BY TUNDE OYEDOYIN
Tunde Oyedoyin is a personal finance coach and founder of Money Intelligence Coaching Academy, a specialist academy of personal finance. He can be reached as follows: +447846089587 (WhatsApp only); E-mail: tu5oyed@gmail.com
Following the money is a good habit to develop in order to manage your personal finance. If you’re not in the know about it, your money may be running haywire and perhaps, southward or in some directions you don’t want.
The need to not forget about following the money dawned on me not long ago while at a famous station. Will come back to that later.
Following the money is a big thing, and as a matter of fact, it is a practice that reputable businesses and organisations don’t mock about. That’s the reason they call in external auditors. They go to that extent, despite having people looking after their books from the inside.
Though you and I may not have the need to hire the services of an auditor or a bookkeeper, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t make a habit of following our money. One of the many benefits you’ll get from that practice is a reality check of what you’re spending your money on.
As mentioned earlier, yours truly got a timely reminder to not dump the art of following the money not long ago. It was on the final leg of the journey to work. After passing through the ticket barrier at Wembley Central, I went over to one of the automated ticket machines just to confirm what had been charged for travelling through central London.
It turned out that it was £2.70. Though it was only twenty pence more than what Transport for London, tfl, used to charge a couple of days before then, that routine practice made me think about my daily travel plans. If one was to be going outside of his regular zone at the drop of the hat, one’s pocket will be taking more hits than necessary.
Following the money can be a weekly or monthly practice. It doesn’t really matter, as the example I cited has shown. The key thing is to be sure you’re doing it. In fact, following the money can be done after eating out or after returning from your regular shopping trip.
By merely going over your receipts, not only are you following the money, that practice may shine the light on where the bodies are buried as per your personal finance.
Remember, it’s the practice that matters, and not the amount. Don’t wait till you have a deep pocket or till your name appears on the Forbes list of 100 richest dudes in town. Just do it as Nike says.
