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  • Okeoghene (32) knows how difficult it is to rebuild after losing everything.

    He shares how he found a rewarding career in art and graphic design despite his parents’ disapproval, becoming successful, and hitting a creative wall after losing ₦17m. Now, he’s trying to start over.

    As told to Boluwatife

    Image: Okeoghene Efeludu

    I loved cartoons as a child. The late 90s and early 2000s Cartoon Network raised me, and I loved recreating the characters I loved — Samurai Jack, Dexter’s Lab and Courage the Cowardly Dog. 

    My drawings were just a fun hobby. But I stopped drawing when my dad saw a Justice League-inspired comic I drew in JSS 2 and tore it up. For him, drawing had become a distraction and prevented me from improving my studies. 

    I didn’t draw again for a long time. Instead, I focused on doing what my parents expected of me.

    First, it was sports. I ran track and played basketball in secondary school. I was on the path to getting a basketball scholarship to a university in the US when a drunk driver hit me and broke both legs. I was 16, and that was the end of any dreams of a sporting career.

    Since I couldn’t pursue a US university admission anymore — my barely middle-class family couldn’t afford it without financial aid — I focused on getting into a Nigerian university. That took three years of trying out different things my parents wanted.

    Between 2009 and 2012, I was admitted into three different universities to study courses ranging from computer engineering to even almost getting recruited into the Nigerian Defence Academy. I wasn’t interested in them. 

    I wanted to study archaeology, but like typical Nigerian parents, my parents weren’t having it.

    I eventually studied computer engineering, networking, and cybersecurity at NIIT, a talent development institution. By 2015, I was working in tech support, fixing laptops, and working on telecommunication masts.

    In the same year, I had a wake-up call. I asked myself, “What do I really want to do?” I’d spent all these years doing different things, but when would I eventually do something for myself?

    At that time, I was a fan of the Hip-hop culture, and graphic T-shirts were a big part of it. However, the 2015 graphic T-shirts had phrases like “Ama Kip Kip” and “My money grows like grass.” I hated those shirts, and I wanted to create something better.

    There was a problem: I’d stopped drawing for so long that I wasn’t sure how to start. My cousin, Precious, was an artist, so I called him. We agreed that I’d describe what I wanted to draw, and he’d make it happen.

    But there was another problem: How would I convert these drawings on paper to something digital I could print on shirts? 

    I knew a graphic designer at a cyber cafe I frequented, and when I asked how much it’d cost to turn the drawings into digital designs, I decided I was going to learn graphic design.

    I bought Corel Draw tutorial CDs and began teaching myself. It looked like sorcery at first, but I soon got the hang of it. My sister’s boyfriend gave me my first gig, paying me ₦2k to design a small flyer. 

    My parents were pissed when they realised I was spending all my time with graphic design. It took an uncle’s intervention for them to tolerate the fact that I’d abandoned everything to pursue a career in graphic design.

    I also got my first graphic design job in 2015, making ₦10k/month at a printing press. Asides making me a better designer, that job taught me a lot about the T-shirt business.

    After a few months, I left the job and began designing my own T-shirts. I borrowed ₦20k from my sister and printed my first samples; then, I got a gig to supply T-shirts for a street jam party. It didn’t take long before people knew me as the “T-shirt guy.”

    In 2016, I started posting my graphic designs on social media and got a few freelance gigs here and there. Of course, I made some of the obligatory rookie mistakes most new freelancers make. 

    I remember not negotiating for a branding gig because I got it through a friend. After I completed the gig, they asked for my fee, and I said ₦20k. They laughed and sent me ₦5k. Another client told me they got someone else for the job after I’d already gone halfway through the project. 

    These experiences taught me to treat design as a business. So, I learned to draw up guidelines and collect part payments before working on any project.

    Things took off from there. I got regular jobs, and with them came the confidence boost that came with being really good at what you did. I even went viral in 2018 for doing a photo manipulation with King Kong and the UBA building at Marina, Lagos. It was just a random design, but UBA reposted it, and I got tons of followers and even more gigs.

    Digital art gave me my first big break in 2018. Someone contacted me on Instagram and requested a canvas print for her boyfriend. I randomly charged ₦300k, and she negotiated to ₦280k. I honestly thought the most I’d get was ₦50k. 

    After I completed the job and got paid, I used about ₦120k to go on a mini vacation to Ghana. It was my way of coming to terms with the fact that I could live a good life and make good money from design.

