Financial decisions and time management

There is a right time and there is a wrong time. When things are done at the right time success and many positives will be the outcome, with the opposite being the case if they are done at the wrong time. Even the Holy book declares that, ‘There is time for everything,’ to further buttress the point. The onus is therefore on discerning individuals to understand the times and let their actions be guided by it.

Sadly we live in age of the ‘instant,’ – instant coffee, instant noodles, instant miracles and instant gratification. This makes people to constantly rush into things they shouldn’t. We need to get back to the place where we don’t race ahead of ourselves, engaging in activities meant for a later time. I would like to provide you with a list of ten things you could engage in doing when your net worth is in excess of Fifty Million Naira and not anytime sooner. The reason why fifty million is the benchmark is because you cannot be fully comfortable financially until you have in excess of this amount in cash and investments that continually generate income.

New car purchases for you and your spouse is a no-no until you become a multi-millionaire. Brand new mid-range automobiles currently cost from five million naira upwards, scarce funds that could be ploughed back into your business interests. New cars are expensive to maintain if parts need replacing, they quickly drop in value and hardly do much for your image/esteem. You would be better off purchasing a foreign used model or a slightly used current model whose price may have dropped by as much as forty percent. You can make use of them for several years until your finances improve.

Secondly, travelling during the summer holidays to Europe and the Americas every year should not be the practice of an aspiring multi-millionaire. During summer holidays the fares and everything associated with holidays are more expensive. Granted it is essential to take time off work, however this should not drill a deep hole in your finances. Explore the lovely holiday destinations that other African countries can provide you instead and embark on long haul travel once every three years.

Your accommodation is another area that can easily set you back substantial chunks of your income if you don’t take care. Intending multi-millionaires should be guided by keeping costs reasonable. By all means you should dwell in a good accommodation in a reasonably safe and comfortable location but don’t overdo it. Yearly house rents are usually a substantial sum; portions of it can be ploughed back into generating multiple streams of income.

It is commendable that you want your children to attend the finest schools in the world and acquire the highest quality education, but you can trade off by making them attend decent and affordable schools at the primary and secondary level, and then move on to an Ivy League university for their degree program. By this time you would have been able to achieve multi-millionaire status and be able to easily afford it.

Intending multi-millionaires must also make serious attempts to curb luxurious and lavish lifestyles and spending. This is not sustainable in the long run because the resources are not yet available. Buying only expensive items when there are cheaper alternatives is wasteful. This is a time for tightening of the belt so get your priorities right. Always meditate and carefully consider the pros and cons before you splurge out on anything that might not be necessary. There is a time for top of the range designer clothes, shoes and other fine things of life and it’s not for now.

Finally your current financial status may still require you to hold onto a job either full or part time. You still require several income streams of which a job will be one of them as you build wealth. Multi-millionaires work for themselves typically but they most times started out by working for others first. This experience became the launching pad when they had earned enough to quit working for others and fully focus on theirs ventures. Those entrepeneurs who are still in the initial stages even though they work for themselves are accountable to bankers who provided financing, or key customers who provide patronage. By the time you achieve multi-million status you will have many working for you and patronizing your business offerings. 

Building wealth requires discipline; discipline is required to see beyond the now into the future. Avoid needless spending and invest whatever you can into opportunities that will yield for you in the future. There is a time for conserving and a time for living a life of luxury, however the former comes before the latter. You must get your priorities right as you build your wealth.

Kenneth Doghudje