now, you have to leave because your brother wants to get married. But you have not been working for a long time and have not saved enough to rent a house. If you have no where else to put up, will you borrow to complete what you have, since you can conveniently pay back, or live on the streets? In this case, borrowing is not being smart, it is simply inevitable. You don't decide to do it, you just do it, golden rules or not.

Apart from inevitability, borrowing is also sometimes the smart thing to do - but you better know what what you're doing. Imagine you're a graduate but you're unable to get a good job. Suddenly a friend tells you about a small business opportunity that looks promising. You need some money to start up but don't have it. Borrowing might be the smart thing to do here. I personally know people who did this and have become successful. Or you may be a billionaire businessman who wants to invest in a new area - like refining petrol in Nigeria. Getting a bank loan here is a smart thing to do.

What is wrong is to go pick up the latest Toyota Camry just because you just got a well paying job without planning first. Or send your wife on an expensive vacation without budgeting and planning for it long term. Salary earners often buy things in advance of their salary. Then it piles up and they carry it over to the next pay day. Soon things go out of hand. That is what killed your colleague.

Now, let's examine your statement. "Never ever borrow money." "Never ever" makes this an absolute statement, good for everybody in every situation. That is misguided. It is good as a piece of advice for a middle-class salary earner in most situations - the last thing you need is a debt. As a general rule, it is not practical, because, as we have established, borrowing is sometimes necessary. So I would modify the statement to read something like "Avoid borrowing money."

JuanDeDios:

el oh el
You should read the whole of this post calmly and you will understand. Avoid debts is a sound advice but what is wrong with your position is that you put everything and everyone in a box. You assume, for instance, that everyone earns enough to save those textbook percentages you reeled out or that everyone needs those percentages. How can someone earning N50k and spending N15 on transport save three months salary? You fail to realise that those lessons were tailored to suit the middle class salary earners who constitute the staff of your company; that if the training guys are staging the same seminar for a group of millionnaires or for some poor folks who just left prison the content would be different. So you assume there is a golden rule for everyone when, in fact, there is none.

Ok, let's go to school. Imagine you are a fresh graduate earning N100k in Lagos. Luckily you found a room to put up at your brother's place. Now, you have to leave because your brother wants to get married. But you have not been working for a long time and have not saved enough to rent a house. If you have no where else to put up, will you borrow to complete what you have, since you can conveniently pay back, or live on the streets? In this case, borrowing is not being smart, it is simply inevitable. You don't decide to do it, you just do it, golden rules or not.

Apart from inevitability, borrowing is also sometimes the smart thing to do - but you better know what what you're doing. Imagine you're a graduate but you're unable to get a good job. Suddenly a friend tells you about a small business opportunity that looks promising. You need some money to start up but don't have it. Borrowing might be the smart thing to do here. I personally know people who did this and have become successful. Or you may be a billionaire businessman who wants to invest in a new area - like refining petrol in Nigeria. Getting a bank loan here is a smart thing to do.

What is wrong is to go pick up the latest Toyota Camry just because you just got a well paying job without planning first. Or send your wife on an expensive vacation without budgeting and planning for it long term. Salary earners often buy things in advance of their salary. Then it piles up and they carry it over to the next pay day. Soon things go out of hand. That is what killed your colleague.

Now, let's examine your statement. "Never ever borrow money." "Never ever" makes this an absolute statement, good for everybody in every situation. That is misguided. It is good as a piece of advice for a middle-class salary earner in most situations - the last thing you need is a debt. As a general rule, it is not practical, because, as we have established, borrowing is sometimes necessary. So I would modify the statement to read something like "Avoid borrowing money."

imas:
I agree with you, except on point no 4, who asked you to pay tithe ?

Datevilme:
.

3. If you are ever going to break out of your tight financial situation, and not be the type of person who lives from hand to mouth, you need to develop a culture of saving, yes! you need to save. No matter how little, you can make up your mind to save between 10 and 20 percent of your earnings. In the event that you lose your job, or an emergency comes up, you will have something to fall back on.

