Financial Tips for Filipino Seamen

Being a seaman entails a great deal of sacrifice both for yourself and your loved ones...

Of course these sacrifices you have to make or are going to make are being traded with huge pay and allowances by your companies.

Technically yes, it is your salary and no one should tell you how are you going to spend it.  But hey, we all know that most of the people working aboard ships does not want to spend his entire life working aboard and away from their family. Every penny that you earned while working aboard should be spend wisely so that the sacrifices you make will not be put into waste when time comes that you don't want to work aboard ship any longer.

So, here are some few tips that a seaman and an OFW alike should do so that you will not spend the rest of your life working as a seaman.

1.  Usually a seaman before getting a high paying job has to borrow money first to finance training fees and other expenses.  Before anything else, pay off your debt first and thank your financiers for helping you land the job.

2. Set in mind that you should not spend all your salary in a month.  Set a scheme where you save a portion of your salary.  A 20% ratio of your salary would be a good start.  If you can set it automatically like an automatic deduction going to your savings account, it would be much better.

3. Control your spending.  Know what is necessity and caprices.  A mobile phone is a necessity but it does not have to be a thousand dollar worth.

4. As much as possible never use you credit card when making purchases but if you do, make sure to pay it before they charge your monthly billing so that it would not accrue interests.

5. If you are planning to buy big ticket items such as house or car make sure to save at least half of the price so that you will not pay big interest from loan companies.

6. Talk to you family about why you are working abroad.  You want to support them but you don't want to spoil your family.  Spoiling your family especially your kids creates a wrong impressions to them, they would think that making money as a seaman is as easy as growing banana plants in your backyard.

7. Try to study how to invest your money.  It is your responsibility to learn how to grow your money by investing.  I would recommend investing in stocks as a great vehicle for achieving what you want with your finances.

8.  Do not just put your money on savings account. Invest it because inflation will devalue your money over time.

Remember that you cannot work forever as a seaman or as an OFW. You don't work and live for the present, you are working overseas as a seaman because you are working for the future.

photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jssz/