#financial tips

{ MASTERPOST } Everything You Need to Know about How to Pay off Debt

Understanding debt:

Let’s End This Damaging Misconception About Credit Cards

Season 2, Episode 10: “Which Is Smarter: Getting a Loan? or Saving up to Pay Cash?”

Dafuq Is Interest? And How Does It Work for the Forces of Darkness?

Investing Deathmatch: Paying off Debt vs. Investing in the Stock Market

How to Build Good Credit Without Going Into Debt

Dafuq Is a Down Payment? And Why Do You Need One to Buy Stuff?

It’s More Expensive to Be Poor Than to Be Rich

Making Decisions Under Stress: The Siren Song of Chocolate Cake

How Mental Health Affects Your Finances

Paying off debt:

Kill Your Debt Faster with the Death by a Thousand Cuts Technique

Share My Horror: The World’s Worst Debt Visualization

The Best Way To Pay off Credit Card Debt: From the Snowball To the Avalanche

The Debt-Killing Power of Rounding up Bills

A Dungeonmaster’s Guide to Defeating Debt

How to Pay Hospital Bills When You’re Flat Broke 

Ask the Bitches Pandemic Lightning Round: “What Do I Do If I Can’t Pay My Bills?” 

Slay Your Financial Vampires

Season 4, Episode 3: “My credit card debt is slowly crushing me. Is there any escape from this horrible cycle?” 

Case Study: Held Back by Past Financial Mistakes, Fighting Bad Credit and $90K in Debt 

Student loan debt:

What We Talk About When We Talk About Student Loans

Ask the Bitches: “The Government Put Student Loans in Forbearance. Can I Stop Paying—or Is It a Trap?”

How to Pay for College without Selling Your Soul to the Devil

When (and How) to Try Refinancing or Consolidating Student Loans

Ask the Bitches: I Want to Move Out, but I Can’t Afford It. How Bad Would It Be to Take out Student Loans to Cover It?

Season 4, Episode 4: “I’m $100K in Student Loan Debt and I Think It Should Be Forgiven. Does This Make Me an Entitled Asshole?” 

The 2022 Student Loan Forgiveness FAQ You’ve Been Waiting For

2023 Student Loan Forgiveness Update: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly 

Our Final Word on Student Loan Forgiveness 

Avoiding debt:

Ask Not How Much You Should Save, Ask How Much You Should Spend 

How to Make Any Financial Decision, No Matter How Tough, with Maximum Swag

Your Yearly Free Medical Care Checklist

Two-Ring Circus 

Status Symbols Are Pointless and Dumb 

Advice I Wish My Parents Gave Me When I Was 16 

On Emergency Fund Remorse… and Bacon Emergencies

Should You Increase Your Salary or Decrease Your Spending? 

Don’t Spend Money on Shit You Don’t Like, Fool

The Magically Frugal Power of Patience

The Only Advice You’ll Ever Need for a Cheap-Ass Wedding 

The Most Impactful Financial Decision I’ve Ever Made… and Why I Don’t Recommend It 

3 Times I Was Damn Grateful for My Emergency Fund (and Side Income) 

Buy Now Pay Later Apps: That Old Predatory Lending by a Crappy New Name 

Credit Card Companies HATE Her! Stay Out of Credit Card Debt With This One Weird Trick 

Ask the Bitches: Should I Get a Loan Even Though I Can Afford To Pay Cash? 

The Bitches vs. debt:

I Paid off My Student Loans Ahead of Schedule. Here’s How.

I Paid off My Student Loans. Now What?

Hurricane Debt Weakens to Tropical Storm Debt, but Experts Warn It’s Still Debt

The Real Story of How I Paid Off My Mortgage Early in 4 Years

Case Study: Swimming Upstream against Unemployment, Exhaustion, and $2,750 a Month in Unproductive Spending 

If you are not in college yet and planning on going, or already in college, or past college or not attending at all. Learn how different types of loans work and how to safely use them, learn about credit, learn how to assess your own finances and your ability to commit to things like recurring payments + how to actually pay because the way the government automatically has it set up benefits the lender, not the borrower.

6th house = how you manage money

Hi there,

I’m quite frugal when it comes to money. I don’t use much unless I need to pay for prescription or anything similar.

Sometimes, if I’ve saved enough, I buy something I really want, like a video game or something.

Here’s some articles I’ve found going into detail/tips on saving money.

Right now, my parents have control over my bank account. Like, I do, too, but they can pretty much do what they want with it (and depending on what they're doing, I don't have to be with them at the bank for them to do it).

I currently live with my parents, but I plan to move out during the summer of 2026, and I'm curious if there's anything less-than-obvious that I should know about securing exclusive control of my account. I'm fairly certain that it's a savings account (not a checking account). I'm cool with going up to the bank desk, asking them to give me full control over my account, and walking through the process in person, but is there anything that I should know that they won't necessarily tell me?

Save. Seriously.

I mean it. College is the perfect time to be a little stingy. Start putting some of your money into savings now. It doesn’t need to be a huge amount, just start. Watching your savings grow will feel so satisfying.

You Don’t Need to Be "Rich" Right Now

I know we tend to feel we need to show that we are so cool and we are rich and we got iphones and papa ke paiso ki car and everything. Do it. Have fun. Spend money a bit irrationally. Buy that super expensive boots that you won't really wear cause they are so uncomfortable. Or that H&m ki dress.

