#Money #Personal Finance #Life
6 Practical Tips to Survive When You Are Broke
They say love of money is the root of all evil.
But if you suddenly discover that you have completely run out of money and have nothing left in your pocket, your instinct will compel you to believe otherwise.
Visualise yourself in a situation where you bring out your wallet only to find that it does not contain any banknote.
Worse, how would you feel if you check the balance in your bank account and the monitor proudly displays a figure that can easily persuade you to consider yourself broke?
You can be broke when you have been laid off and have gobbled down the last penny from your savings.
Facing losses in your business could leave you penniless, and even homeless.
In fact, you can find yourself in financial trouble for countless reasons. So, it is better to stop counting and start thinking of possible ways to get out of the mess.
Here are 6 useful tips for you to deal with the crisis:
1. Stop playing the blame game
It is a must if you expect to bring about changes in your life and regain control of your finances.
When people become broke, the majority of them start blaming themselves or the company they used to work for or the business they were in.
But the truth is that blaming something or someone will not yield any positive result.
Rather than removing your frustration and anxiety, it will only prolong the pain.
When you have money, you will think you are intelligent. This is especially true if you are young.
But when you lose money, you consider yourself the most stupid person in the world.
As the saying goes, “When people are lame, they love to blame.”
So, instead of considering yourself the unluckiest person in the world, you should be worried about your survival because that is the very part of your life which is at stake now.
2. Seek “gift loan” from friends and relatives
It is often said that there are two types of people in the world — financially successful and financially stupid — and it is the latter that love to get into debt.
But pardon me for suggesting this to you. When you are broke, it is no sin to approach your friends or relatives for some short-term loan.
This loan is required to take care of some of your basic necessities, such as food, clothing, transport and rent.
Contact your close friends and relatives, and openly reveal your situation to them without feeling ashamed. They will understand you and help you according to their capability.
This type of loan is sometimes termed “gift loan”.
The biggest advantage of gift loan is that it is interest-free as opposed to bank loans.
3. Apply for a job
A job can be one of the most secured sources of income when you have no money because you are directly trading hours to get paid.
If you have lost your job, start applying for a new job right now. This is crucial. Thinking about why you lost your job is pointless.
Also, the more you can work, the greater will be the pay.
Hence, do not think twice if you can take up a second job.
Another important point is not to bother about salary. It will be a foolish act if you reject a job offer just because of low payment at this very moment in your life.
Remember that low payment is far better than no payment for a broke person.
4. Self-employment is a better solution
If you are an expert at something, find a way to cash in on that expertise.
Let us assume that you can fix computers. You can immediately use that skill to earn money.
Contact your local computer shops where people bring their PCs for troubleshooting.
Utilise your skills to bring the computers back to working condition, and you will instantly earn money.
You can also contact potential customers directly, go to their places and provide home service. In that case, your earnings will undoubtedly be greater.
5. Sell unnecessary stuff
This is a good idea to make quick cash.
Look around your house and spot some stuff that you do not need now in your life.
It can be a camera, a souvenir, any unused furniture or any type of household stuff.
It may be painful to see your favourite collections gone, but you must sell them for the sake of your own survival.
Always remember that you can buy those stuff again when your financial meltdown is over.
So, get rid of your luxury or unnecessary items fast, and keep yourself afloat until you earn big money to pay for those things again.
6. Prevention is always better than cure
I am sure you have heard this proverb, “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.”
Let us face the truth. No matter what people say, we need money to live.
Think about it this way. We human beings need food to live and to buy food, we need money.
There is no alternative to that as the days when the barter system was in effect are long gone. Those days are not coming back.
The best thing you can do in this fast-changing world is become financially smart. Knowing your finances and managing your cash flow well will help you greatly to avoid unwanted financial miseries.
It does not mean you need financial abundance. Being financially solvent and building a protective shield around your money while constantly taking steps to make further progress will indisputably pay off.
The happiest life ideally rests on a balance between four elements: health, career, personal relationships and money. Being ignorant about money will inescapably result in being broke.
When you are broke, you will realise the true value of money. To avoid finding yourself in that situation, you better treat money in a smart way.