The Budget Series v.3 How to Dodge Money Borrowers

There will always be a time when a colleague, a family member or any acquaintance would ask to borrow money from us. And as much as we want to refuse them, and how ever limited the cash we carry, we still loan them money. But why risk of not being able to get repayment from our hard earned money? Why do we still acquiesce to their request despite having the gut feeling that they will not be able to repay on time? Or worse, they would give us annoying reasons of not being able to pay the amount- a situation which I’ve often been in. For me, it all boils down to conscience. As typical God-fearing Pinoys, kindness is ingrained to us that we usually find it hard not to help the needy. So how can we dodge money borrowers without being disrespectful and still have our conscience intact, somehow? I’d say somehow because we are still really going to feel guilty about some of these ways:

1.    Explain in a calm manner how you, yourself is making ends meet. Let the would-be borrower understand that if you only have the spare cash to lend him, then you would gladly give it to him even.

2.    Tell the borrower that you have immediate family members that you are helping every month. Explain that they are also going through a rough time and so, as much as you want to help him, you are also going to feel helpless for your family.

3.    Tell the borrower that you have just purchased something expensive. Have you had known that he will ask you for money, you would have foregone the purchase.

4.    This is related to no. 3. You have to buy or pay for something that is essential like the tuition fee of your brother or the insurance of your mother.

5.    Or, you can say you are knee-deep in debt yourself and mention a credit card company that you had been delivering your salary to. This usually works for me. *winks!*

If these facts will not apply to your situation, then you can just directly say that you are really, really going through a tough time and that you need to save for the rainy days. Tell the would-be borrower that as much as you would like to lend money to him, you are also taking care of your finances and that you really have nothing to give. Then, you can also offer other ways to help depending on both of your situation.

These tips are not that very awesome, but I hope these may come in handy in the future. :=)