Money Chronicles: How I Saved Over 500k in Three Months.

Money Chronicles showcase the honest money experiences of everyday people who use Cowrywise. We share a story on the 17th of every month. This month, we speak with Eseoghene Owivri, a student of University of Nigeria who was could not monitor her expenses until she started using Cowrywise . She shares how Cowrywise has helped her do better and how she saved 500k in 3 months. Dive in below to read our conversation! ⬇️

Hello! I’m so happy to have you here. Thanks for doing this with us. Can you tell us your name and what you do?

My Name is Owivri Chinwe Eseoghene. I am a 200 level Medical Laboratory student of the University of Nigeria.  I’m also a cryptocurrency vendor and I sell female shoulder bags.

Jack of many trades – that’s good!

Ah ah, thank you. 😂

You’re welcome! Tell us how you heard about Cowrywise.

I heard about the app from my friend, Dalu. I thought it was just another regular savings app. But that was when your SEC License announcement came up and it gave me some form of trust. That made me feel safe enough to start saving. 

Awwwnn…Dalu is such an amazing friend. Kudos to her for looking out for you . 🎉 So how has saving on the app been so far?

It’s been great so far. I was able to achieve my saving goals without any stress. Initially, I started saving because of my bad spending habits. I had tried all I could but it grew worse daily. I knew I had to caution myself so when I opened the app, I made it a duty to save 5k daily for three months. I started with a friend who was also my accountability partner. We never missed a day. By the end of three months I was able to save half a million while my friend saved almost 1.5 million because he increased his goal.

Wow 500k…that’s a bold move! How did that make you feel? 😌

I’m so proud of us, I won’t even lie. We made so much money daily from our businesses but couldn’t really see it because of our bad spending habits. So saving 500k in that short period made me realise I was actually earning a lot.

We are proud of you too! What else has changed with your finances since you’ve been using Cowrywise?

I feel so responsible now, like I’m in charge of my finances. No more unnecessary spendings – I can say that for sure. If it’s not a necessity I’m not putting out a dime for it, unless I’ve got spare cash. My finances have really changed. Next stop is investment.

We’ll be here when you’re ready for that. 💙

What’s your greatest Cowrywise moment so far?

My greatest moment… It was when I withdrew my matured savings and the speed with which the alert entered my phone, I felt so fulfilled.  Like “I did this. I conquered this bad money habit. I saved 500k!” 

And yes I was able to refurbish my room with the money I saved. Got a very fine king sized bed. 🤩 No more sleeping on ordinary foam that’s on the ground. These were my greatest Cowrywise moments. I was surprised by how much I could achieve if only I was disciplined enough to save.

Awwn…that must have been an emotional moment. 🥺 We’re glad you were able to do this with your friend. Do you also refer Cowrywise to your friends?

Yes I do. I’m always preaching to them about the benefits of saving. Some were skeptical to start because then I hadn’t withdrawn yet and they were not sure I would get my money when it matured. So on my withdrawal date I did a video showing them how I withdrew and got my money. The evidence was glaring so they all signed up.

Amazing! Thank you for getting your friends started on their savings journey. So what is your best Cowrywise feature and why?

The Refer and gift a friend feature. 

It’s both a welcoming and appreciative gift for both the person who refers and the person who is referred. I first got my bonus after signing up using Dalu’s invite link and it represented “A Good Omen” to me. I just felt soo positive and motivated about my whole savings journey. I felt accepted kind of. 😊

That’s what it feels like to join other Cowrywise users to do better with your money. 🤩 What would you say to a student or business owner like you who’s still stalling to take their money management and financial planning seriously?

Please stop stalling and get to it. You’d be shocked at the amount of money you could actually save and use to fund that big project you’ve always craved. Trust me it’s 100% possible.

You heard Owivri!

What’s the top lesson Cowrywise has taught you about money?

Discipline! I mean it wasn’t easy saving 5k daily as a student with billings here and there. But I had to stay true to my course whether I liked it or not. The fact that I couldn’t withdraw my savings until the maturity date I set made the teaching stick more. 😅

Do you remember the very first time you learned that money was a thing of value? Share the experience with us. 🤲🏾

Life taught me this particular lesson. Growing up, I was an over-pampered child (last born things 🥲) so everything I ever needed was provided for me. I barely lacked access to cash so I didn’t really know much about money being a thing of value . The only value I recognized was my mum😂 because she’s the provider. It was when I entered the University that I started to understand life.  My mummy started getting tired of my constant billings and started telling me to manage. 😕 That’s when I knew indeed money was a thing of value and I also needed to make mine

Nice. Kudos to mummy to helping you realise this.

What are your thoughts on ponzi schemes? Do you know anyone who has ever fallen for one? What lesson did you learn from their experience?

Ponzi schemes are evil. 😩 And they’re definitely thriving up till now because of greed. I’ve been a victim and sadly I’m the type to carry everyone along whenever I’m doing something I think is profitable. I lost my money and my friends lost theirs too. Stay clear from ponzi and other get-rich-quick schemes.  IT ALWAYS ENDS IN PREMIUM TEARS. 

I learnt to stop looking for get-rich-quick schemes. Don’t ever do ponzi. You can learn a skill on YouTube for free and monetize it. Earn, save and invest on Cowrywise, experience a very steady growth in your finance. It might not be a fast process like that of ponzi but then you’re sure you won’t lose your hard earned money.

You’re right about that. Achieving financial freedom is a long term thing. Now that you’ve saved 500k, what’s your next money goal?

Now that I’ve saved 500k, next stop: 1 million.

Energy! 🚀 A fun question here: What’s the most thoughtful gift you’ve ever received and why did you value it so much?

I helped my friend, Nenye, market her totes bag one time and she surprised me with a free tote bag that had my brand name on it and a perfume oil. I felt really special because I give other people free shoutouts and refferals but she was thoughtful enough to appreciate my effort. Trust me it felt good.

Wow…thank you, Nenye, for being so thoughtful. 🥺 Any last words?

Cowrywise is the best app to start your savings journey. Special thanks to Ope for those her little encouraging messages whenever I make a deposit.

Thank you for sharing your amazing story with us, Owivri.

I appreciate you more. Thanks a lot.

Want to make sense of your finances? Or you also have a 500k savings goal? Let’s get you started here.

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