Money & Business Matters books

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 The ZANGENA Ladder
Financial Plan to End Poverty and Stop
Living the Hand to Mouth Lifestyle

By

Jones Chipeta
(Mr. Zangena)

MONEY MATTERS BOOK 4

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 Copyright
Copyright © 2020 by Jones Chipeta. All rights reserved

This book, together with its contents, may not be duplicated,

replicated or interpreted into any other language without the direct
written permission from the author.

Under no conditions will any legal obligation or fault be held against

the author for any compensation, indemnities, or financial loss due
to the information herein, either directly or indirectly.

Legal notice

This book is protected by copyright hence you are not allowed to

change, sell, use or paraphrase any part of this book without the
written permission of the owner.

Disclaimer Notice

The material contained in this book is for education and

entertainment purposes only. Even though every effort has been
put in to ensure that information is accurate and complete, no
warranties of any kind are expressed or implied. The author is not in
any way rendering legal, medical or professional advice. These
services can be procured from licensed professionals.

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This book is dedicated to all the sincere followers of Mr
Zangena and the Money and Business Matters programs. It is
because of you people that I‟ll never stop sharing my
knowledge and experiences with you through my books and
other media.

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I would like to acknowledge Jehovah God for His love and
grace, my wife and family for always being there for me, my
team at Money and Business matters for their input and
support and my students for their encouragement and support.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright........................................................................................... iii
Dedication ......................................................................................... iv
Acknowledgement............................................................................. vi
Introduction ....................................................................................... 1
Why I Wrote This Book ..................................................................................1
Chapter 1: ........................................................................................... 5
The ZANGENA Hand to Mouth Lifestyle .................................................5
Chapter 2: .......................................................................................... 17
Causes of the ZANGENA Hand to Mouth Lifestyle ............................. 17
Chapter 3: ......................................................................................... 28
Effects of Living the Hand to Mouth Lifestyle ........................................ 28
1. Any Emergency Becomes a Crisis...................................................... 28
Chapter 4: ......................................................................................... 39
How to Overcome the Hand to Mouth Lifestyle Using the
ZANGENA Ladder ...................................................................................... 39
THE ZANGENA LADDER ................ Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 1 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 2 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 3 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 4 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 5 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Step 6 .......................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Protect and Share Your Wealth .............. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Chapter 5: ................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.
Practical Examples of People Who Have Overcome the
ZANGENA Hand to Mouth Lifestyle in ZambiaError! Bookmark not defined.

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Chapter 6: ................................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.
Conclusion ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR................................................................. 39
Other Books by the same author ..................................................... 42
Consultations and training ........................................................................... 46
Speaking engagements ............................. Error! Bookmark not defined.

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Living hand to mouth is not anyone‟s chosen way of life.
There was a time I was working hard to change from living a
hand to mouth lifestyle to a better one but I totally failed. It‟s
like the more money I made, the more problems I attracted. I
could see other people progressing in their lives but I was at
the same level; month after month and year after year.

With no accurate knowledge of how to short circuit this

lifestyle, I accumulated a lot of bad debts along the way which
made it very difficult for me to become financially free.

I started and failed in many businesses.

I thought the major problem I had was money so I went and

borrowed heavily from the financial institutions dotted all over
the country but to my surprise, I didn‟t go anywhere in
business even if I had a lot of money in my pockets.

After about 12 months, I came back to square one, became

broke and found myself deep in debt.

I can‟t believe that all the big monies I used to hold in my

hands had all disappeared. I was back on the drawing board
but this time determined to succeed.

I read many self-help books such as rich dad; poor dad and the
richest man in Babylon, watched many entrepreneurship
videos on YouTube but it seemed like I was missing it

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somewhere. I attended many entrepreneurship conferences
but it was like I couldn't just find the missing link between me
and my success.

I failed to come out of debt, struggled to save money and

totally failed to make any investments until I discovered the
financial plan I now call the ZANGENA ladder.

In this book, I will share with you the step by step method I
used to break the hand to mouth cycle so that you can do the
same too. This book will help you to start enjoying life and
your money instead of continually worrying about money and
business matters.

Who Is This Book For?

This book was not written for everyone. It is specifically
crafted and tailored for those who would like to:

a) Come out of debt using the advice from the

ZANGENA ladder
b) Save more so that they can invest in big projects in the
future
c) Learn how to invest their money so that can create
multiple income streams
d) Start a business even when they have limited capital
e) Prepare for retirement so that they can retire with
dignity and honour and not spend their later years in
regrets or sorrow
f) Learn how to manage their finances well using a step by
step system that has proven to work wonders for over
1000+ people who have used it so far.

