What I do with my income is that I divide it into 6 jars;
Financial Freedom jar - 10%
Education jar- 10%
Long Term Savings for Spending jar- 10%
Play jar - 10%
Charity jar - 5-10%
Expenses - 50 -55%
The first and most important jar that you need to contribute is your Financial Fredom Jar. You ALWAYS put the first 10% ,at least, into your financial freedom jar. I say at least because the more you contribute into your FFJ, the faster you will achieve your financial freedom. I am now contributing more than 50% into my FFJ. This is because my income grow a lot faster than what I spend
Education jar; I have spoke about the importance of education in previous steps and when I talk about education it is always about personal development, business and money making skills. The more money making skills you have, the more ways you can make money.
Long Term Savings for Spending; You may want to set aside 10% savings to buy a car or for a deposit for a house that you want to live in. Don't buy a car if you don't need one, especially for people living in Singapore. I don't own a car in Singapore because it is really not necessary. I have travelled to many countries and I think the transport system in Singapore is one of the best in the world. Good value taxis are everywhere, with air-conditioned buses and clean MRT trains, I am happy with taking public transport in Singapore. I do own a car in Kuala Lumpur, where I live.
Play Jar; Set aside 10% for pampering yourself. like going to the spa, movies or chillout with friends etc, etc. To maximise my play jar, I will use it to have meals with friends and do networking. I enjoy having meals with friends and talk about business. It need not be expensive, can always have it at a nearby coffeeshop or hawker centre. Well different people have different way of pampering themselves, you do it the way that makes you happy.
Charity Jar; "You can never outgive the universe"; "The only thing that you can take away from this world is what you give"; "The more you give, the more you receive" From my experience, the more I give, the more I receive. Very hard to understand initially but after sometime, it just amazes you how the universe works. The people that focus on only taking, will end up with very little. Sorry to say that the majority belong to the taking group, this is why majority of people are poor.
Expenses; do your best to cut down on your expenses and not to spend on things that are unnecessary. Don't buy things just because it is cheap or on sale. "If you buy things that you don't need, you may end up selling things that you need" Any leftover from your expenses should be channel into your FFJ.
I will talk about how I allocate my FFJ next week. In the meantime, I will appreciate if you could give me some feedback for my blog or you may have some questions for me or there is a subject that you may want me to cover. Please give me your comments.
