The Rep 06 May 2022

8 Tel: (045) 839-4040 / editorial: mjekulal@therep.co.za / advertising: charodinev@therep.co.za 6May 2022 THE R E P R ES E N TAT I V E
#BasicFinancialLiteracy: Money lessons
I wish I learnt in my 20s
Recently I have had
conversations with some
family members or
friends about our money
choices, where we are
financially and what we would
have loved to know earlier in
our lives to make better
financial choices.
Had we known the best
ways to manage money before
we started working, we would
have created financial patterns
that would yield some great
results now.
These conversations got me
thinking about how much I
respect what the older
generation was able to do with
money. My grandmother’s
generation knew how to stretch
the rand.
You see, my grandmother
was not educated, but with the
little she earned working as a
domestic worker on a farm she
was able to produce a nurse, a
teacher, and my uncle, who is a
pastor because he was able to
go to college to study theology.
When I think about how
little she earned, I have the
utmost respect for what she was
able to do with very little.
We were talking about the
importance of finding
contentment in our lives with
one of my cousins. It is the art of
being content with what you
have and spending money
within your means.
We all work hard and reach
a certain point where we know
what type of lifestyle we want
for ourselves and our children.
We aspire to reach a point
where we do not have to worry
about money to take care of
basics, be able to send our kids
to good schools, stay in safe
neighbourhoods, drive reliable
cars and have investments.
Anything more than this is a
bonus that we’d all welcome.
The problem is when we
cannot tell between what we
can afford, when we live
beyond our means and when
we want to show everyone else
that we live the “soft life” that
everyone is chasing.
It is sad to see the lengths
that most people go to, to keep
up with the Joneses and post a
flashy yet unrealistic life on
social media.
I agree that it’s important for
people to enjoy the money they
work hard for because life is
about that – working and
playing hard.
So, if one can afford the “soft
Empower ment
Zone
Miranda Lusiba
life”, then do so by all means.
The personal financial goal
I’m chasing these days is making
sure that I don’t make the
financial mistakes I made in my
20s and 30s into my 50s.
It’s important to make sure
that we are in a better financial
position at least 10 years before
retirement than we were when
we started working.
I’m sure most of us do not
want to take enormous debt into
our retirement years.
A friend reminded me about
the advice I gave in one of my
columns last year, which I think
I should reiterate for the younger
g e n e ra t i o n .
It’s about the 50/30/20 rule
❝ Once an asset,
always an asset –
don’t rob yourself by
saving money and
then withdrawing it
immediately when
some expenses
come up
that applies to personal and
business finances. It highlights
the importance of saving up to
20% of your salary or using it to
pay off debts; using 50% of that
salary to pay fixed monthly
expenses such as rent, policies,
monthly groceries and, finally,
using 30% for our wants which
include luxuries such as clothes
or going out with friends.
I recently came across a
financial whiz with advice I
immensely enjoyed – her name
is Ann Wilson, the Wealth Chef,
and she has the following
money rules:
● Pay yourself first – you have
to keep some of the money you
make for yourself. Invest it in
assets that will make you more
money in the future.
● Save first, spend later – this
has to be a key principle to live
by: Saving to spend later. Aim to
save at least 10% for
unexpected expenses.
● Once an asset, always an
asset – don’t rob yourself by
saving money and then
withdrawing it immediately
when some expenses come up.
● No to consumer debt – get
out of debt and stay free.
N o b o dy ’s ever created
sustainable wealth with
consumer debt dragging them
d ow n .
● Pay off a credit card in full
every month – once the debt is
paid off and you keep a credit
card ensure you pay it off in full
m o n t h l y.
● Pay in cash or go without – if
you have to rob Peter to pay Paul
to pay for something you can’t
afford, learn to live without it.
● Have a cash safety net – life’s
unexpected will happen. It is
important to have money saved
up for rainy days; that is, an
emergency fund.
● Re-invest your investment
returns – don’t spend them. Get
your money - now your asset to
create your financial freedom.
● Do not lend anyone money –
instead of creating foes for
yourself rather help loved ones
with skills to learn how to
manage their money.
● Pause before you pay –
protect your money from
yourself, avoid the trap of instant
gratification. Ask yourself if you
need it before buying it.
For more info, contact me
on: C: +27 (0) 68 029 8760
(Voice-Calls); C: +27 (0) 78 675
1297 (WhatsApp) E: miranda@
strangeconsulting.co.za AND
O ra 4 1 1 7 @ g m a i l . c o m
- Miranda Lusiba is the
founding director of Strangé
Consulting – a boutique PR
agency specialising in
dommunication, media
relations, freelance writing,
reputation management and
media training.
● Disclaimer: Miranda Lusiba &
STRANGÉ CONSULTING retain
all title, ownership and
intellectual property (IP) rights to
these columns and trademarks
contained in all other information
and supporting documents as
well. This is in accordance with
the SA: Copyright Act 98 of 1978
(amended) Intellectual Property
Laws Amendment Act 38 of
1997.
