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Where Does Your Income Go?

Wednesday, September 28, 2016
This blog already moved to www.savingspinay.ph If you want the latest tips and stories on budget, savings, investments, productivity and making extra income go HERE instead.

Am I the only one excited for Friday pay day?! I bet most of us are looking forward to this also.
Today as a precaution for everyone I decided to create a post as to where does your income go. Here you'll find necessary guidelines and general tips on how your income should be distributed. Before reading the rest of the post I recommend checking the following related links:



Where Does My Income Go?

Every pay check I go over my 50-20-30 Rule of Budgeting Template and distribute my net income in the same manner. I have talked about 50-20-30 Rule of Budgeting on the blog and just last June I believe I finished revising the template and creating an e-Guide that will go along with the file. If you are already part of the SavingsPinay FB Community then you can download it for free under Files. If you are a newbie reader then please send me an email request at izzaglinofull@gmail.com for your own copy.

Currently my income is sliced on the following expenses.

First Paycheck (15th of the Month)

50% - Food and Transportation Allowance for the next 10-11 days of work
        - Monetary gift to my parents

20% - Savings
       - FAMI-SALEF Investment

30% - Relaxation, Toiletries/Other Personal Care, Book and Others

Second Paycheck (30th of the Month)

30% - Food and Transportation Allowance for the next 10-11 days of work

50% - Savings
       - Emergency Fund

20% - Relaxation, Toiletries/Other Personal Care, Book and Others

Notes:
  • I spend a lot on Food and Transportation since I work in Makati and my transportation alone is 120pesos back and forth. 
  • I have mentioned on My New Budget and Spending Tracker how I track my spending. I believe this what makes the big difference when it comes to managing your money. The ability to track everything you spend on a particular day. Once you have master this you will surely earn financial discipline that your future self will thank you for. 
  • My Second Paycheck (30th of the Month) is usually bigger than my first paycheck (15th of the Month) so I maximize it to go automatically on my emergency fund. How? I have two Metrobank Accounts, my payroll account and my personal account. I transfer immediately a dedicated amount from my payroll account to my personal account through online banking. READ: The Different Saving Funds You Should Own
  • I invest!!! If you still have no idea on how to invest I encourage you to check last week's post How to Invest for Beginners in the Philippines. I added a quick story on how I became an investor at 19 years old.
  • Monetary Gift to my parents. Actually my parents don't ask anything from me (from us) at all but if you still remember my 20-something panic I have this thing for my parents... I feel like there's so much they deserve and I want to do for them so badly. My gift isn't much but my hope is it could ease their financial burden somehow. 
  • Of course I need my relaxation and personal pampering once in a while. And by once in a while I mean once a week. To be honest this is a big loop hole in my finances and I know that I could save a lot if only I stop being such an impulsive shopper. If you go over my personal blog you'll know I had my mani-pedi experience at Let's Face It Trinoma, I also buy a new book every pay day and once a month I do some shopping. Last Monday's post on 4 Useful Tips to Live Within Your Means is a reminder for me to still live frugally no matter what. 
Do You Have Any Side Jobs?

Now aside from my income (salary) I also make extra money through the many side jobs I do. This isn't a surprise for those who have been reading SavingsPinay since the beginning. My side jobs allowed me to save more, invest more and share more. This is something I am always thankful for to God --- that He blessed me with such gifts that turned me into a money-making machine. My post All About Making Extra Money in the Philippines will prove you that there is soooo much ways you can earn extra income. 

Currently here are the hustles that let me earn extra on the side:
  1. Event Hosting for all Occasion is something started when I was 17 years old college student. I earn per event or special occasion I book.
  2. Wedding Planner/Wedding Coordinator is something I venture after a year of hosting. I have a passion in planning events and wedding in particular give me so much happiness. I gathered my own wedding coordinator team and have been to Tagaytay, Antipolo, Batangas etc.
  3. Makeup and Hairstylist for Special Occasion is something I offer once in a while. I do hair and makeup for brides, entourage, debutant and guests.
  4. Blogging. My blogs SavingsPinay and IzzaGlino both started as a hobby and now they manage to give me some side income. I earn through ad spaces, sponsored post, blog contents and affiliate marketing. I also manage to get clients thanks to my blogs since it became my online portfolio. 
  5. Freelance Writing. Writing has been part of my life since the beginning. I've been part of the school newspaper from elementary to high school. I took up BS Journalism in college and I currently work as a Technical Writer in Makati. It became apparent that I will become a freelance writer someday. It was the book So You Want to be a Freelancer that motivated me to enrich my writing skills and offer my service. Today, I work  part-time on an SEO Content Writing Service based in Bangkok, Thailand. 
The money I get from side hustle related to event from hosting, coordination and hair&makeup are all paid in cash so it is actually harder to keep. My next action it to open a passbook savings account in BDO since the minimum initial money I need to is only 5,000pesos. I believe having a passbook will ultimately help me track my earnings. My plan is to deposit my earning as soon as possible to my passbook savings account. 

All my Blogging earnings are still on hold since I haven't reached my payment threshold yet. It is actually harder to earn money blogging than I thought plus the fact that I only started getting serious in transitioning blog to business come early 2016. 

My freelance writing payments are well-kept on my Paypal account and I use primarily on online payments like buying this blog's theme of Etsy. 

What Should You Do with Your Extra Money?

If you have any extra money whether it came from a side job, bonus or unexpected gift then here are some recommendations on where you should invest it:


1. Save it


Excess cash can be used to fund your savings. Open a new savings account or use any separate account your have deposit it. 


2. Invest it

You can also choose to invest your extra money on a mutual fund or Unit Investment Trust Fund for example. These type of funds are perfect for beginners plus opening fee are most likely 5,000 to 10,000 pesos only. Below are some mutual fund, UITF and other investment options I have discussed on the blog:



3. Use it

You deserve a reward for your extra hard work so why not use the money to go on a much needed vacation. You can also save all your extra money to buy your bigger expenses like luxury items, car, downpayment for a house etc. 

Final Notes From SavingsPinay

Knowing where you income goes is important because it gives you so much awareness when it comes to your finances. I don't know about you but for me, wondering where my money went over the last pay day isn't cool. I want to know exactly how I spent my income whether it's from my salary or the extra income I earn on the side. 

My Next Action For You are as follows:


1. Answer where does your income go? Grab a pen and paper and list down the areas where you spend your earnings from bills to unnecessary expenses. This will lead you to create you budget and will soon become your basis in managing your money every month, week or day.

2. Find a side hustle you can earn extra money! This next action is actually life changing. It could make or break your ability to earn money. Do you have any skill you can offer to others? Maybe you are good in writing too then start finding freelance writing gigs now. 



This blog already moved to www.savingspinay.ph If you want the latest tips and stories on budget, savings, investments, productivity and making extra income go HERE instead.
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