Plan Your Finances Before Resigning Next Year

Submitting your resignation letter and starting a fresh chapter is a significant transition is someone’s career. Before taking the leap of faith, here are some financial steps that you may take.

SET A TIMELINE

Many people may think that there are better career opportunities ahead of them, but that is not always the case. This is why, you must set a timeline for realistic events. Ask yourself certain questions that will answer various outcomes. How long can you afford to take a break while you hunt for a new job? When shall you send out your tailored C.V.s? Do you need to schedule interviews next month?

It is recommended to build your emergency fund during this break. You may also build your networking list. There is no need to start from scratch when switching careers.

SELL SOME STUFF

Selling your old belongings is one of the quickest ways to use your free time and to de-clutter your space. Do an inventory of all your underused or unwanted items and filter out those that are in good condition.

Sell these items at a discounted price to your friends via Facebook groups. I remember selling my old shoes and clothes to help me purchase new ones when I was still a Uni student. To ease my search for a buyer, I made an account on Carousell. Carousell is a convenient marketplace app that is available all over Asia.

ELIMINATE THE NON-ESSENTIALS

Be honest with yourself! Check your monthly subscriptions on products and services. Do you really need to pay for two streaming services (i.e., one local and one international) or is one enough? Can you trim your gym membership and exercise at the park instead? Find no-cost ways to reap the benefits of your hobbies.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

While you may have gotten used to certain luxuries throughout your life, taking a few sacrifices here and there is essential. While you are on a “career break”, you can be conservative with your budget calculations.

SELECT A PART-TIME HUSTLE

Getting multiple streams of income can benefit your situation. By multiple streams, I am referring to either finding part-time jobs or to setting up your own small business. Aside from earning extra cash, you can also experiment with a variety of jobs or fields.

Find a freelance job that you can do at home such as teaching English, selling stock images, or becoming a virtual assistant. You may also open up your own small short-term business. Depending on your skills, you can sell baked goods for the upcoming holiday season or plan events for weddings and birthdays. Who knows? This humble venture may lead to bigger opportunities in the future.

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3 Life Events Where Time Management Is Financially Crucial

Your heart is pounding as excitement and uncertainty clouds your mind. You are about to make a life altering decision. Pause for a moment. Before you do anything else, consider its financial outcomes.

Whether you are rendering your resignation or planning your engagement proposal, all these huge decisions can make or break your wealth. This is why it is important to have a substantial amount of time to analyze every factor including time itself.

To do this, you must master the art of time management. Time management refers to the way you organize and sort out how long you spend on specific tasks. After all, we are equally given the same 24 hours. Let us make the most of it!

For instance, here are some life events where time management is financially crucial…

1. GETTING MARRIED

Save lots of money by scheduling your big day during off-peak months. Generally, getting married in “off-peak” months such as November, March, and April can be less expensive than marrying in “peak” months such as December and February. However, you must always be cautious of the venue’s weather and conditions.

During off-peak months where the demand for weddings are lesser, couples get to negotiate for better prices. Tying the knot in these months means taking full advantage of the discounted prices on reception venues, catering, and photography. If you want to save even more, know the right time when the hotels and resorts are off-season and stay away from the weekends.

2. RENDERING YOUR RESIGNATION

Remaining in a horrible job or company for too long can be harmful not only to your career but also to your health. If you have tried your best to turn things around and have not seen any changes, perhaps it may be time to walk away.

According to Travis Bradberry of Forbes.com, here some signs that validate your desire to quit:

It is time to quit your job if you…

a. dread going to work.

b. know more than your boss.

c. are out of the workplace loop most of the time.

d. lost your passion.

e. have a horrible boss who is not going anywhere.

f. see no room for advancement.

g. are suffering health wise.

h. are suffering in your personal life.

i. think the company is in danger of closing.

Image Credits: Quinn Dombrowski (CC License Attribution-ShareAlike)

Image Credits: Quinn Dombrowski (CC License Attribution-ShareAlike)

If most of this or all of this are happening to you, consider your options before quitting your main source of income. Rendering a resignation is best done during the beginning of the month, wherein you are not holding any projects yet. Schedule your resignation email or letter and do so graciously.

3. RECEIVING YOUR BILLS (AS A YOUNG WORKING ADULT)

As a young working adult, especially if you are living alone, you become responsible for keeping the household sharp. For the first time in your life, you are the chief of your own bills.

With this newly acquired responsibility, you must stay organized to keep up with your payments. Set aside some time in the beginning of the month to make a list of the bills you are expecting to receive. Put it on your working desk or create a file for it. This way, you will not pay a bill twice even if you received it simultaneously by e-mail and postal mail.

Alternatively, you can get your payments automated. Since you are prepared for the bills earlier on, you may have available money in the bank to pay it the same day as you received it. If you have automatic payment scheduled and you still received a billing statement, call your bank or creditor.

Image Credits: pixabay.com (License: CC0 Public Domain)

Image Credits: pixabay.com (License: CC0 Public Domain)

Sources: 1, 2, 3, & 4

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Prevent High Turnover Rate By Knowing 4 Common Reasons Why Singaporean Employees Quit

I do not have to throw statistics to claim that some Singaporean companies are experiencing trouble in retaining their employees. Losing money to hire a new talent over and over again seems to be inevitable because of the perceived dissatisfaction in the workplace. Last year, the aspects of work of 5,000 Singaporean employees were studied by Singapore Human Resources Institute. They found that on average, the employees were considered “Under Happy” at work.

Prevent the high turnover rate by instilling alterations in the working conditions. Often times, employees are just hungry for change. Start with these 4 issues that you can juggle on:

1. HORRIBLE BOSS

The competitive cost of living in the country affected the demand for faster output. In return, this can create a toxic workplace wherein employees suffer from burnout or depression. Adding a horrible boss into the mix will only worsen the situation.

Image Credits: Vocab Ninja via Flickr

Image Credits: Vocab Ninja via Flickr

In 2012, JobsCentral conducted a survey including the responses of 3,299 employees and 256 hiring managers. A whopping 31% of the respondents said that they do not have satisfying boss-worker relationship. This is because of the following reasons: lack of advancement opportunities (87.5%), lack of autonomy (80.6%), and work demands (71.1%). So, if you want your priced employee to stay, warn the boss against these poor practices.

2. LOW OPPORTUNITIES FOR CAREER GROWTH

Career growth does not only help the employee personally but also financially. An employee maybe happy at his or her current position but in need of bonuses to cover the rising costs. A limit in growth can decrease the motivation and purpose of the employee to strive for more. For some the limit is unacknowledged and it is famously called as the “glass ceiling”. Therefore, companies shall create tangible career paths.

3. LOW SALARY

I cannot deny the fact that salary is a common factor for an employee to draft his or her resignation. In fact, 61% of Singaporean employees felt that were underpaid and overworked compared to the existing market rates. CPF deductions and domestic expenses will be deducted to the baseline salary afterwards. This leaves no room for retirement funds or any type of savings.

Solution! Companies: make room for increments no matter how small it may seem. Individuals: do not hesitate to ask for a raise.

4. OFF-BALANCE BETWEEN WORK AND LEISURE

When we work as hard as we do, we only deserve to play hard too! According to a survey, 57% of Singaporeans said they would rather have a work-life balance over higher pay. Take notes from the CEO of I-Search Worldwide – Mr. Richard Hoon who sets aside the Friday evenings for the staff to gather and chat with complementary food and beverage. It is his way to help the employees ease into the relaxing weekends ahead.

Image Credits: pixabay.com (License: CC0 Public Domain)

Image Credits: pixabay.com (License: CC0 Public Domain)

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