4. Pay your Tithe and Give cheerfully. The saying "Givers Never Lack" is one of the most accurate sayings ever. Try it and you will be surprised, it works like magic!

5. Dedicate a Fraction of your stipends to self development. Your chances of getting a better paying job will definitely increase if you have more skills, certifications, etc.

6. Check your Relationships!! Guys, is your girlfriend milking you dry? Girls, is your boyfriend feeding of you continously? The hard truth is that if you are going to move ahead, you need to cut off those that are constantly pulling you back. If they truly cared about you, they wont keep demanding, knowing fully well you don't earn that much.

greggng:
Chai I was trying to cut cost by following my friends advice. He took me to ilepo market were he helped me bought food stuff in bulk. According to him , one is happy when one has food at home even though one has no money. To cut the story short, whenever I finish cooking, I discovered plenty sand in my meal. Right now I spent 15k to organise my so called foodstuff and I cannot even eat it cos of sand. To worsen my case I spent all I ve in it. Now am regretting it.

Datevilme:

I really love the way u guys are trashing out this issue of borrowing, u might not know it, but u r both educating everyone who cares to read. Nice analysis

Datevilme:
It is a known fact that a substantial percentage of Nigerian Graduates are Unemployed, and from the few that do have jobs, many of them are underemployed and payed stipends that barely see them through to the end of the month. Here are 10 ways you can maximize your low income.

1. Cut your cloth according to your material. Acknowledge the fact that you earn a low income, don't spend above your means. Minimize your spending as much as possible. Bare in mind that your current status is only for a while, you will blow eventually.

2. Try as much as possible to ensure you do not spend too much on transportation. Transportation as we all know takes up a great chunk of ones earnings most of the time. If possible find someone who owns a car and plies your office route, and tag along with them. You have to be jovial, and make them like you, so that you wont be a burden, but rather good company.

3. If you are ever going to break out of your tight financial situation, and not be the type of person who lives from hand to mouth, you need to develop a culture of saving, yes! you need to save. No matter how little, you can make up your mind to save between 10 and 20 percent of your earnings. In the event that you lose your job, or an emergency comes up, you will have something to fall back on.

4. Pay your Tithe and Give cheerfully. The saying "Givers Never Lack" is one of the most accurate sayings ever. Try it and you will be surprised, it works like magic!

5. Dedicate a Fraction of your stipends to self development. Your chances of getting a better paying job will definitely increase if you have more skills, certifications, etc.

6. Check your Relationships!! Guys, is your girlfriend milking you dry? Girls, is your boyfriend feeding of you continously? The hard truth is that if you are going to move ahead, you need to cut off those that are constantly pulling you back. If they truly cared about you, they wont keep demanding, knowing fully well you don't earn that much.

7. Feel free to add up...

hotdi:
Invest in viable businesses no matter how small.
Avoid spending too much on recharge cards and data plan.

Bollinger:


Nice essay. Isn't it convenient to pick nice examples to suit your argument? I would also argue that the guy looking for a place to rent could also find alternatives rather than borrow. There are boys quarters you could get for that amount if you really look hard enough. And borrowing to invest is just ridiculous. What you do is look for business partners to share the risk not lending partners. Bill gates and the likes never went borrowing. They went to look for investors. No one ever said being financially responsible was/is easy, but it's what separate's successful people from the rest. Never ever spend what you cannot afford. You are not going to die if you don't.

greggng:
Chai I was trying to cut cost by following my friends advice. He took me to ilepo market were he helped me bought food stuff in bulk. According to him , one is happy when one has food at home even though one has no money. To cut the story short, whenever I finish cooking, I discovered plenty sand in my meal. Right now I spent 15k to organise my so called foodstuff and I cannot even eat it cos of sand. To worsen my case I spent all I ve in it. Now am regretting it.

bolliejay:

God