Road travelled by parents of
children with special needs
JENNY WEBB
Abandonment. Fear of the
future. Confusion. These are
just some of the emotions and
feelings experienced by parents
of children who do not “fit” into
our current public school
system in this country.
And I am not even talking of
children who are physically
disabled, visually impaired or
deaf. I am talking of so-called
“normal” children who
experience what our education
department labels “barriers to
learning”.
These are the conditions
which are commonly referred to
as dyslexia (problems with
reading and spelling),
dyscalculia (problems with
number concepts in maths),
autism, ADD (attention deficit
disorder) and the like.
Our current educational
system supports the policy of
“inclusion”.
Loosely interpreted, this
means one should not
discriminate against such pupils
(sometimes referred to as “s l ow
learners”) by removing them
from the classroom for intensive
one-on-one sessions with a
remedial specialist.
Hopefully with time they
will catch up with their peers, or
be condoned each year (despite
not having met the required
academic standards) or simply
drop out of school.
If this was your child, is this
the future you want for them?
Or is the answer simply to
move them on to one of the
many good quality (but very
expensive) private schools?
Unfortunately this is the
heartbreaking road which many
CHILDREN’S RIGHTS: Jenny Webb
wants to help more parents to have
access to advice, counselling and
empathy Picture: SUPPLIED
parents who find themselves in
this position have to travel, with
little or no advice, counselling
or empathy.
Children, as with each
human being, are unique
individuals in their own right.
We are not all born with the
same strengths and
weaknesses. Is it not more
discriminatory to make the child
who is not coping in a large
class of 30-40 pupils, continue
to battle with his/her problems
with little or no extra assistance?
As a specialised remedial
teacher with 35 years’ t e a ch i n g
experience, it is unfathomable
to me that the education
❝My dream is for
our town is to
set up a centre
w h e re
specialised
re m e d i a l
educators,
p ro f e s s i o n a l
therapists such
as speech and
occupational
therapists,
among others,
could all
practice from
one facility
department views educators
such as myself as “redundant”
as “we do not employ remedial
teachers any more.”
Why? Have children
suddenly changed over the
years? No. Have class sizes got
smaller? No.
Perhaps the reality is that
there is no budget allocated for
anyone who does not fit into the
norm? Perhaps the reality is that
one should just condone “s l ow
learners” in the hopes that
somewhere along the line, they
catch up with their peers.
But what if that pupil
develops further emotional
issues, drops out of school,
becomes a bully out of
frustration with the system?
As a mother of a child with a
specific learning disability, I
know this road which these
parents must travel.
It is a lonely and
heartbreaking one, because very
few people take the time to
listen or accept that certain
children need to remain in the
nurturing environment of their
own homes, instead of being
sent to another town or city.
My dream for our town is to
set up a centre where
specialised remedial educators,
professional therapists such as
speech and occupational
therapists, among others, could
all practice from one facility.
This would make it so much
easier for parents, even those
from out of town, to bring their
children to one venue for
therapy or individual remedial
lessons which offer targeted
educational programmes for
those with learning challenges.
It would also allow for team
sessions with therapists being
able to work and liaise with one
another in order to co-ordinate
their efforts in the best interests
of the child.
At Dunraven Educentre in
Milner Street we have already
embarked on the first steps of
what we know will be a very
long journey. But we also know
it will be so worthwhile in
offering parents a service which
is currently lacking in this town.
● If you would like to be
involved in this initiative, or for
more information, please email
dunraven.educentr e@gmail.com
and address your queries to
Jenny or Polly.
Name change losing
direction and meaning
I am one of the ardent
proponents of the change of
names, especially the colonial
ones together with bastardised
ones, not just changing names
for the sake of changing them.
The ruling party has made it
their signature to change names
of places to the names of
political icons.
Nobody doubts the
credibility of the struggle heroes
whose names are used.
I was happy when Bizana
was corrected to Mbizana, but
was equally shocked when its
municipality was named after
Winnie Madikizela-Mandela;
not that I doubt her struggle
credentials.
In the end, these become
confusing as you find the same
names used all over the country.
This makes life difficult in
identifying geographic places.
The latest to change is
DR. AB XUMA
Ngcobo Municipality, to
become Dr AB Xuma.
There was an unnecessary
change from Engcobo to
Ngcobo and soon to AB Xuma,
where in a eulogy delivered by
president Cyril Ramaphosa at
Xuma’s reburial in March 2020
he was referred to as Dr Alfred
Bitini Xuma.
Soon after the renaming, the
family will claim their relative’s
Xhosa name is Bathini and not
Bitini.
After that, we shall have
another name change to
Dr Alfred Bathini Xuma local
m u n i c i p a l i t y.
Let us name places for a
good reason.
Let us also think deeply how
we can immortalise our heroes
and heroines, such that we do
not bring confusion and thereby
devalue our icons’ stature.
Sabelo Bantwini Jayiya