Money-talks 101 : "Ilocano Style" - How to Save Money

Wanna know the SECRET why some people are so adept in SAVING MONEY?
Well, I’ll be more than happy to divulge their secret. LOL!

When I wrote this blog, I interviewed several relatives of mine from my mother’s side – who are proud Ilocanos (that’s why the blog’s title is Money-talks 101 Ilocano Style).

Let me insert a trivia here [and disclaimer too, haha!]. I don’t mean to offend the Ilocanos but if I do, please pardon me. In the Philippines, Ilocanos are labeled as “kuripot”. Some would say they don’t mind; some would admit they are proud-kuripot; but a few others take it negatively.

The synonymous English word I chose to define “kuripot” is penny-wise – meaning very thrifty and extremely cautious in spending even small amount of money. I dislike the words tightfisted and parsimonious.

My resource persons almost have the same money-saving ideas. Some gave me wise-sayings [salawikain] and others just expressed their opinions/advice. I listed a few worth quoting:

1. Filipino wise-sayings shared by my beloved Aunt:

a. “Kapag may isinuksok, may madudukot.” – means when you save money today, you’ll have something to use should hard times come. Quoting her words: “Bili nang bili ng kung anu-ano, di maalalang magsimpan, bukas nganga.”

b. “Habang maiksi pa ang kumot, magtiis kang mamaluktot.” – means one should learn to be frugal/thrifty while income is not that much; never spend more than what you have. She even added: “Magtiis ka muna sa 3-in-1 na kape. Saka ka na mag-Starbucks ‘pag bayad na lahat ng utang mo.” Harsh truth. SMH

2 . Know the difference between necessity and luxury. Buy what you need, not what you like. Got it?

3 . Third, the valuable quotes shared by my sister who said, “…hindi lang mga Ilocano ang kuripot. Tanungin mo pa sila Uncle Thomas at Uncle Benjamin…”

a. “Never spend your money before you have it.” – Thomas Jefferson
To avoid debt, do not borrow money just to buy unnecessary things. Debt would force you to pay extra interest… then the debit would pile up… until you can no longer afford to pay it.

b. “Beware of little expenses; small leaks will sink a great ship.” – Benjamin Franklin

The analogy of the great ship to finances is perfect. No matter how much money/wealth you have, if you won’t pay attention on how it has been spent, it will all be gone before you know it.

4 . Lastly, the better formula in saving money which all of them agreed unanimously!

a. Average people use the following formula in saving:
Income minus Expenses equals Savings [Income – Expenses = Savings]

What if there’s nothing left? Then, Savings will only be a ‘theory’.

b. Kuripot-people has a better formula:
Income minus Savings equals Expenses [Income – Savings = Expenses]

It’s like spending what is left after you set aside the amount for your savings. No matter how small [even only $10 out of $1,000], it’s still a savings.

Make sense?

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Your time spent with my blog is very much appreciated.

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