Saving graces — or is it graceless?

The ‘mantra’ today — especially at annual budget time — is to teach children about money management. Educate them young to ensure that the next generation becomes financially savvy and can contribute effectively to nation-building. Let them learn early, let them experience the actual feeling of ‘a penny saved is a penny earned’ — and we start by giving children pocket money and encouraging them to make choices.

Our parents, too, tried giving us pocket money when we were young in an effort to teach us parsimony, pragmatism and plain old-fashioned living within one’s means. Unfortunately, some of us didn’t learn our lessons at that stage.

I was absolutely sure our pocket money was distributed on a pro rata basis, reducing according to the age of the child. It could not possibly have later, as I made saving sound attractive to customers, I actually started to believe in it as well.

That slow process of conversion was hastened by another event. No, big money didn’t come my way. But someone with an even worse savings sense than mine did. And all the credit for my complete about-face goes to him because he had no ‘saving graces’ whatsoever.

Carefree souls

He belonged to the category of people who are happily broke from their first paycheque until their last some 40 years later. Their ‘savings’ are made up entirely of what is mandatory in their jobs — and their families can be ever grateful for the government rules on pensions and retirement funds.

If you have lived with one of these carefree souls for any length of time, you will recognise them easily. Even if they have a generally prudent spouse, they cannot turn over financial control to them. The favourite refrain is, ‘Let me handle it’. And they proceed to mishandle whatever comes into their hands in style — with aplomb, with a flourish — as cheques are signed, cards are swiped or cash is handed out at will.

After decades of such profligacy, one day — perhaps the day before retirement, but more likely some years after — they wake up in a cold sweat and realise that they need to save for their old age. (Obviously, they haven’t looked in the mirror because they have no idea that old age is already upon them ...)

Now, saving money at any age is admirable. But how do you save at this 11th hour in life when your income is half what it used to be when you couldn’t save at all? Penny pinching and belt tightening and all the other things you’ve heard all your life — and ignored — come back to haunt you. Suddenly everything takes on a money-tinted hue: What you eat, where you go, how you dress.

Gone is the happy-go-lucky free spender. In their place is someone who has suddenly become wise and virtuous — frequents the bank and the post office and any other place where a few pennies lie in order to watch savings grow (by auto-suggestion, perhaps?) and what’s more, feels free to give investment advice to the spouse, siblings, the younger generation, the older ...

Do you have one with these saving graces in your home? Worse, are you one?

Cheryl Rao is a journalist based in India.