While working overseas, we may get swayed into buying items such as gadgets, clothes, etc. which may sometimes be unnecessary. We may justify our spending because we deserve it but there are cases wherein our expenses go beyond our means.
So let’s try to take a step back and remind ourselves why we became OFWs in the first place. We list down some helpful ways for us to save our hard-earned money.
12 Useful Tips for OFWs to Save Money
Working abroad is definitely not easy and it can be a difficult challenge if we don’t know how to utilize our salary properly. Below are some useful tips on how you can save money while working abroad.
- Know your priorities. You should know what are needs and wants. Set aside your wants and buy only your needs.
- Be realistic and know your limits. You can’t save 150 pesos if you only earn 100 pesos. Know what you can’t achieve and strive your hardest to reach what you can.
- Have a talk with your family. Your family should know your spending practices and you should know theirs. That way, both parties can adjust to the other and conflicts can be avoided.
- Set a budget and plan your spending. Budget carefully how much you would spend for transportation, food, rent, and other necessities. Stick to that budget. You can treat yourself every once in a while, but not too much.
- Have a long-term goal. Always think that when you have already saved a lot, you can go back to your family faster. That should boost your motivation.
- Save every little peso. Every small amount counts. Even if you save just 20 pesos a day, every year you would have more than 7000 pesos! That’s more than nothing.
- Be consistent in saving up. Don’t save up only when you’re “in the mood”. Even if you’re sad, save up what you can.
- Pay your bills and debts on time. You won’t be paying the extra late fees or interest charged when you pay them on time. These are a waste of money.
- Refrain from using credit cards. Credit card companies impose an exceptionally high interest rate when you borrow from them. This is another waste. Only use credit cards when absolutely necessary.
- Leisure activities should be kept at a minimum. Buying new gadgets and expensive shoes, partying, and the like should be done rarely. These are unnecessary expenditures. Save up first, have fun later.
- Find a side job. Having a part-time job is not too bad. Even for just a small amount, it can help you a lot. But don’t sacrifice your health over this, rest too when you can.
- Invest your money. Treasury stocks and bonds issued by the government have little to no risk at all compared to the private stocks and bonds. If you have the extra money, invest them in the treasury and it can grow a lot in the long-run.
These tips have definitely helped a lot of people so this will be helpful for us too. Saving up is difficult indeed but it is needed. Even if we may not earn much, our motivation, character, and love for our families is what makes us rich at heart.
Money is a big factor when making decisions in our lives. A lot of Filipinos have gone abroad in order to seek better opportunities and in turn, be able to provide for our loved ones back in the Philippines. Saving up would be the solution if we don’t earn very much. We know how hard it is to earn so we should not spend our money on useless things and know how important it is to save up.