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 g) To learn what other people have been doing to come
out of debt, change the hand to mouth cycle and create
multiple income streams so that they can live a lifestyle
of their dreams.

What You Will Learn From This Book

a) Practical examples of real people who changed their
hand to mouth cycle
b) You will also discover the causes of living hand to
mouth
c) You will also discover the effects of living the hand to
mouth cycle
d) You will learn about the ZANGENA ladder, the
proven financial plan to breaking the hand to mouth
cycle, succeeding in any business and creating multiple
income streams
e) And many more other cool things about money and
business matters

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4
ZANGENA!!! Now What?

ZANGENA!
You can easily tell when it‟s payday in Zambia because the
level of spending money reaches its peak and if you are very
sensitive like me, you can even smell the notes and coins all
over the place.

During the ZANGENA period, Shopping malls are suddenly

hit with trolley and people jams. The parking space which
seemingly looked enormous suddenly becomes too small to
contain the fleet of cars which had gone into oblivion due to
no fuel but has suddenly reappeared as a result of the payday.

People who could eat nshima with vegetables suddenly

become allergic to a vegetarian way of life and become fans of
beef and other choice delicacies from the butcheries.

Apart from the shopping frenzy that normally occurs, there

are also emotional gestures you cannot ignore such as sad
faces which quickly become filled with smiles „chabe‟ because
of having money in the pocket. Many homes are suddenly
filled with love and romance because of the overflow of
money.

This excitement lasts for a day or two for most people and I
can simply say it lasts for 7 days at most for the rest. When the

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money is finished, financial headaches begin to surface,
pressure mounts up and fights over money become a normal
trend in the home.

Sounds familiar?

What Is the ZANGENA Hand to Mouth Lifestyle

The Zangena hand to mouth Lifestyle is defined as spending
100% of your monthly income on consumption. This lifestyle
is represented by the following equation below:

Monthly Income=Consumption

„Consumption‟ is any money which isn‟t spent on income-

generating activities. This money is normally spent by
individuals and households on personal wants and needs if not
for enjoyment.

I am not against enjoying life, far from that. I am against

spending all your hard-earned money on consumption.

Money which is not spent on consumption has a chance of a

multiplying itself but money spent on consumption can‟t grow.

It is easy to tell if someone is spending all their money on

consumption. If all your monthly income is spent on rentals,
food, clothes and health expenses; it‟s a clear indication of
living a consumption way of life.

The ZANGENA hand to mouth lifestyle is a clear indication

that a person‟s personal moneybag has got some holes which
need to be mended.

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 You were not born just to make a living,
pay the bills and die - Myles Munroe

Common ZANGENA Reactions

What is your ZANGENA reaction?

I have had people consulting from me from all walks of life.

Some of these people are teachers, miners, doctors, nurses,
engineers etc.

Their ages range from 19 years to 65 years. When they

approach me for personal finance management consultancy,
they are normally in a situation similar to the real-life situations
I will share with you below. Real names have been withheld
for confidentiality sake but the stories shared below are very
real.
There are two kinds of people; those who
acknowledge the ZANGENA hand to
mouth lifestyle problem, take responsibility
and change it and those who decide to ignore
and pretend that everything is okay when in
fact they know that it‟s otherwise - Jones
Chipeta

My Taste of the Effects of the ZANGENA Hand to

Mouth Lifestyle

My dad was working as a chef in a reputable five-star hotel.

We were a family of 9 children and all of us were depending
100% on dad.

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We were living the good life, in a big 5 bedroomed rented
house right. This house had a swimming pool, a large yard, a
servant‟s quarter and a luxurious guest wing.

My dad was a hardworking man. He ensured that all of his 9

children were taken to expensive and good schools. We had
our own driver who would take us to and from school.

Our home (inside and out) was always sparkling clean because
dad had employed 2 maids and 2 garden boys. I reached grade
12 without even learning how to clean the dishes because it
was the maid‟s responsibility to do so. Our main job was just
to bring good results from school (as dad would put it) and
not do any chores at home. We were simply living heaven on
earth

Then his contract for employment was terminated, and reality

struck. We couldn‟t afford all the luxuries we were enjoying,
we were forced to rent a substandard house in a shanti
compound because we couldn‟t afford a decent house. The
sudden shift from abundance to lack was unbearable.