    And I did make good money between 2019 and 2021. 

    My designs caught attention online because I had a thing for mixing Afrocentric and urban designs with pop culture. I got a job with a US creative firm that paid six figures and collaborated with several national and international brands.

    Image: Okeoghene Efeludu

    I was on a financial high, and while I initially just spent money as it came, I decided to become serious with my finances and began consistently saving in 2020. That turned out to be helpful because 2020 was a slow year due to the pandemic and some health issues. I quit my 9-5 and went fully freelance.

    However, things picked back up in 2021. I secured a collaboration with an international drink brand and was on retainer for about five other brands. I even formed a small company and got a few young designers to work on the projects I couldn’t take on because of time constraints. I was a proper creative director.

    Then, 2022 came, and that’s when my problems started. 

    I invested some of my money in a friend’s delivery business. One day in February, one of our bikes developed a fault, and the rider got into an issue with area boys. I was close by, so I decided to go there to sort it out. However, rather than de-escalating the issue, a fight broke out when I arrived, and my phone got stolen in the scuffle.

    I wasn’t bothered by the theft at first. I called my network provider and asked them to block my line. The bank account linked to the line was my main savings account, so I also called my bank and deactivated my ATM card — basically everything I was supposed to do after losing my phone.

    I couldn’t retrieve my SIM for about two months because of the NIN wahala. I eventually retrieved it without going to my network provider’s office. It turned out you could just meet a regular person on the street, and they’d link your line to a new SIM card. I was shocked that was possible, but I guess it explains how the people who got my stolen SIM were able to impersonate me.

    When I put the new SIM card into my phone, I started receiving strange debit alerts. Almost immediately, random people began calling and accusing me of defaulting on loans. I didn’t know what was happening.

    I found out that blocking my SIM card didn’t prevent it from receiving text messages. The thieves could still use USSD codes on the SIM, and they cleared my entire ₦17m savings. I didn’t realise earlier because I never touched the money in that account — I had a separate account for everyday use.

    They also used USSD to find my BVN and collected loans—about ₦300k in total. I thought the loan companies disturbing me was the worst part until the Economic Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) flagged my bank account and summoned me.

    Apparently, the thieves had sold my SIM card to a 419 syndicate, and those ones used my details to open different accounts. The next few months involved multiple police station and court visits to sign statements and swear affidavits that I’d actually lost my phone and SIM card. I also had to secure a court cease and desist order and involved the FCCPC to get the loan companies off my back.

    When I eventually sorted that out, I had to face the reality that I’d lost everything. I was in a very wild state of mind. I was suicidal, mentally unavailable and couldn’t work. I couldn’t do anything from June to November except sleep and wake up.

    In 2023, I decided to throw myself into work and try to make all the money I’d lost. It worked out for a bit — I got several gigs, averaging ₦400k – ₦500k monthly. I even got another 9-5 in October.

    But I gradually realised I hadn’t properly processed all that had happened in 2022. I was spending so much because I was scared of saving and losing my money again. I’d also taken that job because I was trying to make money quickly again, but I was mentally drained due to the toxic environment. I was losing my creativity and starting to hate design.  

    I quit my job about two months ago and spoke to a therapist to process everything that’s happened. It doesn’t help that I’m trying to rebuild my life and finances at a time when the country isn’t even balanced. Inflation is literally making it impossible for me to build a safety net again.

    It’s extra difficult because money plays an important role in my creativity. For instance, I like doing passion projects — murals, visual art pieces, and art recreations on the side. Those cost a lot of money, but they help me explore my creativity and create art I love. Sometimes, I sell these pieces, but it’s difficult to take that risk now because I don’t know where the money will come from.

    I’m now focusing on rediscovering myself as a creative person and figuring out how to love design without relying on a financial safety net. It hasn’t been spectacular, but I’m in a better place mentally, and I’ve learned to separate the money from the art. 

    I’m reminding myself that I don’t make art because of the money I want to make from it or what I hope to get. I create and design because I love it. It’s my life, and it shouldn’t stop because I lost everything.

    NEXT READ: I Failed Out of Medical School After 5 Years, but I Don’t Regret It

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  • Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing.

    NairaLife #283 bio

    Let’s start from the beginning. When did the hustle start for you?

    1998. I was 15 and was in JSS 2 when I started working on my uncle’s farm every morning before school. Sometimes, I’d return to the farm after school to continue working. He grew yam, and his wife processed palm oil, so there was always plenty work. 

