Banking has become a multi-platform activity and the most progressive financial institutions have been able to create a seamless experience across multiple devices. If you have ambitious money goals, the key to reaching them is building a collection of smaller everyday habits. Using online banking platforms can actually help you build healthy money habits if you use them the right way, you only have to look out for how the features offered by your bank online can help you. Almost all banks offer automated transfers, you can choose when, how much and where to transfer money or even split your direct deposit so a portion of your income goes directly into your savings account. Setting up automatic transfers is one of the easiest ways to save. To make headway on your goals, auto-transfer some money, no matter how small, into your savings account each month. For instance, if you’re trying to save N60,000 in six months for a trip, automatically transfer N10,000 per month into your savings account. In addition, using the history tab on your banking app you can track what you spend your money on. There are two sides to budgeting: what you have coming in and what’s going out each month. If your income is more or less the same from month to month, you may not focus on this part of your budget formula too much. Your expenses, on the other hand, should be tracked closely if you want to thrive financially in 2021. If you’re not in the habit of tracking your spending down to the dime, then the New Year is a great time to start this money habit. There are several ways to do this: writing expenses down manually, recording them in a spreadsheet, or using a budgeting app. Regardless of the method you choose, the goal is to know where your money is going. Once you’re focused on your spending, you can find those areas where you might be wasting money and cut those expenses out, thereby developing great money habits online.
