45 days in January and a thousand bills to pay
‘’You want to bamba? You wanna chill with the big boys?’’
This song was on the lips of nearly everyone in Ghana last December. It was a time when it seemed like the fun will never end and normal life would never resume. Along came the new year 2022. January, often touted as the longest month of the year for many reasons brings with it a feeling of new beginnings and a fresh start. Some joke about January having 72 days, others say it’s two months in one. However long it actually is can be associated with the many bills people need to pay in the new year. Rent, school fees, electricity bills, water bills, insurance, roadworthy certificate renewals are among the thousand other bills that the new year comes with. After a season of massive spending during Christmas and the new year, one may ask how do we deal with January and the many bills. This is how :
Pay online – In a world where technology has evolved so much, we cannot stress ourselves more by sitting hours in traffic and joining long queues just to pay for the bills we have labored to get money for. One safe, convenient and cheaper way is to pay online. Today, online platforms like JumiaPay gives us the opportunity to settle all our bills with a few clicks. On our smartphones and tablets through apps or on desktops and laptops through the website, we can enjoy the ease of paying our electricity bills, water bills, dstv subscriptions, school fees, data and airtime as well as insurance premiums. With a lot of bills to pay, you need to be in control of all the expenses and manage them effectively. Utilizing digital payment platforms makes it easier. Some even give cashbacks for paying online. With a recent surge in covid-19 cases too, your safety is assured as there is no physical human interaction when you pay online.
Shop online – 2021 saw probably the highest number of Ghanaian online shoppers. A lot of people joined the online shopping bandwagon. With many big online sales campaigns such as ‘’Jumia Black Friday’’, many Ghanaians shopped online for their essential needs at the best prices. Having these items delivered to their doorsteps or picked up from the many pick-up stations spread across the country. In the new year, the best way to save a lot especially due to the high amount of bills to pay is to shop online for all your essentials, groceries, food, electronics and other needs. You get the best quality products at the most affordable prices.
Buy in bulk – This is an old trick that always works magic. Why buy in bits when you still need to buy more always. Buying in bulk is also less expensive than impulse buying.
It helps to plan ahead and have enough for the days when you can’t afford to buy anything. If you have kids and need to prepare them for school, buying their foodstuff and provisions in large quantities means that you are free from buying more almost every week. At a time when bills are many and expensive, the last thing to be worried about is food and essential items like toiletries.
Structure/prioritize your bill payments – When you have a thousand bills to pay and the money you have is not as much, which bill do you pay first? This is a trick question because priorities may differ from person to person, family to family. However, one thing is for sure. You will need to structure the payments and prioritize some of them. For example, why would you pay for entertainment bills when you haven’t settled the rent? Many of the basic needs have to be sorted out first before some other needs.
The new year comes with big hopes and aspirations, Therefore the last thing anyone should be doing is to start it with debts, bad decisions and lots of uncertainties. 2022 promises to be amazing so we need to start well. Best of luck!