While growing up I often hear this phrase; ‘As simple as ABC’. But then ABC was not that simple because we had to recite it every day at school for us to know the twenty-six alphabets. Many times when you are having a challenge with learning a new subject or skill, you are likely to hear someone somewhere tell you it is as simple as ABC.
This phrase however left an indelible mark in my consciousness because even as an adult I always want things to be simplified as ABC. I always feel that life should not be as complex as we have made it. I also came across a perception sometime that states; if you are looking for the best way to do a thing, give it to a lazy man. I was startled at the view but the argument states that because he (lazy man) had to do it, he will look for the simplest and quickest way so he can get over with it. Pretty smart I guess…
Now to our ABC of savings; Doubtless saving money is one of the hardest tasks we all have to face to ensure we plan for both the immediate and unforeseeable future. Savings is fundamental to investment, wealth creation, poverty eradication and financial freedom. The real question is how can we make savings as simple as ABC? In reality savings cannot be that simple except we inculcate some basic mindset towards savings and these mindset or steps are what I have come to believe as the ABC of savings
A – Acceptance; you must first accept that savings is important and necessary for a financially stable future. Everything in life starts with acceptance of the need. The moment your mind accepts that this is important to your well being it will become easier to begin setting financial goals and crafting out a strategy for achieving the goals. As humans we generally gravitate towards whatever we feel is important to us. You may dislike the sight of tablets or pills but you must accept the verdict of the doctor to use the drugs so you can regain your health. Many people don’t save because they have not been able to convince themselves of the need to save and invest.
B – Believe; you must believe that you can save. An African adage says ‘if you don’t save when you earn three pence, you will never save even if you earn one shilling’ And one quote by a famous personality states ‘if you say you can you are right and if you say you can’t you are equally right’ Having a can-do spirit towards savings will help you see areas where you can begin to save. It is very easy to resign and give up in the face of competing demands and guilt-inducing advertisements that daily bombard our consciousness. A strong believe in the need to save will help you see beyond the maze
C – Cut down your Spending; the A and B will be useless if you are not propelled into action. The first and easier way to start saving is to cut down on your expenditure. If you normally would take a bottle of coke after every meal and you cut down to two daily, you will be saving the cost of a bottle. Initially it may seem insignificant but over the long term, you will be amazed at how much you have saved. One thing I found interesting about savings is that the more you save and invest the more you want to save and invest.
Savings in key to success in life and we should spare no thought for anything that want to stop us from saving part of our income today for the future. It’s simply the wise thing to do …. Yes and it is as simple as ABC!
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