You have had enough excuses, start saving

There is a popular belief among people who do not save that goes like “you can’t save what you don’t have”.

True, they argue their incomes are barely enough to live. They have dreams and ambitions but no savings or residual income to fuel them. So, they live for the next day or like is the case for many corporate ‘middle class’, for the next weekend.

According to the Labour Force Report published by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, about 50 percent of Ugandans in paid employment earn some Shs200,000 or less.

This indicates that nearly 60 percent of Ugandan households are in a dire condition. Only 2 per cent reported being well-off financially.

While it is true that a huge percentage of Ugandans do not earn well, the idea of not affording to save is merely a façade we sell ourselves to disguise our lack of discipline in most cases.

Reckless lifestyle
We try to justify a reckless lifestyle of ‘no saving’ by glorifying pleasure avenues, while avoiding the hard-hitting questions.

Certainly, because we are very much aware that the answers to these questions make it only logical for us to ditch the lifestyle we are so fond of.

Many of us have been trudging the treacherous road of financial stagnancy for the past six years or more of our working lives.

Every other day, we sling our bag of hope on our shoulder and head to work, anticipating a pay rise, promotion or miracle at best, which is often inevitably futile. Hoping for any of the above to happen is only human, but impractical. If you are to rule your finances in 2023, you need to be as realistic and pragmatic about your actions, as possible. Meanwhile, you must be ready to drop all the excuses.

Drop the lifestyle
Lifestyle is the biggest undoing for many of us, especially in the age of social media that is a ‘show and tell’. The reality of a needed change in lifestyle applies across all tiers of society, regardless of how little one earns.

If you earn Shs600,000 a month, but somehow you have been able to pull of the famous Kampala miracle of staying in a Shs800,000 house, the realisation is that you are living beyond your means.

Adjusting the lifestyle would require that you plan for the Shs620,000 save all the ‘miracle’ money, together with a percentage of the monthly wages, and live within the remainder. That certainly is not a rosy scenario with the current inflation rates, but you tip the odds in your favour for the long-term if you do the same thing.

Change your leisure environment
We are influenced a lot by the things we choose to pay attention to. A number of these we pick up from our favourite places for leisure and recreation. Be very deliberate about the people, environments and conversations that engage your mind, because they determine your mindset and course of action.

Rather than play board games with the extremely hilarious boda-boda friends in your home’s trading centre or spend the day in a betting house, perhaps consider joining an investment club, learn another trade or sport.

Get a good insurance cover
The best way to achieve anything in life is by setting targets and devising a disciplined plan to hit them.

We all know that with the ever-changing dynamics of life, you need a tool that supports you. That is where insurances comes into play.

Insurance companies have worked on savings and investment plans that are tailored to enable you meet your life aspirations.

With your goal in mind, pay the premiums and you will be guaranteed a lump sum benefit at maturity of the plan.

Insurance plans are designed to help you save in a disciplined manner over a period ranging between five years to 10 years to accumulate sufficient funds to enable you achieve your dreams.

There are so many other ideas that can help you that we could not exhaust here, but if you do not check the fundamentals mentioned above, the rest are useless.

The writer is the UAP Old Mutual Life Assurance marketing and communications officer.