    I made money by setting traps on the farm for bush meat and selling my catch to market women, making between ₦200 and ₦500 on each sale. It was big money in 1998.

    How “big” was ₦200? What could you buy with it?

    I mostly spent my money on meat. During break time, I’d go to a mama-put to buy pounded yam and plenty pieces of bushmeat for ₦200 and collect change. 

    The old men in the canteen always looked at me like, “Who is this small school boy eating pounded yam in the middle of the day?” Some even questioned me, but I was stubborn. I once asked an old man to mind his business and tripped him when he wanted to beat me. Then, I started seeing him in my dreams. I thought he had cursed me.

    Haha. You mentioned your uncle. Were you living with him?

    Yes. My mum sent me to live with him after my father disappeared. I was three years old.

    Disappeared? 

    I don’t even know how to describe it. My mother got pregnant for him in SS 2, and they started living together. He was an inter-state driver, so he only came home during the weekends. One day, he stopped coming home. My mother didn’t have any work, so her brother offered to raise me. 

    Can you paint me a picture of what things were like at your uncle’s?

    My uncle and aunty didn’t have children of their own, but they always had five or six children in their house at any time. They did this to support the children, who were either orphans or came from poor families. I was one of those children.

    It’s not like there was money; they were just good Christians. Things were tough most of the time. I only had one pair of trousers, which I wore to church every Sunday until they started reaching my knees, and aunty bought me another one.

    We ate pounded yam or amala for breakfast and dinner because that’s what we grew on the farm. I was in SS 3 when I ate cornflakes for the first time. A classmate brought a pack to school, and I thought it was too expensive for the size. Why would anyone use money to buy something that doesn’t even fill your stomach?

    You know what? That’s a good question

    After some delays because of school fees, I graduated from secondary school in 2004 and knew there was no university unless I wanted to sponsor myself. I didn’t even really want to go. I knew some people in our neighbourhood who had gone to university only to return to teach. I wanted to make big money.

    How did you plan to do that?

    I was ready to try anything. That same year, I met a man through my uncle. He often came to our town to buy yams from my uncle, and I noticed he came with different cars. He also stayed back in town for a few days before returning. I asked around and heard he was a smuggler in Lagos. 

    He looked like he had money, so I approached him and told him I wanted to be like him. This man reported me to my uncle.

    I’m screaming

    My uncle couldn’t beat me because I was 21, but he scolded me. He kept saying, “Upon everything I’ve done for you, this is what you want to do?” I could see he was disappointed in me and that was more than any beating. 

    So, I decided to get a teaching job instead. I got one at a local primary school in 2005, and my salary was ₦5k/month. I hated the job ehn. The children were always shouting. I’m sure they also hated me because I flogged them very well.

    Uncle, why?

    Haha. I worked at the school for three years. They didn’t increase my salary until I left because I only had an SSCE certificate. I also helped my uncle and aunty on the farm, and they started giving me money too — ₦2k per week. I occasionally caught bushmeat and sold it to market women. I was comfortable.

    I don’t even know what I spent money on. I didn’t have a girlfriend or anything. I just know the money was always finishing. Maybe it was food because I like food a lot. Meat was a luxury at home — my aunty didn’t eat bushmeat, and we couldn’t afford to buy beef or chicken. So, I usually bought it at mama-puts outside. Sometimes, I also loaned my uncle money to buy foodstuff for the house. But I wasn’t spending on transportation, so the money should’ve lasted.

    But why did you leave the school?

    I was the class teacher for Primary 3, but the school owner wanted me to start teaching the Primary 5 students mathematics. My problem was that he didn’t want to pay me extra, so I left in 2008.

    I didn’t want to return to another teaching job, so I told my uncle I wanted to learn handiwork.

    Did you have any in mind?

    I considered plumbing because I knew a plumber, but my uncle discouraged me. He was like, “Does that plumber look like he’s making money?” Me too, I considered it and gave myself brain. 

    Shots fired at the innocent plumber

    My uncle suggested tailoring, and that’s what I did. I found a tailor who charged me ₦30k to learn for six months. I paid ₦10k, and my uncle paid the rest.

    After I finished learning in 2009, the tailor employed me to assist him in his shop. He paid me ₦15k/month, and I worked almost every day. I was mostly sewing clothes and uniforms for young boys. Older men only came to sew clothes during festive periods. 

