Quote of the Week: “The secret to a rich life is to have more beginnings than endings.” Dave Weinbaum.

Life is a beautiful thing, but only as beautiful as you make it. It is all the little ‘firsts’ that make the journey an adrenalin-filled one; your first job, your first investment, your first home, your first child- they give your life meaning and purpose to work hard to attain your goals; and goals dictate what we achieve in life. It is our dreams, and our direct efforts to attain them that define our achievements.

Whether employed or self employed, our working years represent our years of opportunity. It is within this time that successful people are made, leaders are celebrated, goals are attained, dreams are achieved, and lives are shaped. Whether we fall on the side of the coin that shouts “success” depends on how well we plan for the future.
Of great importance is how we deal with these financial firsts, and how prepared we are to tackle the challenges that come with them. Good things don’t come to us by chance; we have to go to them through effort. Waiting for life to happen is not ideal. There are many ‘first times’ that happen in our personal financial plans, and though they may not be universal for everyone, in the very least we can all agree that at some point, one of these firsts come to pass. Here are a few firsts that shape our financial achievements:

1. First Job.
In many ways, our first jobs define a turning point in our lives. It is a transition into an entirely new world. If you are a recent graduate, then you are joining the workforce at time when everything costs almost twice as much as what it did when you were pursuing the certificate that got you that job. Certainly, finding the job is a great boost to your personal finances. Your first job represents the start of your “adult life”, and is the time to start building the financial future which you have dreamed of. Indeed, the subsequent financial decisions you make from this point in time are equally important, if not superior. How you handle your cash flows, how you budget your income, your spending habits, among others, all contribute to shaping your financial future.

The best thing to do at this early stage would be to keep focused on the big picture; work on building yourself financially and to build on the knowledge and skills  necessary to shape your career. Building yourself financially would entail learning how to differentiate between “now” and “later”. Commanding a steady salary demands a solid financial strategy. Budgeting is really just another word for planning, and it may take a few rounds of trial and error to find out what works for you. In essence, learning how to live within your means will save you a lot of headaches in future when you have to deal with more complex demands on your sources of income.

2. First Home.
The most important investment you are likely to ever make for yourself is home ownership. While it is a noble and financially prudent undertaking to own a home, it
requires a lot of planning and tactful preparation. The first step would be to figure out exactly how much you would be willing to invest in you first home. Figure out how much you would need on the down payment to be able to qualify for a mortgage, and then devise a plan to save aggressively towards this endeavour. These savings should be kept separate from any other savings; so as to make it easy to keep track of how much you save. They should also be kept in safe investments, such as money market funds in unit trusts, to ensure that the value is not affected by market volatility.
Pension savings are a good way to boost your home ownership goal since up to 60% of your savings can be attached as an additional security for mortgage loans thereby securing better mortgage loan terms. It goes without saying therefore that retirement savings are not only a good way to provide for your financial security in old age, but also serve as a good path towards realising the goal of home ownership long before retirement. For this goal, you can choose between the two Zimele personal pension plans.

3. An estate plan (will).
Safeguarding your future by building a career or buying a home, among others, can make the difference between succeeding financially or treading on the other end of the rope. With that in mind, a solid financial ground paves way for a solid family, and gives you the opportunity to provide for your family comfortably, even after your demise.
Once a family is in the picture, one’s way of thinking has to shift from the paradigm of ‘me-first’, and everything has to be laid out for the long-term. This will include laying out a solid plan of how your assets would be managed when you are no longer there. No matter your net worth, it is important to have a basic estate plan in place. Such a plan ensures that your family and close ones are taken care of financially and their future is secure after you die.

Bottom line:
Starting out on the journey towards becoming financially independent is an important stage in life; one marred with uncertainties that could frustrate your efforts. However, that is a reality that cannot be avoided, but one that can be easily turned around. The choices one makes at that point in time where they are starting out present the opportunities to shape their finances to eventually succeed in achieving all their personal goals.

You can send your comments or questions to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , or visit our offices at Ecobank towers, 7th floor, Muindi Mbingu street. You can also follow us on our facebook page- Zimele Asset Management ( Kenya)

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