Without any other source of income (Dad depended on 100%

employment income), we were demoted from heroes to zeroes
in a matter of days.

We were all affected as a family because dad had a financial

plan which looked as follows:

GET PAID, SPEND ALL OF IT & WAIT FOR

ANOTHER PAYDAY

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This cycle went on and on, month after month and year after
year. It was like dad was just working for rentals, food,
enjoying life, helping people and nothing else.

It took a long time for dad to realize that there was a problem
in our money management system. He only accepted that his
money management system was wrong when he stopped
working because he couldn‟t manage to take care of my family
anymore.

If your contract of employment was

terminated today, how would you take care
of your family?

Marvin Daka; the Man with No Plan B

I received a call around 10hrs from Marvin. He was just fired
from Work because of taking „Munkoyo‟ which had fermented
having stayed for 7 days.

He failed to pass the alcohol breath test which is normally

done every time when mineworkers report for work and the
mine has Zero tolerance for drug abuse, its instant dismissal.

Having lost his only stream of income, he called me for

financial advice. Like most of us, Mr. Daka had no plan B and
depended 100% on his salary. He never imagined a day would
come when he would lose his job, but here it was; SURPRISE!

How was he going to face his wife and tell his children about
this sad news?

How would he pay rentals for the next coming months

without a dependable source of income?

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These were the questions I had to find answers for him during
our consultation meeting.

If you were in my position advising Mr. Banda, what

would you tell him?
“Don‟t ever live life in Zambia without a
plan B. What is your plan B?” Jones
Chipeta

Mary Njovu; the Girl Who Was Addicted To Payday

Loans
For Mary, it all started like a joke. She saw an advert which
read, „first loan is 0% interest.‟ she decided to get one and
convinced herself that she would pay by month-end. This
money was used to pay for a shortfall on the vehicle she
ordered from Japan.

The car payment problem was sorted out but the loan
repayment problem was created. Month-end came but she
couldn‟t pay off this payday loan because she had a
bereavement, her mum had passed away. She decided to use
her salary for funeral expenses. She ended up failing to clear
her debt by month-end.

If you have ever borrowed money from these companies, I bet

you understand the amount of interest they charge for
defaulting.

To cut the long story short, she called me one evening for
advice on how best to pay off the big interest on her loan
because it had tripled and it seemed like all her salary was
always going towards servicing this loan.

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 Running to payday loans to solve
emergencies is a clear sign that you are not
financially literate - Jones Chipeta

Lawrence Milanzi and His Tight Budget

Lawrence visited our offices with a unique case. He told me
that ever since he married, his budget shakes if he decides to
set aside some money for small items such as money for
buying socks.

He wants to save and invest but his salary is of a minimum

wage. He struggles to buy food and pay for rent and much
more how to take care of his wife and kids.

He came to me for advice on how he could come out of this

predicament.

Mutinta the Shopaholic

I will never forget this girl, she had a rare case. Her problem
was that she couldn‟t resist nice things. She wanted nice food,
nice clothes; name it, so long something was nice she wanted it
right away without any delay.

The problem was that she used to buy all of these things on
credit. She reached a point where 90% of her income started
going towards servicing debts.

How much money goes towards debt repayment every month

compared to your monthly income?

Kasonde the Drinking Expert

Kasonde always had good plans as long as he was sober. He
would only become a problem when he is drunk.

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It‟s like he had two personalities „The drunken Kasonde.’
and ‘the sober Kasonde.’

The drunken Kasonde was a carefree big spender. I can admit

that the plans that Kasonde had were good but his greatest
weakness was alcohol.

Unfortunately, it‟s not Kasonde who came to seek financial

guidance but the wife who was breaking apart and couldn‟t
handle his behaviour anymore.

Our habits have a way of affecting the

people we live with. If you develop good
money and business habits, your family will
live in peace and tranquillity. If you live a
careless life, your spouse and children will
suffer instead. If you can‟t do it for yourself,
do it for your children - Jones Chipeta

Zewelanji the Loan Girl

Zewelanji got a good job with the mines. When she saw that
everyone was getting a loan, she decided to get one as well.
With no advice and no plan, she decided to put her loan
money in the bank waiting for a good investment idea to pop
up.