    I worked there for two years until the tailor died. I tried to get another tailoring job, but the places I saw wanted to pay ₦10k, and I wanted more money. 

    I considered opening my own shop, but there was no money to buy a sewing machine. I’d spent all my money as soon as it entered my hand as usual. I tried to convince my uncle to loan me money, but he asked why I had no savings.

    Why didn’t you have savings, though?

    I don’t believe in saving money. It’s like not wearing your fine clothes because you’re waiting for a special occasion. I don’t even know if I’ll wake up tomorrow, so what happens to the money I’ve kept if I don’t? It’s better for me to take care of the body that works for the money.

    One time, when I was younger, my uncle lost some money he hid on the roof in an old tin of milk. He thinks someone stole it, but I mistakenly threw the tin away when I saw it on the floor. It’s possible a snake pushed it to the floor, but I thought it was rubbish and was supposed to be in the pit we burned waste in. I never told my uncle because he’d have beaten me. 

    I’m telling you this story because see how my uncle lost something he must’ve been saving for a long time. It’d have been better if he had eaten his money jeje. 

    Hmmm. So, back to your tailoring dilemma 

    I couldn’t open a shop, so I stayed home for a few months. Then, in 2012, a distant relative of my aunty came to visit, and somehow, we started talking about me following him. He was a mechanic in another state, and I was going to be his apprentice.

    How long did the apprenticeship last?

    Four years. I realised I was really good with cars, and it didn’t take long to learn about petrol and diesel engines, bodywork and a bit of car rewiring. 

    There were other apprentices in the workshop, and our oga didn’t pay any of us. Sometimes, he’d give every apprentice ₦1k on Fridays to do weekend, but that was it.  

    I made small small money by increasing the price of car parts — usually ₦500 – ₦1500 per week. This wasn’t regular because my oga also knew how much the parts cost. 

    I squatted with another apprentice during those four years and bought food for both of us to appreciate him letting me stay in his room for free. Even after finishing my apprenticeship in 2016, I still stayed with him for one more year.

    What did you do after the apprenticeship?

    Many of my oga’s customers liked me because they could call me to come and pick up their cars and fix them at the workshop. When I was done, I drove it back to them. They didn’t have to stress at all. I think my oga was scared that if I left, I’d carry his customers, so he asked me to keep working from his workshop and pay him ₦15k/month for rent.

    I didn’t have another option, so I did that. Like I said, people already knew me, so I got customers quickly. Sometimes, I met customers on the road when I was driving to drop off other people’s cars. 

    Between 2016 and 2018, I made at least ₦30k monthly. But the money wasn’t really showing in my life because I was paying my oga. Sometimes, my oga would corner my customers once they came to the workshop, and I couldn’t talk because I was using his space. I just knew I had to leave.

    Did you have a plan?

    For the first time, I tried to save to get my own workshop, but something always came up. 

    For example, I had to rent my own apartment at ₦80k/year in 2018 because my friend wanted to get married. My woman also moved in with me, and I had to be dropping money at home.

    Fortunately, my friend set up his own workshop the following year and allowed me to work from there for free. That’s still our arrangement till now. 

    But in 2021, I set up a small container by the roadside not far from his workshop where I sell engine oil and do minor work like repairing okada. When I need to do major work, I use his workshop. I do it like this so we don’t get into arguments about stealing customers or space.

    What’s your monthly income like these days?

    I make between ₦60k – ₦70k from mechanic work and about ₦10k extra from selling engine oil. I also help people advertise their cars for sale on my WhatsApp and do pre-sale inspections and servicing, and I make money from that too. 

    If a buyer comes through me, I can make as much as ₦80k – ₦100k. If it’s just a pre-sale inspection I do, that’s like ₦30k. Money from cars used to be almost every month in 2022, but since Tinubu entered, everyone is looking for money to eat, not buy a car. I haven’t sold a car since January.

    What do your typical monthly expenses look like?

    NairaLife #283 monthly expenses

    I take my enjoyment very seriously. I can’t suffer to make money and still suffer myself. God forbid. Every weekend, I go out to drink and eat barbecued fish. 

    I also like to buy something new every month, like a watch or new palm slippers. People think mechanics are supposed to be dirty and smelling. At least when I’m not at the workshop, I can look good, abi?

    That’s right. So, would you say your income is enough for the lifestyle you want?

    It’s not at all o. I’m just making myself happy with the small money I make. If I think too much about the things I can’t afford, I’ll just be sad, and that doesn’t solve anything. 

