Growing up, I may not have had the best childhood when it comes to finances. Back then, I had to constantly witness arguments between my parents over money issues & our whole family used to struggle a lot financially. While I am seeing other kids being able to own different toys or games, I had to keep money & find ways to earn the stuff that I want. Seeing my other brothers growing up, they had their struggles as well where my mum couldn’t afford to buy them a laptop or computer for studies which resulted in her borrowing my aunt’s credit card to pay in installments. Yes, my parents did actually max out their credit cards & they can’t afford to pay for it including their old car loans.
The struggle was real. From my mum’s perspective, she had to hustle her way to earn money for their family by taking a 2-hour trip to work daily which consist of 2 bus rides & 1 ferry ride per trip. Once a month during her off day, she will travel back to Langkawi for an overnight trip to just earn extra for the family. I remembered when she had to wake up at 6 am, travel to Langkawi & have a full day facial session until midnight & the next day 6 am, she will travel back to Penang to resume her work. She inspires me as a hustler.
When I was in college, I had to rely on PTPTN to fund my studies. I was given RM70 each week for my food & other expenses. It was definitely just enough for me to eat for 5 days but I can’t be enjoying any type of luxury food or life. Life was not easy too when I started to work as my income at that time was low & I was also struggling to make ends meet. Multiple bad decisions & debts were made during my initial work life which resulted in me having financial & debts issue. Surviving is definitely not easy when I have a lack of income but what makes it worst was my way of handling my money.
Below are some of the ways that I managed to survive with no money from being a student to a young working adult:
1. Rely On Budget Food
I know many students & some young working adults have the same struggle. It is just funny to think back like how I can survive with a loaf of bread for a few days. Or how can I survive by eating instant noodles or economy noodles? While KFC was my luxury meal at that point, places like Nando’s & Starbucks is not even a place I dare to walk in. If I were to enter a mall to chill, the food court was my only option of food not because I wanted it but because it was the only place I can afford at that time.
2. Stay At Home With Minimal Social Life
I spend most of my weekends at home without going anywhere since going out can be expensive. If my friend were to ask me out, our lepak will be mamak stalls & not places like Starbucks. The good thing about staying at home is, food expenses can be saved since my mum will be preparing meals during the weekend.
3. Finding Excuses Not To Go Out
I remembered I was invited to a birthday party. The funniest thing about the birthday party was, the host was asking us to pay for the birthday meals which was RM100 per pax. I remembered that I don’t have RM100 at that point therefore I actually made an excuse that I was sick to just skip the event. There were also many other occasions where I have to find excuses for not attending any gatherings or meet-ups.
4. Maximizing My Credit Card
Within my first 6 months of entering working life, I applied for my first credit card with no knowledge of the card benefits or even the charges. I remembered maximizing both cards & it was to a point that I can’t afford to pay that I have to pay the minimum payment. The interest is super high that it was affecting my financials badly.
5. Borrowing Money From My Mum
It is embarrassing to say it but that was the truth. I had to borrow money from my mum for the first few years of my working life as I did not have any financial planning. It was my last resort but I am blaming myself for not controlling my spending well.
6. Finding Cheap Entertainment or Activities
While the cinema or going out will cost more money, I will be looking for cheap entertainment or activities to do when I am free. I may chill at the beach or going for hiking as part of my activities. For cheap entertainment, I rely a lot on free web streams to find movies for free.
7. Park Illegally
Whether it is malls, offices, or any paid parking, I will find ways to park for free even if it is illegal parking. At that point, it was about saving as much money as possible even for little expenses like that.
8. Shop For Cheap Clothes
I can’t really remember the brands but I remembered my average clothes is between RM20-RM50 each. RM50 will be my luxury at that point & I remembered going to shops that are selling cheap clothing & some of them even have no brands. My main shopping area will be Prangin Mall during Chinese New Year shopping.
9. Delaying All My Loan Payment
I had to skip paying my house & car loans for a couple of months as I was not able to afford to pay them. It came to a point where my car was towed as I was unable to pay RM450 for my car loan. It was such an embarrassing experience as I was “ambushed” by the towing car company worker who followed me from my house to a coffee shop & they opened my car door & snatched my car key immediately after I parked my car. The worst part was, he even embarrassed me by telling the passerby that I was unable to pay for my car loan, therefore, it had to be towed.
Conclusion:
OSS!
You can also check out my latest YouTube video on Why Do You Need Financial Planning?
