The first big step to realising your financial goals is knowing what you’re really worth. The next big step is setting out to prove it.
About two years ago I dreaded looking at my payslip. I felt ashamed about my financial status. It it made me feel depressed and worthless. For most of my life, even when I started working, I relied on my parents for financial support. I wanted and needed it to end. I wanted to feel independent, and it was not going to happen if I did not speak up to my employer at the time.
My parents had spent a lot of money on my education. I thought a qualification would give me the financial boost I was hoping for. Boy, was I wrong. It was merely the ticket into the working world. If I wanted to be paid my worth I was going to have to fight for it.
I decided that if I really wanted to be financially happy and stable, I would need to fight for my remuneration. In January 2016, I had a goal i wanted to reach. I wanted to purchase my first car, to make it easier for me to get to and from work. It would also make me more desirable for other employment opportunities.
I eventually plucked up enough courage to approach my editor. I never imagined the battle, which ensued for eight long months. It was a true struggle to have my salary reviewed and corrected. I needed to prove to them why I deserved it.
I discovered that an intern was earning about R4,000 more than I was at the time. I had already been working in the industry for about seven years and it came as a shock that someone with little to no experience was earning way more than I was.
I did not blame the intern. I believed that somewhere in the system there was a glitch and that it needed to be corrected. I asked the human resource department how my salary was calculated.
I was told it is calculated according to the number of years of experience. I then put it to them that I do not feel that mine had been calculated properly. I earned more when I was an intern. Perhaps my salary needed to be reviewed and compared to that of my colleagues.
I did not receive a response for seven months following my request. Was I being ignored? I wondered if I had made myself a target to be dismissed. But for what? For being honest? perhaps they wanted me to forget about it, or perhaps they were trying to figure out how to respond.
But I wasn’t discouraged. I continued with my work. Although I felt like I was losing I always remembered that I had a goal.
I wanted to buy my first car. With my financial situation back then it was only a dream.
My father always said if you are able to afford a car, you are free to go where you want, when you want to. I was set on my goal.
I started window shopping for my car. I convinced myself even though I was not getting the quick response I was hoping for, nothing stopped me from placing items in my imaginary wish basket.
Eventually after eight emotionally draining months I got an email requesting a meeting. My then editor said she had a letter from head office, confirming that my salary had not been not calculated properly. Although they did not go into detail about the problem, my editor explained “there was a glitch in the system and your salary has been fixed accordingly”.
Although I hoped they would correct it in terms of back pay, it never happened. At that point it did not matter to me. I had had enough of fighting for my financial freedom and wanted to move on. I accepted the letter and the new salary.
I could now focus on my goal, which was to purchase my car. I eventually qualified for a loan. My ticket to freedom, to go where ever I wanted to when I wanted to, as long as I had money for petrol.
When the car dealer delivered my Toyota Etios XS 5 2014 with tinted windows and black rims all I wanted to do was show my editor. I drove to work, called my editor downstairs into the parking lot and showed her. I had reached my goal. I had learned not to be afraid to address my financial situation, to fight my own battles, to know my worth and to push hard to achieve my goals.
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