Our Six Money Jars Project

Yes, I know it’s confusing. The title says six but the picture shows seven. Well, keep reading and I’ll tell you why.

After so many failed attempts at budgetting, I came to read about T. Harv Eker’s money jars system. He talked about how to divide your income into six jars. The portions of which are detailed below:

• FFA (10%) – stands for financial freedom account. The keyword here is freedom. The money that goes into this jar is intended to be used to pursue opportunities for growth and multiplication so that someday soon, we can stop working for money and let money work for us instead. It can be used to buy investments like stocks or start a business. Some authors suggest the “pay yourself first” mentality and I believe it is true. This jar is the first priority for us.
• NEC (55%) – stands for necessities. From this jar, we draw expenses for electricity, water, internet and phone bills, etc. We are lucky that our accommodation is provided by my employer. For those who are paying rent, this is where the rent should come from. This jar holds the key to our continuous existence but yes, I still put its importance behind the FFA jar.
• LTSS (10%) – stands for long-term savings for spending. This can be alloted to a big purchase in the not-so-near future, say a dream house or a boat. This jar serves as our dream and vision enhancing jar. It will surely be fun to see it get filled, ready to be spent on something we have long been wanting and saving for.
• LEARN (10%) – obviously stands for learning. Mr. Eker’s system originally called this the education account. So, if we want to learn how an iPhone works, we use this money to buy one =). Kidding aside, this is for our continuous growth because education does not end in a graduation ceremony. Last January, I started giving our son his monthly allowance to teach him about budgeting. That amount comes from this jar.
• PLAY (10%) – obviously for relaxation and enjoyment. All work and no play makes John a dull boy. I dub this the most exciting jar. Mr. Eker suggests that we literally EMPTY this jar at the end of each month. The purpose is to have us enjoy the fruits of our labor and have the energy to tackle the next month of money making and saving and playing again.
• GIVE (5%) – obviously for giving and sharing your blessings. Our teachers have always been right – it is better to give than to receive. You can choose to and it over to a charitable organization or to hand it over to the needy ones yourself. Just treat this like the the PLAY jar. It should be empty at the end of each month.

So how about that seventh jar there? Well, that jar bears the emblem of our family that we fondly call “The Nomads”. I’ll tell you more about that later. As for the jar, it will be the place any excess coming from the NEC and LEARN jars. I hope you will now excuse me for talking about six jars but having seven instead.

The key to the success of any system, or organization is discipline. Here are some tips:

• After receiving your salary, go straight home and fill your jars.
• Stick to the plan. It may hurt at first but think about the long-term.
• Celebrate your successes, but make sure that you don’t spend beyond what the jars allow.

That’s it for now. Let’s enjoy our quest for freedom.