Two things we would advise any young girl to start doing as on yesterday is to know her self-worth and to start maintaining a piggy bank as soon as possible. Sadly, parents in India do not teach the importance of financial independence to their daughters during the most formative years of their life. Being financially secure is one of the earliest life lessons that should be imparted to young girls. How grossly crucial this factor can be in her adult decision-making life is not hard to understand. Being financially independent empowers women in more than one way. She becomes capable to take all decisions of her life irrespective of her dependence on anyone for survival. Building your skill set, making money and handling your finances are some of the most important lessons parents should teach their children, especially daughters if they wish to see them as happy, confident and self-reliant adults.
What is a Piggy Bank?
Well, a piggy bank is a small box-like structure, mostly in the shape of a pig, as the name suggests, that is kept by children to collect their saved currency coins. We all have used it in our childhood days, if not in the shape of a pig, then maybe a box or an aperture. But we all have sure saved some portions of our pocket money.
It should not hurt in the least to continue this habit of saving money well into adult life. But, we are not really referring to saving money in fixed deposits, long-term plans, or property and gold investments. We are talking about the fun part of putting some money each day into your tiny little piggy bank and then just forgetting about it and moving on with life.
How Early in Your Life Should You Start Maintaining a Piggy Bank?
Teach your daughters and sons the benefits of saving some portion of whatever money they have as their security fund. Spending away money is easier, but saving money is what holds you on a rainy day. Good habits should be inculcated from early on in life. One may start as early as when the child understands what money is and how it is vital for living. Give your children some pocket money, no matter how meager the amount may be. Tell them to save as much of it as they can and at the end of the month ask them how much they managed to save. This exercise of putting some amount aside each month can really build up to a substantial amount after a few years.
Tips to Maintaining a Healthy Piggy Banking Routine
It is not just about buying a piggy bank and allocating it a space in your house and then forgetting about it altogether. One has to be consistent with a routine and ensure that they maintain a healthy piggy bank account (just the way we are regular with our official bank accounts) to yield some great amounts held together after a certain period. Below we give you a lowdown on how to do that effectively:
– Fix a time duration else as to how long you would hold on to that piggy bank, else the curiosity of knowing how much money you have accumulated would kill you.
– Say, you decide on a period of 1 year or 3 years; just put aside some amount into the piggy bank every other day and forget about it. Cut down some aspect of your expenses and put aside that money into the piggy account. It could be something as small as Rs. 500, 100 or even 20. It is not about the amount you save but about adhering to the discipline of saving money.
– Forget about it for the stipulated time period. At the end of it, you would be surprised to unveil how much money you have afforded to save.
– As a woman, we always need money for our sense of security. You never know what surprises life presents you with – fortunate or otherwise. It is a non-negotiable for women to be on top of their finances, all the time. Not just to take care of their needs, but also to lead a comfortable life, independent of anyone else. Receiving some unexpected amount at any phase in life is always helpful.
– The most fun part about saving money in a piggy bank (without having any explicit records) is you never know how much amount to expect at the end of it. The surprise element should be your biggest motivation.
– Try to keep these savings to yourself. These are your additional savings that need not be counted into any financial costings or books. Keep it as privy to yourself as possible.
– It is pertinent to understand the value of money and cutting down costs on unjustified expenses can always help you save a lot.
At the end of it all, you may either spend all that saved money and pamper yourself, help someone who needs it better than you, spend it for some philanthropic cause or continue saving it over an extended period of time. With the kind of unprecedented times that we live in, a little saved money never hurt anyone. One never knows what unexpected situation life puts us in, so putting all eggs in a single basket may not be the best idea, rather put them in your piggy bank!
Love,
Team LadyInRoseGold