She didn‟t know that money always finds an outlet. That same
evening she only withdrew a k1, 000.00 for an emergency that
came up with her vehicle.

The following day, her friend had a shortage of k10, 000 at

work, she decided to help out. To cut the long story short, her
loan was wasted on non-profitable expenditures within days.

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 Seek financial advice before and after you
get your loan. Don‟t come to see us after you
have already wasted your money - Jones
Chipeta

Shameen Patel the Budget Man

Shameen would write a monthly budget but wouldn‟t follow it
at all. He would have all forms of excuses such as its difficult
to follow it, I always forget to put something on the budget
and many other serious reasons as to why he couldn‟t do a
budget.

He was the type of person who always despised his salary. He

would always convince himself that, he will only follow a
budget when he starts getting a bigger salary.

Find time to read the ZANGENA 10

commandments for help on how to budget -
Jones Chipeta

Mr. Phiri and His Critique Spouse

Mr. Phiri was a unique man. He trusted his wife to take 100%
of his financial affairs. His financial plan was when he is paid,
all that money should go to the wife.

The wife started hiding some money and expenses.

The time he realized how deep this financial secrecy was, it

was too late.

Mr. Phiri didn‟t know that when it comes to money

management in a home, a man is no better than a woman and
the woman is no better than the man. They both compliment

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each other and work together as a team to achieve great
results.

Read my book More money no fights to

learn the 22 mistakes couples make and
how you can avoid them - Jones Chipeta

Gideon the Accident Victim

Gideon had a job which required him to travel a lot. On this
fateful day, he was involved in a road traffic accident, his life
was saved but both his legs were broken. The doctors
recommended that his legs be amputated.

That was the end of his dreams and working career as an

international truck driver.

He came for advice on what he can do next.

……………………………………………………………

These are some of the problems that we offer practical

solutions to every day at our offices.

Can you identify with any of the issues mentioned above?

Well, Your story may not be the same as the ones above but
the theme for the hand to mouth lifestyle is always the same
i.e. SPEND IT ALL TODAY AND WAIT FOR PAYDAY
AGAIN. The effect of living hand to mouth shows itself
especially when there is no more ZANGENA.

Do you want to work on the ZANGENA hand to mouth

lifestyle now or when there is no more ZANGENA?

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I am always amazed as to why our clients do not seek financial
advice early before things go wrong.

For instance, the best time to seek financial advice is before

you get that loan and not after it has been spent. I also
recommend that you seek financial advice when you get your
first job and not after you have been fired.

Some of these problems can be avoided if you can seek

personal finance advice early.

Prevention is better than cure. Seek proper

personal finance and business advice before
it‟s too late - Jones Chipeta

The ZANGENA Moment

Do you know that moment when a message from your bank
reaches your phone or that exciting moment when someone
gives you money?

I call that moment ‘The ZANGENA moment’.

In simple terms, The ZANGENA moment is the time when

you receive some money. Money can come from different
sources such as:

1. Your parents
2. Your employment
3. Your business
4. Your investment or
5. Rentals and many other sources

God is fair, he always finds a way of giving each one of us an

opportunity to make and hold money in our hands. Some

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people make ZMW2,000 every month, some ZMW10,000 and
some more than ZMW10,000.00. No matter your social status,
the fact is each one of us has held money at one point or the
other.

We all have seasons of plenty and seasons of lack. The way

you use the money when you have plenty will determine
whether you will survive the years of drought or not. It‟s no
longer a prophecy, it is a known fact that financial drought
always finds a way of occurring soon or later in any person‟s
lifetime.

It‟s not how much money you make every

month that matters but how you use it -
Jones Chipeta

What should you do when you have „the ZANGENA‟

moment?

Should you build a house, buy a plot, go for further training or

invest in the stock exchange or maybe start a business?

Choosing what to do when you have some money can be

confusing sometimes.

That‟s why I created the ZANGENA ladder, a proven path to

end poverty and stop living the hand to mouth cycle. You will
no longer handle your money and business matters with doubt
because this plan will give you confidence as you move in your
money and business matters journey.

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Living hand to mouth is not anybody‟s chosen way to live.
And, yet many people can‟t seem to escape from it no matter
how hard they try.

There are many reasons we will look at which causes people to

live this way; However, I have seen that these reasons generally
fall into two broad categories: either they don’t make enough
to take care of themselves and their families or they
mismanage their money no matter how small or big it is or
both.