    My woman gave birth to our child last year, and I know very soon she’ll start asking me for money for baby food and clothes. I’m even lucky because she’s a teacher and hardly bills me, but I know the time will soon come. She’s already complaining that our self-contained apartment is too small, so I’ll need to look for another place.

    How much do you think would be great to earn right now?

    Maybe ₦150k/month. That will be hard to get from just mechanic work, so I’m hoping car sales pick up again.

    What’s something you want right now but can’t afford?

    A korope minibus. The plan is to give someone to drive for me and pay me weekly. But the price is increasing every day. A used one is now between ₦3m – ₦4m. Something that was about ₦1.5m last year. Maybe I should even remove it from my mind because it can be ₦10m when I’m finally ready.

    How would you rate your financial happiness on a scale of 1-10?

    6. Things are hard, but I thank God for how far I’ve come. I just need to find a way to make more money soon to take care of my family.

    If you’re interested in talking about your Naira Life story, this is a good place to start.

    Yes, I want to do a Naira Life!

    Find all the past Naira Life stories here.

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  • Hear Me Out is a weekly limited series where Ifoghale and Ibukun share the unsolicited opinions some people are thinking, others are living, but everyone should hear.

    I believe in having a healthy saving culture and putting some money away for when I ever need some immediate cash; it’s always good to have a backup plan. Take some of the money you get paid, put it away, watch it grow and spend it on whatever you saved it for. 

    However, if I save money, I’m going to perish. I need my money now. I need to spend it now. If you’re like me, who earns just about enough to last a few days, you realise that putting some cash aside is easier thought about than done. 

    Adulting comes with responsibilities like paying bills, saving for a master’s, thinking about your future, and for parents, your children’s demands. Luckily for me, I don’t have a lot to worry about. I live with my family, and most of my bills are taken care of (not like the people I live with have a choice). 

    All the money I earn is mine, and it’s not shared except I’m feeling generous. But like I said earlier, it’s not enough for me, which means it’s not enough to be shared. My mum talks about the importance of prudence, why I need to have better habits and how I’m privileged to be earning even though all I do is complain about how I could be making more. She’s Nigerian and has the Nigerian “be grateful for what you have” mindset. Please, don’t get me wrong, though. I am grateful for what I have. 

    A week ago, I realised I started using one of the pioneer saving apps for Nigerians in 2017. I told my sister about the app, and she got on it; she’s an avid saver. My sister went on to tell my mum about it, and my mum also got on the app, all of us saving for the rainy day. I opened the app to check how far I’ve come since I’ve been on this journey. It’s safe to say, all I’ve saved so far is my life. 

    When people ask me what my mantra for making bad decisions is, I say, “I’ve been broke before, and I didn’t die”, and that’s a fact. This won’t be my first rodeo, spending all my money for my immediate happiness. I like to look forward to deliveries, and I love when I spend money on things I like. A new dress, some skincare, and occasionally, food (I’m a couch potato who lives with family, so I rarely have to worry about food). 

    I know it’s unhealthy, but my happiness is tied to the things that cost money, the things I can’t save for. People who save money like to know they have a fallback; if they find themselves out of a job, there’s money somewhere, and if there’s a medical emergency, they know there’s money for it. It’s a shame to admit that my fallback option is “hello, dad”.

    I have friends who pay rent, live by themselves, figure their shit out, and make enough to do all that, and sometimes, I feel like I’m not doing enough. I wonder how much I have to save and how many things I have to get rid of to be able to do that. Would earning more improve my saving culture if I balance my needs and wants better? I know myself. Earning more would make me want more things. 

    No matter how much money I save, I won’t save myself from my current tax bracket. I can’t save my way to becoming the wealthiest black woman in the world. All I can do is push my wants and needs to a later date and deprive myself of things. Holding off on gratification doesn’t mean it still won’t be done, so why don’t I get it done instantly? 

    I want to reward myself for a job well done, for a stressful week, for surviving, and I can only do that if I have money to spend right now. Don’t get me wrong, you can reward yourself as often as you like and still have some money left to save, but that’s not me. If I save this money, I will perish, and my happiness and productivity will tank. I feel good when I’m happy, I work best when I’m happy, I’m the best to be around when I’m happy, and when am I happy? When I have money to spend on things I like. 

