5 Things To Do As Soon As You Get Paid

I know that we get super excited whenever our scholarship money (or any form of income) get deposited into the bank. But before we march straight to the nearest shopping mall or log into eBay, we should definitely go through these 5 important things first so that you don't run out of money when you need it the most.

By Navin Siddiqui, Founder of UnDebtMe

1. Set Aside the Core Amount: Earlier in the article you will have calculated your Core Amount.  This amount might not all be due yet so to ensure that this amount remains undisturbed, subtract it from your total pay and work from whatever amount that is left.

Photo credit: chrisd.ca

2. Save: A basic rule of thumb is to save 10% of your pay.  Work out what amount is right for you and stick to it.  Put it aside immediately.  By putting aside your savings earlier on you are eliminating the temptation to use that money for something else.

3. Charity and Sadaqah: There is no denying that there is immense blessing in charity and it has been observed on both religious and secular circles that giving charity will increase wealth.  As Muslims, we are encouraged to give for far greater reasons than that.  Set aside money for Sadaqah.

4. Pay Yourself: Note that we gave charity, before paying ourselves. It is absolutely essential that you pay yourself, but by giving charity first you are putting your wealth in perspective, and making it for the sake of Allah SWT before your own self.  If you have carefully calculated the first 3 things to do, then this amount would be whatever is left.  If you are in debt, then I recommend further scrutinizing this amount and keeping track of every penny.

5. Stay Away: Stay away from your bank account until the next pay day, or unless it becomes absolutely, positively crucial to dip into your savings.

Life has a way of being unpredictable.  There is no guarantee that planning your money will result in 100% control of your funds, but your spending will be a lot more organized and manageable by doing these 5 things every pay, InshaAllah.

Wishing you the best in this life and the next.

Source: SuccessMuslim.com