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MONEY BASICS & BUDGETING

Money doesn’t grow on trees. It simply drips out of your bank account on Swiggy, Zomato and that must-have iced coffee. 

BUDGETING 

Why budgeting matters:

It is the most painful when you look into your bank account and find out that you just spent 3000 on chai and snacks. Budgeting = awareness on the actual whereabouts of your money.

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Paper vs App tracking:

•Paper: Old-school and productive, easy to forget.

•Apps: Crunch numbers on your behalf, and you won’t weep about Excel spreadsheets.

 CTA: Budgeting isn’t a punishment it is the way you save up to get pizza and your dream sneakers

The 50-30-20 Rule:

•50% :  Needs (rent, food, transport).

• 30%: Wants (concert tickets, Netflix, iced coffee).

•20%: Savings (you shall be glad you did this, even then you will despise it).

Lady Speaking

BUDGETING HACKS 

  • Monitor the daily expenditures: even 50 rupees cutting chai will help.

  • Weekly limit: Image an allowance, but you are your own authoritarian parent.

  • 24-hour rule: Have you noticed anything you want? Wait 24 hours. If you still want it, buy it. Otherwise, you escaped a broken week.

  • First pay rent, food and transport, no one wants to be hungry and homeless.

  • Emergency stash (1000-2000) → When your laptop battery fails or Goa calls.

BEST BUDGETING APPS

  • Walnut: Reads your SMS spends (literally stalks your wallet on your behalf).

  • Money View:  Well-organized sets, ideal when you prefer colorful graphs.

  • Jupiter: Digital savings game bank.

  • CRED: It is a credit card user only, but the reward systems are entertaining.

Quick verdict:

  • Want simple? Go Walnut.

      To download: Playstore​

                          AppStore

Budgeting

SAVING DURING GROCERIES

  • Make a list and stick to it. Supermarkets are traps.

  • Bulk buy basics. Rice, dal and oats are cheaper in the long term.

  • Seasonal fruits/veggies. Tastes better, costs less.

  • Impulse snacks? Silent budget killers. (That ₹40 packet of chips x 10 is basically regret.)

  • And to learn easy, pocket friendly meal prep check out .

groceries

MONEY & ROOMMATES 

  • Budgeting Tools: Splitwise/Tricount. Math is boring, let apps do it.

  • Rotate bill payments. You are dealing with WiFi, they are dealing with electricity.

  • Keep receipts. Since "I will pay you later", means never.

  • CTA: “Roommate fights are good until money is involved. Plan as a couple, remain in friends longer. To resolve differences with your roommate click here.

roommate budgeting

ONLINE SECURITY & FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY
 

Financial security

Money is great. Going broke just by making one wrong click? Not so great. This is the truth about cards, UPI, and avoiding being ripped off when you become an adult.

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Difference between a Credit and Debit Card

Consider them as two very different kinds of friends:

  • Debit Card: That trusted friend who does not spend any money unless he/she has it. Safe, chill, no drama.

  • Credit Card: That fancy friend who claims to say that everything is all right, I will pay you back but he or she wants you to pay him or her back- with interest.

Benefits:

Debit: safer, no debt.

Credit: develops credit history (Future loans, EMIs, etc).

Risks:

Rashly swipe a credit card and bang, debt trap.

Verdict:
For students:

  • Debit: safer, handy, but you have to be able to pay off bills like a professional.

  • Start with debit. Transfer to credit when you are in control (i.e. when you do not believe that Zara sales are emergencies).

UPI Safety

UPI is quick, convenient and ubiquitous--so are frauds. These golden rules should help you stay safe:

  • Never share your PIN/OTP. Despite it being your bank calling (spoiler: it is not).

  • Double-check numbers. To send ₹5,000 to someone you do not know is painful than a break up.

  • Don’t click unknown links. That “You’ve won ₹10,000!” text? Scam central.

  • Turn on notifications. To make sure when the money comes out of your account.

 CTA: “UPI = Ultra Powerful, Instantly... do not get scammed.

Basic life skills
Basic Life Skill
Basic life skill
Basic Life Skill
BASIC LIFE SKILLS
Basic Life Skill
Basic Life Skill
Basic Life Skill
Basic Life Skill

DAILY CHORE LIST

You do not have to Marie Kondo your life, but you should follow these very simple rules:

  • Make your bed: 2 mins, this is going to bring the chaotic room to half its head.

  • Wash in the dishes as soon as you can or they will be other species.

  • Clean your study table is equal to clean your brain (at least, less crumbs).

  • Washing clothes once a week: nobody enjoys the smell test cloth test.

  • Dispose of trash after every 2 days: do not wait to see the fruit flies appear.

Pro Hack: Have a timer (10 mins a day): clean and finished before you become unmotivated.

HOSTEL ROOM ORGANISATION

Small space, big mess? The following hacks will help to save your sanity (and space):

  • Bed storage boxes: Ideal in keeping books, shoes or snacks that you do not want to share.

  • Mark food/snack containers to prevent a situation when your Maggi store is accidentally borrowed.

  • Laundry bag (small, foldable): This keeps dirty laundry in (and it can be folded up when parents are around).

Bonus: Clean hostel room is reduced roomie drama and increased real space to live.

Roommate

CRITICAL DOCUMENTS

Your starter pack of don’t lose these or life gets messy:

  • Aadhaar & PAN card: Aadhaar is the ID card, this card does essentially everything regarding banking and adulting in general.

  • College ID- IDs get you discounts and prove that you are in the right place.

  • Bank documents: passbook, ATM / debit card, online banking account.

  • Copy of health insurance copy - first things first.

On Google drive/cloud, there are digital copies, which means that it will be a lifesaver in case the original ones disappear.

Bonus Tip: E-mail significant files to yourself. Easy retrieval, zero stress.

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