Regardless of the reason, living a hand to mouth can prevent

you from living a comfortable lifestyle and sadly, it can have a
grave impact on your health as well.

Let‟s now look at the top causes of the ZANGENA hand to

mouth lifestyle.

1. Lack of Financial Literacy

Financial literacy means the ability to
understand how to correctly make, save,
spend and multiply money at a personal and
business level - Jones Chipeta

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In simple terms, financial literacy is the education and
understanding of knowing how money is made, spent, saved
and invested, as well as developing the skills and ability to
make wise financial and business.

When we look at personal financial literacy at money and business

matters, we mostly focus on the following topics:

 Personal financial planning

 Managing debt (How to come out of debt, the difference between
good and bad debt etc.)
 Profitable savings techniques
 Budgeting and cash flow forecasting
 Planning for retirement
 How to make profitable investments and
 Creating/achieving financial goals

The lack of financial literacy may lead to making poor financial

choices that can have negative consequences on the financial
well-being of an individual and a business.

Financial literacy is not taught in schools; no wonder, you may

find that a graduate from a reputable schooling institution may
still struggle to put his or her financial house in order.

I was approached by an accountant who was in serious debt

problems this year. I couldn‟t understand how a person who is
supposed to be a money „guru‟ could have money problems. I
later learned through experience that you can be academically
intelligent BUT still not be financially literate.

When it comes to handling money matters, I have found that:

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 a) Nearly four out of every five participants of the money and
business matters survey live hand to mouth.
b) Over 75% of them never save any money from month to month.
c) Almost 75% are in some form of debt.

The hand to mouth lifestyle problem is real. A lot of people

pretend to be okay when in reality they are sitting on a time
bomb. The fact that you are reading this book shows me that
you are serious about taking your money and business matters
to another level.

M & B Course Alert

Do you want to learn more about Financial Literacy?

You can apply for a WhatsApp course with course code MB02 or call
Mr ZANGENA on +260-969-293-078 for more information about
this course.

2. Overspending
Have you ever walked into a store intending to buy bread and
milk only but came back with a bag full of groceries?

Do you have a tendency to overspend?

If you do, I can assure you that you are certainly not the only
one. I was once an „over-spender‟ too. I was nicknamed „Mr.
big spender sa penda‟ because of my carefree way of dishing out
money to my friends.

I used to love getting good things for myself even if I couldn‟t

afford them. I was a victim of impulse buying when it came to
buying the latest styled jeans, shoes and handbags for my wife.
At one point in my life, I owned over 25 pairs of shoes.

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In my mind buying these things were necessities. It filled some
„void‟ and made me feel extremely good.

Looking back, I think I used to overspend because I wanted to

keep abreast with pressures of from the society.

I wanted my friends to accept me. I was in silent competition

with the whole world. I wanted to prove to everyone that I
was doing fine when in fact my life was falling apart.

I was looking very successful to the outside world but in

reality, the debts I had accumulated were killing me.

If not dealt with early, Overspending can lead to:

 -Accumulation of massive amounts of consumer debt that can be

difficult or even impossible to pay back.
 -It can also lead to a reduction in savings
 -It can make it impossible for you to invest in profit-generating
assets

There are many reasons why people overspend but I have

found the following to be the main ones:

a) Impulse buying

This simply means making buying decisions while in a shop. I

wouldn‟t be surprised if you end up spending more cash than
planned if this is your shopping style.

I have met people who say that „I have a spending plan in my head‟

Well, please enlighten me; if a spending plan could be made

from the head, why do you think the National budget is done
on paper?

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Do companies do their budgets from the head?

b) Not having a budget

The other reason why many people overspend is due to

lack of budgeting. A budget is simply a written plan of
where your money will come from and how you would like
to spend it.

Without a budget, it‟s very easy to overspend because you

will have no control over what you would like your money
to be spent on.

c) Easy access to credit

It‟s very easy to borrow money nowadays. With only a pay-

slip and a bank statement, many financial institutions will
happily lend you their money without even asking for any
collateral.

Growth of village bank funds has also contributed to

making access to credit to be very easy.

When a salary is finished due to overspending, many

people run to these financial institutions and village bank
arrangements to put more fuel on their spending desire.

d) Overlooking small expenses

Most people know offhand the amount they pay for rent,
car loans and other big expenses per month. But somehow
it seems to be not-a-big-deal to account for money that is
spent on small expenses like talk time, fuel, food etc.

