Nigeria is not what it used to be. The cost of living has been rising dramatically, and there's no better time to think about survival than now.

Unfortunately, the rising cost of living means many struggle to manage their finances. There's often so little to handle so much. But well, that's where planning comes in.

If you can't raise your earnings, you should consider recalculating your budget so that the little money you earn will cover your needs. Of course, this is not an easy task, but it's achievable, and that's why we're here to help you out.

The following tips can help you navigate Nigeria's skyrocketing cost of living.

Financial planning

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What better place to start than from planning itself? We know you're already not earning as much as you'd want, but that's not an excuse not to plan.

Create a feasible budget that outlines your monthly income and expenditures immediately. Identify areas where you can cut costs without sacrificing essential needs.

We recommend paying more attention to necessities like food, medical expenses, rent, and utilities and minimising impulse buying of non-essential stuff.

Buy your food in bulk

Food is definitely one of man's biggest necessities, and it's not surprising that we spend a large chunk of our earnings on it. But there's a way to cut down on food costs.

Pay attention to the price of goods and learn to buy in bulk. Most food items are cheaper in bulk, so you can imagine how much you can save by buying in bulk.

You can even decide to pool funds with your colleagues, church members, and neighbours for a bulk purchase. The goal is to reduce the cost of food items.

The freezer is your friend

It's one thing to buy foodstuffs in bulk, but another to learn how to store them. This is where your freezer comes into play. Many freezers have different drawers and compartments for storing various foods.

You can always use the sections to organise your items. For example, you can dedicate one drawer to vegetables, another to meat, and another to prepared meals. The goal is to save one from bulk purchases and reduce waste.

Combine errands

The small amounts we spend on transportation and logistics may seem insignificant, but they often add up to a lot. In addition, these chores take a lot of energy and time.

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But well, there's one way to solve this - plan and group tasks by location and priority.

This way, you can handle several tasks on one trip instead of wasting money (and energy) on multiple trips for the same errand.

Automate your savings

We can't overemphasise the need for savings. With the rising cost of things, getting caught up with sending on the go has become easy, leaving little room for saving. But we really can't write off the need to save.

Thankfully, many bank apps now have features like auto-save, which allows you to save a percentage of any money you receive. Leverage these features to save for rainy days, and make sure you don't return to these savings unless it truly rains.