Managing your money, to see that there are people who are always short of money, and then there are others who have the habit of spending wastefully, meaning they spend without control. Although I also feel a bit guilty myself, I feel embarrassed but just let it be. Then there are some other people who are in debt, and that debt makes them irritable, affecting their relationships with those around them, making them feel pressured all the time because of debt.

The main topic I will show you is a formula for effectively managing your personal finances, and to make it easier for you to follow this article, I will divide it into 3 parts:

• Part 1 reveals the formula for managing personal money, never being in debt, never being short of money, and never spending wastefully.
• Part 2 will provide some directions to help you behave and act in case your income is not enough to live on, your income is lower than necessary needs. That is the situation of not earning enough to eat, we should behave, we should plan how for part 2.
• Part 3 is for you to save money without having to live in hardship or poverty, you don't have to struggle too much, you don't have to be too stingy, there is still a way to save money, that is part 3.

The 3 Account STC Method

This will be the part where I reveal a very simple method that I call the 3 Account STC method, just remember these 3 letters and you will get it. The first account is the letter S, which means "living", it is the account for necessities, the mandatory monthly payments, which can be rent, gas, electricity, water, milk for children, tuition fees for children, everything is fixed expenses that you cannot avoid every month. I call this account the account that if you don't have it, you will definitely die.

Imagine this month if you don't have money to pay rent, then the risk of having to leave that rented house is very high, that is account number 1 - living account. Each month you need to spend how much, please list it all for me, the more detailed the better, and do not leave out any amount, remember, this will be very beneficial for you.

The second is the savings account, which is the letter T, meaning 15% of your salary, no matter how much you earn, you need to set aside 15% of your salary for savings. Of course, for those who do not earn enough to live, I will have some suggestions for you in part 2, but the principle you need to have is that 15% of your salary must be set aside, I temporarily call this the amount of money that if you don't have, the future will be bleak, because life has many fluctuations, don't let it fall into a situation where just receiving a wedding invitation is enough to make you feel sad and depressed. Having a savings account will completely free you from that feeling in your head.

In this life, money doesn't just fall from the sky, it's not just wedding money, there are also illnesses, car breakdowns, TV malfunctions, and many other important accounts that help free you from pressure, and if possible, set up automatic transfers, meaning you contact your bank and say you want to open a savings account, and this savings account will automatically transfer a certain amount of money every month directly from your bank card, it's very easy. Just call the bank and they will guide you.

The third account, the third amount of money is the letter C, which stands for "Play". Play is the amount of money you want to spend on shopping, so use the money from this play account to buy.

If you think this way, you will feel much lighter, because everything has been clearly divided. Now you have two million in your play account, and it's the beginning of the month, you like this shirt, its price is one and a half million, if before you knew this method, you would think: I just got my salary, I have up to seven million, that's a lot, spending one and a half million to buy the shirt I like, treat myself, satisfy myself, right? Yes. That is a foolish decision regarding personal financial management, you will suffer because of such spending habits.

But now with clear planning, you will know very clearly, you look at your play account, you know you only have two million to play with. So now spending one and a half million to buy this shirt, something feels off, spending one and a half million means that for the rest of the month, I only have 500 thousand left. Is it worth buying this shirt? Am I being foolish, putting myself into financial stress when I only have 500 thousand to play with for the remaining 29 days of the month? And suddenly you weigh the pros and cons, and you make a favorable decision for yourself.

How to Solve When Income is Below Necessary Level

I share with you how to behave if you find yourself in a situation where you are not earning enough to live, meaning your income is below the necessary level. I often use this metaphor whenever someone asks me about this, a metaphor about a road and a vehicle. Suppose you want to go from point A to point B, and your vehicle needs 100 liters to travel, but now you only have about 80 liters of gas, how can you go, right? Then there is only one way, which is to add more gas, there is no other way to go, I am talking under the assumption that the road you are taking is mandatory, you cannot shorten the distance, so the only option is to add the 20 liters of gas that you are short of to be able to go.

The same thing happens when we run out of money, now if you are short of money, the mandatory principle is that you must earn more money. Now you have children, and you live in big cities, but your salary is only 5.5 million, how do you live? So you must be aware that you need more money, now needing more money will lead to:

• One is to increase your salary.
• Two is to switch to a different job that pays more.

This is the direction you must think about, you cannot remain complacent in your current stable job, because the lack of money will gradually kill you. Of course, I will not force you to rush to quit your job immediately, but I want you to seriously think about it, if you are not earning enough to live, you must find ways to increase your salary or quit and find a higher-paying job. Now everything is urgent, everything is chaotic, so continue with your old job, but you need to have a plan to increase your salary or switch to a new job.

If your income is lower than your living expenses, you must have a plan to earn more money. And one piece of advice I have for those of you who are confused, short on money, and want to start your own business, be extremely careful, I tell you that business is a playground for foxes, not for sheep, not for naive deer. If you enter business without the courage and combat experience, you will not succeed, you will definitely fail, you are already living below the necessary level, you are short on money, and you get involved in business, in something you are not good at, then you will fail, that is a tragedy. Saying this does not mean I forbid you from doing business, from trading, from collaborating, just do it according to a clear plan, once you finish that, you will have the courage to know whether you should become a boss or not.

Save but Don't Live Poorly

In fact, these are just my experiences, personal experiences that have helped me at least survive, even in the toughest times, there were times I was extremely hungry, but one thing I am very proud of is that even in the poorest phase, I was never in debt, so I believe I am qualified to share with you the experiences that can help you strive and save.

The first way is the obvious way, I have told you, if you follow the 3 Account STC formula, then you already have savings, 15% of your income, right? And you will never be in debt, not afraid of spending wastefully, only spending in the play account for shopping, your financial intelligence will increase, that is already a very good way to save, remember that this must be the top saving method, and it should continue from now until the end of your life, that is a mandatory way.

Step 2 is a way for us to save on rent, and this method will save you a lot of money, not just rent, but also other expenses. For example, now you are working in the center and renting a house near the center, the rent could be three million a month for a modest place, not too big. So now I suggest you move to the outskirts, but of course, it’s not just renting anywhere in the outskirts, you should research the map on Google, the bus routes, and rent places that are on the bus lines that are safe and secure, then you will save a lot of money on transportation and rent.

The third saving method is also an experience of mine during those tough times, change your mindset, remove the word buy, especially for expensive items, replace the word buy with the word rent, remember that. For example, now you really want to buy a new motorcycle for 40 million, 50 million, try calculating, spending 40 million to buy a motorcycle, that 40 million could be used for 6,600 bus rides at the current price. And if you assume you take 4 bus rides a day, then that 40 million is enough for you to travel by bus for about 4-5 years.

Of course, everyone likes new vehicles, who doesn't want their own vehicle, but who are we? We must understand this clearly, rich people can buy whatever they want, but if we are poor, we do not have the right to demand high standards. The purpose of shifting from a buying mindset to a renting mindset is to reduce the burdens and pressures in our minds. Our salary is not high, and now buying a vehicle on installment will eat into our salary, which is a direct blow to our minds, making us sad and tired, creating a vicious cycle of poverty, so we must understand our own situation, if we are poor, we must live at that level, every time we live above our means, the debt will kill us, year after year.