Dirty Dinar

I have KWD 172.149 in my current account.

That is all the money I have in my name.

I live in my parents house.

My car is in my father’s name.

I have no savings or investments.

I am 28 years old.

In 2007 I paid off my credit card debt and car installments. I loaned a friend KWD 1000 that I have yet to get back. Until I have the money in my hands I can’t count it as part of my net worth. It’s still a pitiful amount for a 28-year-old woman who has had a regular job for four years! At least, I’m starting 2008 debt-free.

I need to start planning for a future. I want a financial cushion that I can depend on instead of counting on my parents to help me out in emergencies. For the past four years I have been living from paycheck-to-paycheck, occasionally living outside my means and racking up credit card debt.

In 2008 I want to:

 

Save money

Invest in the Kuwait Stock Exchange

All the finance websites I have been reading recently suggest having 3-6 months worth of your salary in an emergency fund. I work in a medium-sized company and make KWD 1000 with the government supplement of 240. My workplace automatically deducts a small amount (76.883) that is placed in social insurance. I can collect that amount when I retire. That means I make a total of 1163.117 each month and I don’t have a fils saved up.

My emergency fund should have KWD 3000-6000. My first goal is to save half of my salary for the next six months until I reach my target. Then I can concentrate on my second financial goal for the year.

Now I have to go see how much money I have in my purse. With some discipline I can make it on KWD 172.149 until the end of the month when my salary is deposited into my account.