    At the end of 2021, I checked my score on the saving app I use. I saw a C6 and laughed because I’d attempted to save some money during the year to avoid getting that exact score. Many things happened in the first two months that made me stop. But it was the end of the year, and the score was there, and at that moment, I was glad I’d saved my life at least. I’d had Covid twice in one year, and surviving it was more important than saving some cash.

    I’ve heard from several people about the importance of women having their own money. How it’s imperative that women save and have a fallout option, how women are more respected the richer they are. And I agree with those ideas; I believe them too. But again, how will I save what I don’t have? 

    Maybe I’d eventually figure out how to earn more and save more. Maybe by getting a job in tech or selling one of my kidneys. Perhaps, I’d give up my wants, put the cash in an app and see how much it brings back to me. Invest the little I get into something fruitful and spend days leading up to a yield in a permanent state of unhappiness, knowing I have no deliveries on the way. 

    All I know is that saving any money will make me unhappy, and I don’t want to participate.

    Hear Me Out: Why You Should Eat Your Sorrows Away

    Hear Me Out is a limited series from Zikoko, and you can check back every Saturday by 9 a.m. for new episodes from Ifoghale and Ibukun.

  • It’s good to save; you know that, we know that, everyone knows that. But, sometimes your bank account and financial needs are in a constant feud and you’re always in the middle. You want to save, but you also want to spend and chill, because you really didn’t come to this world to suffer.

    Here are seven things you’ll relate to if this is always happening to you:

    1. Calculating every kobo in tears because you know an emergency will always come up and you’ll need to spend it.

    The emergency comes in many forms; buying that bag you’ve been eyeing for weeks, repairing a bad charger, buying aso-ebi for a best friend’s wedding, buying that new phone that just came out because it’s more superior to the one you got a month ago, etc.

    2. TGIF And The Ministry Of Enjoyment

    Sometimes, you’re disciplined enough to hold yourself from doing too much. Other times, you’re home on a Friday night, on your own browsing through Instagram. That’s when you see your mates are doing TGIF and chopping the life of their head — essentially tensioning you. It’s in that moment you’ll remember the small savings you have stashed away in the kolo under your bed, and how the money will not spend itself. So, you finally say yes to going out with your friends for the weekend after they’ve been hounding you for the past two weeks.

    3. You think of saving, but end up chanting “I can’t come and kill myself” as you eat the last meat in the pot

    No lean diet for a rainy tomorrow. You want instant gratification NOW and you’ve got to put your money where your mouth is.

    4. Buying food instead of cooking, despite the promises you made to yourself

    You told yourself you’d only eat the food you cook, why waste money buying lunch when there are groceries at home? When you’re an excellent chef and can whip a better Jollof rice than any buka or restaurant. That was a week ago. Now, you’re looking at the remaining chicken bone in the plate of food you ordered while crying on the inside. Well, at least, you won’t have to wash the disposable plates; at least, you saved up on soap

    5. When you read all the articles about saving but still can’t get yourself to do so

    It’s just so much work: you work hard to make money, why not spend it anyhow you want?

    6. All THOSE Bills.

    Because, this is Nigeria, look how we living now. The prices of things go up astronomically, inexplicably and without adequate warning. NEPA will bring their own, LAWMA will bring their own, your service provider will bring their own and so on, so why are you bothering to save sef?

    7. Can’t stick to a budget, can’t stick to a savings goal, can’t stick to anything…

    It was your New Year’s resolution to save more. But you’ve long forgotten that now. You really tried to be good and improve your saving culture but everything keeps working against you.

    Still having issues trying to save but want to achieve your resolution before 2019 ends? Tired of all your excuses, and all your unrealistic budget/savings goals? We’ve got a plug for you.

    Join the Backup Cash 21 days savings challenge. By saving as little as N500 daily for 21 days on the online savings platform via WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger or the app, you can gain up to 13 percent interest rate on your savings.

    Oh, and if you’re the kind to start and not finish–because you can’t help yourself–you can open a Steady Save account that automatically saves for you on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.”

    Yeah, we know, you get rewarded for saving–AWESOME.

  • Saving money is hard, you guys. You tell yourself that you’ll save more when you start earning more but you never do. Because in the immortal words of Notorious B.I.G:

    It’s not even just that. You slowly (and subconsciously) upgrade your standard of living the second you start earning more. This isn’t a bad thing, but a lot of people overdo it to the point where it feels like the salary increase didn’t make a difference.

