By Livingstone Mukasa
In some families, poverty has been battering them generation after generation. When you look behind you and you don’t like what you see, its time to be the inspiration for your people. It’s time to break the cycle of poverty!
Based on my experience, here are the fundamental steps you need to take.
- Decide that you are meant to be somebody and not just anybody. When one of my uncles advised that I drop out of school in S.2, I was already old enough to know it was a bad move.
- Get some level of education (I was the first in my family to go to college).
- Outwork everyone (prove your metal, the world will give you a chance. I did and led someone’s company – a major Brand- at 26). Pay was still not enough to make a clean break from poverty.
- Negotiate your worth and be prepared to quit to pursuemore profitable (risky) endeavours. I did and incorporated my first company at 27. It still exists to this day.
- Marry for love but take your brains with you. After beingmarried for 20 years,it is the smartest decision I have ever made.
- Manage your extended family. Agree you won’t lift everyone out at the same time. It’s tough but you will see many gradually follow your example even without direct help.
- Have a family you can afford. Those with more resources usually have less children than the “soon to have”. I am no exception.
- Have a lifestyle conducive to wealth creation like being early to bed and early to rise. Usually in bed by 11pm and out by 5am.
- Live below your means. At some point, freeze your standard of living like for 5 years. I try to live on 50% of my income.
Work hard and keep going. One day it shall come to pass and you start talking about poverty as “those days”.
I see it as my calling to help people make economic progress no matter their starting point. If you need help or advisory on matters of Business and Finance, I am always happy to support.
The author is a Financial Advisor, Entrepreneur, People’s Professor of Streetnomics and the Author of “The Great Financial Rebuild” & “Investing for the Future”
Contact: +256772459167 email: livinbusiness@gmail.com
