Getting together with someone who is different from you is exciting and even romantic. You may feel bored when you and your partner likes the same food, have the same hobbies, etc. But, what if it's financial habits that are different?
For example, your spouse is a spender while you are a saver. Or, it is the other way around. If you don't find a solution immediately, these different money habits can actually make the situation worse. Relax, there are 4 ways that you can try to find common ground and become jago at managing finances with your partner.
4 Ways to Manage Finances with Your Spouse If Habits are Different
1. Find out the cause
Just like other habits, financial habits are not formed instantly. Maybe since childhood, you have been taught to consistently save money. So the habit continues. Likewise with those who love to spend money.
Try to find time to sit down with your partner and find out what financial habits are common in their family. From this conversation, you and your partner can better understand each other and find the best way to find common ground.
2. Focus on shared financial goals
Finding common ground can start with financial goals that you want to achieve together. Despite different money habits, in general, every couple has the desire to fulfill dreams together, whether it's saving money to buy a cozy house, taking family vacations every year, etc.
Financial goals can also be in the form of building an emergency fund or saving money for retirement later. Both emergency savings and retirement funds are equally important. Couples can also start saving together for children's education funds.
3. Manage finances with the Shared Pocket
To be able to achieve dreams together, you and your partner need to take the first step. Managing finances starts with budgeting. To make it easy and practical, you can create a Shared Pocket in the Jago application.
The Shared Pocket can be either a Saving Pocket or a Spending Pocket. For financial goals that will be achieved together, you can create a Saving Pocket or several Saving Pockets. Meanwhile, for spending such as household expenses, you can create a Spending Pocket. After the Saving or Spending Pocket has been successfully created, you can invite your partner to manage money together. The Pocket will automatically change to a Shared Pocket.
You and your spouse can have more than 1 Shared Pocket, making it easier for you to manage finances. At a mutually agreed time, you can invite your partner to budget together. Budgeting with the Pocket is also practical as you can simply move money from one Pocket to another.
Creating a Shared Pocket is very easy. You can follow the steps in the following image. Make sure you and your partner both have Jago accounts.
4. Set a saving target and set a spending limit
After you and your spouse become members of the Shared Pocket, there are more things that you can do.
For a Shared Pocket which is a Saving Pocket, you and your partner can set a target together, which is when you want to achieve a financial goal. After that, you can also activate an automatic saving feature called the Autosave. You and your partner can see the progress of saving together and how close you are to your dream.
By setting a target and saving automatically, spenders can be more conscious about the good of saving and reduce their expenses little by little.
Meanwhile, for a Shared Pocket that is a Spending Pocket, you and your partner can set a spending limit. Perhaps, at first spenders will find it difficult to do so. But, by agreeing from the start everything will be easier.
What's more, the Shared Pocket allows each of its members to view transaction history. So, you and your partner don't need to check with each other whether you can use the available money.
Jagoans, ready to find common ground with your partner by applying the four ways above? Differences in using money can be managed well. The Jago application can be downloaded here for those who don't have it yet.