But you know what's the benefit of being in college?

No one expects you to be rich in college. It’s actually socially acceptable to be broke! No one will question you if you say, "I can’t do that, I’m low on cash right now."

Use that excuse religiously. Then put that saved money towards investing on something.

Start Small with Tracking your Spendings

I know you can’t change your spending habits overnight, and that’s okay. So, start by really tracking your expenses. Keep a record of every single rupee you spend. Do this for a month or two and take a look at your patterns.

You’ll start to notice where all that money is going. Trust me—there are always some unnecessary payments and impulse buys creeping in. Understanding your spending habits is the first step in being able to adjust them.

When I started budgeting, these were some of the patterns I found in my spending habits that I knew I could change:

I use to spend a lot on food, especially during exam season. I realized that when I am moody, I spent a lot on chocolates. Plus, I used to do my work last-minute, so I used to see going down to mess from my room as time wasted during my exams. Plus, I don't like the time-consuming process of making food in hostel as much as I love cooking, which is why I would splurge on chips, maggi, chocolates, takeouts, etc.

I used to spent monthly on fast fashion too. This was easily fixable. It was hard but I started saving up on buying good quality clothes.

I used to spent (I still do) a lot with and on my friends. All of us are very kharcheelein people, I would not lie. And when we get together, we come up with crazy ideas and just have to spend money on them. Since we have grown a bit from our first year of college, so spending on drinks, etc is very less now. We also installed Splitwise to keep track of who spends how much.

The point is a lot of our spending is tied to our habits and behaviours. Tracking your money would highlight all these issues and hopefully make you realize where you need to change. All of these issues were easily fixable and with time I did fix them.

Put yourself on budget in the areas where you can

Start putting yourself on a budget, especially in areas like food. For example, I gave myself a strict monthly limit on takeouts—no more, no less. I told myself ki itna hi spend krungi khane per and usse 1rs zyada nahi.

I also knew that controlling my spending with friends was going to be tough, so I chose to set tighter budgets in other areas.

Honestly, there’s no single rule that works for everyone. The 50/30/20 rule sounds great in theory, but for me, it didn’t quite fit the reality of my spending. In college, don’t be too harsh on yourself with your budget—it’s about balance, not perfection.

You know yourself best. Look for the areas where you can make small changes and start there.

If you’re used to spending too much, don’t aim for huge savings right away. Start by saving just 100 rupees a month, and then gradually increase that amount. Setting big goals can make you feel overwhelmed. You might end up feeling bad for not meeting them and then splurge just to make yourself feel better. It’s a cycle you don’t want to get stuck in.

So, start small and build from there. You’ll get there with time.

Use Tools to Help You Track Spending

One game-changer for me was using Splitwise. It helped me and my friends keep track of expenses when we went out. No more confusion about who paid for what or forgetting to pay each other back. Just enter the amount in the app and it does the math for you.

Use Cash Whenever Possible

Try paying in cash instead of UPI. You’ll be surprised how much more you’ll pay attention to your spending when you can physically see the money leaving your wallet. Cash is like a reminder that it's disappearing right in front of you.

Invest, But Start Small

Lastly, invest. I mean, I'd say educate yourself first and then choose how you would want to save your money. I started with Gold Funds and Mutual Funds. And I started small there too. I just started with 100rs going to Gold Fun and 100rs going to Mutual funds. Now, I put 500 monthly to MFs and whenever I get huge payments or any big amount of money, I put 1/3rd of it in MFs too.

The key takeaway: save. That money is yours. The power of compound interest is real—it grows your money over time. And that saved money? It’s your safety net. If you ever mess up or need a quick emergency fund, you’ll have something to fall back on.

Keeping track of receipts and invoices is crucial for any business. Without an organized system, important documents can get lost, making tax time stressful and financial tracking difficult. Fortunately, setting up a simple filing system doesn’t have to be complicated. Here’s how you can do it in a few easy steps.

1. Choose a Storage Method

Decide whether you prefer a physical, digital, or hybrid filing system.

Physical System: Use labeled folders, binders, or an expanding file organizer.

Digital System: Scan receipts and invoices and store them in cloud services like Google Drive, Dropbox, or a dedicated accounting software.

Hybrid System: Keep physical copies for tax purposes while maintaining a digital backup.

2. Categorize Your Documents

Sorting receipts and invoices into categories will make retrieval easier.

By Date: Organize documents by month and year.

By Vendor: Keep separate files for each supplier or service provider.

By Expense Type: Group receipts by categories such as office supplies, travel, utilities, and client expenses.

3. Use Consistent Naming Conventions

For digital storage, use a clear and uniform naming system. Example:

YYYY-MM-DD_Vendor_Amount (e.g., 2025-02-10_OfficeDepot_45.00)

4. Set a Regular Filing Schedule

Schedule time each week or month to file receipts and invoices. This habit will prevent document buildup and ensure you stay on top of financial records.

5. Utilize Accounting Software

Many accounting tools, such as QuickBooks, Wave, and FreshBooks, allow you to upload and categorize receipts directly. This automates part of the filing process and ensures everything is stored in one place.

Final Thoughts