Young people’s financial mistakes often start when they are just starting out in the working world. The first paycheck feels great, especially if you’ve never held such a large amount of money on a regular basis before.
At this productive and energetic age, a first paycheck feels like a great reward after a long period of study and struggle. It feels like you want to immediately reward yourself with shopping, vacations, or trying all the things you haven’t had the chance to try before.
But it is precisely at this time that there are many financial traps that can disrupt your financial stability in the future. Without realizing it, small decisions made early in your career can have a big impact in the long run. Let’s take a look at five financial mistakes young people should avoid early on!
1. No Financial Planning
One of the most common financial mistakes of young people is not making a clear financial plan. Many feel that they don’t need to record their income and expenses because their salary is still relatively small or they don’t have any dependents. In fact, this habit is important to form a healthy financial foundation.
Without planning, it’s easy to spend money without knowing where it’s going. In fact, by making a monthly budget and setting expenditure items such as basic needs, savings, and entertainment, you can be wiser in managing money.
2. Salary Spent on Lifestyle
The next financial mistake of young people is too focused on pursuing a lifestyle. The new salary is immediately used to hang out every weekend, shop for branded goods, or follow trends to look cool on social media.
The result? In the middle of the month, you have to save extra money or even go into debt. It’s not wrong to enjoy the fruits of your labor, but if not controlled, this consumptive lifestyle can make your finances break down. Friends need to distinguish between wants and needs. Not all the latest things must be owned.
3. Not setting aside an emergency fund
When asked about savings, many young people answer that they haven’t had time or that it’s too early to think about it. This is one of the most underrated financial mistakes young people make-not having an emergency fund.
An emergency fund is very important to deal with unexpected situations such as job loss, illness, or other sudden needs. Ideally, this fund should be at least 3-6 times your monthly expenses and can be stored in savings or other liquid instruments such as digital gold.
4. Jumping into Installments
Young people’s financial mistakes also arise when they are tempted to buy expensive items through installments, whether it’s gadgets, motorbikes, or even vacations. With the convenience of pay later and credit cards, it feels like everything can be paid in installments. But if not controlled, these installments will actually burden your monthly expenses.
Installments are not a solution if they end up making your financial condition depressed. Before taking out installments, make sure the debt ratio is no more than 30% of income, and only used for things that are really important.
5. Ignoring Investments and the Future
Lastly, a risky financial mistake young people make is delaying investment. Many feel that they don’t need to think about retirement or the future because they are still young. In fact, the sooner you start, the lighter your long-term financial goals will be.
Youth is the best time to start investing. Why? Because time is the most valuable asset in the world of investment. The earlier you start, the greater the profit potential from the compounding effect-where the profits earned will continue to grow over time.
Investment can start from the simplest and most affordable, for example through digital gold, mutual funds, or other instruments that suit your risk profile. By investing from the beginning of your career, you are not only saving money, but also giving your money a chance to work for the future.
Realizing young people’s financial mistakes is the first step towards a healthier financial condition. Don’t wait to get into debt or regret not having savings. Start fixing your finances from your first paycheck.
So, instead of continuing to be trapped in the same financial mistakes, let’s start small steps that have a big impact! Start your investment now with digital gold at Treasury.