Jumia Books The Smart Money Tribe

With more money comes better preparedness. This means that money makes it easier to face life’s challenges and financial literacy is the first step toward financial independence.

The Smart Money Tribe is the sequel to Arese Ugwu’s Smart Money Woman – An African Girl’s Guide to Financial Freedom. It is a chick-lit that navigates the lives of five women with practical financial lessons at the end of each chapter. The main aim of the book is to teach you how to make your friendship circle your money circle.

Here are some of the lessons I learnt. I say some because there are a lot of lessons to learn from the book.

Save to invest and not to spend.Be self-aware; don’t develop money habits dictated by peer pressure.Investing should be a lifestyle. Don’t be passive about it.It is important to have an investment advisor.With extra money (gifts/bonuses), invest or save a portion of it before spending.In order for your network to become your net-worth, you have to be able to use it to create opportunities and remove obstacles.Network horizontally; network with people who are also struggling in the trenches just like you.Build organic relationships; quality relationships don’t happen overnight.Living your best life is prioritizing the things that truly bring you joy and being realistic about how much of it your current income can support.Set boundaries; be comfortable with saying 'I can’t afford it right now’. Anyone who makes you feel bad for prioritizing your financial health isn’t someone that should be in your life.It is important to have conversations about money while you are dating in order to avoid financial conflict in marriage.Despite that the target audience for this book is young women, I'd recommend it for everyone. It will save you from making a lot of money mistakes. This is a book that I will definitely read again.