     

    Saving is important and I care about your wellbeing. This is why I’m here with this step-by-step guide about saving money in 8 steps. Thank me later.

     

    1. Track your expenses.

    If you want to start saving, you have to figure out how much you spend. Track every single expense (the bottled water you bought in traffic, the 50 naira you paid the cobbler that fixed your shoe etc) because it’s those miscellaneous expenses you don’t give a second thought to that really hurt your bank account. When you have this info, put them in categories. E.g food, bills etc.

    2. Organize your recorded expenses into a budget.

    Your budget should show how your expenses measure up against your income so it’ll enable you to avoid overspending. Along with your monthly expenses, remember to include those expenses that are constants but don’t happen every month. E.g. car maintenance fees, etc.

    3. Create a savings category in your budget.

    Experts say to save 20% of your income every month. A higher percentage is fine but less is not advised. However, if you’re new to the concept of saving or 20% is too high, start small with 10% or 15% while you cut back on nonessentials (and some essentials you can afford to spend less on). The key is to consider the money you put in savings as a regular expense similar to other important expenses.

    4. Decide on something to save for.

    One of the best ways to save money is to set a goal. Start by thinking of what you might want to save for (marriage, vacation, retirement etc), then figure out how much money you’ll need and how long it might take you to save it.

    5. Prioritize your saving goals.

    Your goals (after your income and expenses) have the biggest impact on how your savings are allocated. Learn to prioritize saving goals so you know which to start with. For example, if you’ll need to change your wardrobe soon, you might want to start saving for that now.

     

    It’s also important to remember that long-term goals shouldn’t be neglected in favour of short-term goals.

    6. Pick the right tools for your saving goals.

    For short-term saving  goals, take one of these into consideration:

    – Savings account

    – Certificate of Deposit & Short Term Investment Fund (locks in your money for a fixed period of time with an interest rate much higher than a savings account).

     

    For long-term saving goals, consider:

    – Retirement Savings Account (RSA) – Individual Retirement Account (IRA) – Securities,  such as Mutual Funds or Stocks. Know that these securities are subject to investment risks and possible loss of your principal.

    7. Automate your saving

    Setting automated transfers to your savings account the moment your salary enters is great because you don’t have to think about it, and it greatly reduces the temptation to spend.

    8. Track your progress

    At the end of every month, review your budget and check your progress. Doing this will help in identifying and fixing problems, while also gingering you to stay on your savings plan and hit your goals faster.

    I hope this helps you on your journey to saving. For what it’s worth, you’re not alone in this. We asked the cast of the new season of our show, Nigerians Talk, about their saving habits and the responses we got were pretty hilarious. Check it out below:

  • You know the feeling of setting a savings goal and with ginger you actually start to save, only for you to somehow sha break into it before you even reach halfway through your goal timeline? We can totally relate, so we’ve decided to create a list of some of our saving struggles.

    Money? What’s that?

    How do you take something out of nothing? Don’t angry me, please! *crying in unemployment*

    How much am I even earning?

    Man never chop finish, you’re talking about saving. I can see you don’t have my best interests at heart.

    Automated payments

    “Baba God, tell me I’m dreaming. These people have removed my last change. Who sent you? Who sent you?!”

    Have you seen the price of garri in the market?

    It’s like you don’t know what is happening in the country. You can’t even price anyhow anymore. Just leave me to be managing my life.

    Food

    How will I buy food if I keep saving? Please let me enjoy; life is one.

    Internet

    Ordinary small breeze will blow and all your data will finish. Oh, well. *buys more data*

    I got 99 problems but saving ain’t one

    And on the other end of the spectrum, we have the non-savers. “What is saving, please? Don’t insult my personality. I just keep making this schmoney! Call me OBO.”

    What do y’all spend money on that you wish you didn’t have to? Tweet us @zikokomag!

  • 1. I know i’m broke, but I need to treat myself too

    I can’t get any broker tbh.

    2. I can start saving tomorrow. Today, I spend

    Today’s all that matters.

    3. When money just enters your account and you remember one shoe you always wanted to buy

    Shoes will make me happier than rent.

    4. Deals are so attractive when you just get money

    5 gala for 249 Naira?! That’s a deal o.

    5. When you’re hungry all the time all of a sudden

    Food over anything though.

    6. When one spirit will just push you to spend

    It was my ancestors that were forcing me to spend o.

    7. When you check your account balance and the atm screams

    Oga no need to shout.