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 Early last year, I decided to retain all my scratch cards for
airtime and guess what? I was shocked to see that I could
spend ZMW1, 000.00 worth of talk time without even me
knowing.

Many little expenses if bundled together over time may

become a big expense.

e) Lack of an emergency account

What would you do if the car suddenly breaks down or

maybe a water pump suddenly malfunctioned and it‟s in
the middle of the month?

Well, for most people; the only solution is to borrow.

Emergency borrowing leads to overspending on unplanned
for interest rates.

Without emergency money, it‟s easy to spend more on

things which could have been cheaper because of high-
interest rates.

f) The pressure to be like the Jones’

Because humans are social creatures, it‟s hard to say no

when your coworkers are going out for drinks after work,
or family and friends come over and you want to take them
out for dinner. It‟s also easy to fall into the habit of
comparing your spending to that of those around you. If
the woman who shares your title at work has Brazilian hair,
or your neighbour next door has a BMW, you somehow
feel that you can afford them too.

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Well, sometimes you can‟t do what others are doing or by
what others are buying and most times you shouldn‟t. You
may not know how your friends acquired that money therefore
it will be unfair to compare yourself unless you can get some
insider information.

g) Depending 100% on your spouse

Some people overspend because they know that somehow

„my spouse will work and bring in more money even if I squander it
without thinking‟.

Financial discipline is a team sport in marriage; which

means that if you want to take control of your money, the
husband and wife will need to become responsible by
making wise financial decisions together.

Book Recommendation

Read More Money No Fights to learn more about how to

manage your money in marriage

3. Failing To Make Correct Financial Priorities in

Your Home
You need to reach a point where as a couple, you can be on
the same page about what is important and what isn‟t. Do you
want to buy a car first or maybe you want to upgrade your
credentials?

There are many things you can buy but it's not everything that
is important. Certain things can wait. Work with your spouse
to determine the order of doing things.

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4. Failing To Build a Portfolio of Profitable Assets
An asset is anything that brings money to your pocket. Many
people live hand to mouth because they have only one source
of income.

You need to develop a habit of building your asset base. This

exercise will take time but it will surely pay off in the future.

Many people have not taken the idea of building assets

seriously because they have become so comfortable in their
jobs. It is easy to begin to think that your job will last forever
and that workmates are your family but always remember that
a job was not meant to last forever.

5. Only Thinking about the Present

Jesus said, „don‟t worry about tomorrow‟- Matthew 6 v 24

He didn‟t say don‟t plan for it. God has given you a free mind
and a creative mind so that you can make a plan for your life.
No one cares more whether you succeed than yourself.

There are 3-time horizons which we need to look at when

planning how to manage your money:

a) The past 30 days (previous month)

Review past incomes and expenditures to see if you can make some
tweaks to make your financial status better

b) The present 1-30 days (present month)

How do you want to spend your money in the coming 30 days?

How much money did you make this month?

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c) The future 30 days + (next month)
How can you make more money in the future?

How can you make a financially secure future starting today?

Change is happening each and every day. You are growing,

your children are growing too and many other things are
changing.

Many people live hand to mouth because they only focus on

TODAY and forget that time has 3 important horizons.

If you only look at the present, you are not managing your
finances well. Here are two dangers when you are living that
way:

i. You fail to learn from history

The past is a great teacher. We learn a lot by looking at history. If
you only live in the present, you fail to look at the past mistakes and
learn from them.

ii. You fail to think strategically about the future

If you only operate in the present, you are focusing almost exclusively
on solving the problems of today without thinking strategically about
problems that can come tomorrow. Proper financial management
involves planning for the present and the future while learning from
the mistakes of the past.

While today is important, we need to look also to the past and the
future.

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6. Accumulating Too Much Bad Debt
How does your payslip look like?

Is it clustered with many loans or maybe it has only statutory

obligations (NAPSA & PAYE) on the deduction side?

If not used wisely, debt has the ability to reduce your take-
home income thereby leaving you with peanuts which cannot
take you to the month-end thereby forcing you to live hand to
mouth.

7. The High Cost of Urban Living

Living in urban cities comes at a cost such as high rent costs,
high transportation costs and high school fees, etcetera.

There are people who live in areas they cannot afford and take
their children to schools which they can‟t afford for the sake
of maintaining status in the society.

They own things they don‟t need to impress people they don‟t
know then they become broke trying to look rich, what‟s the
point?

Maintaining status which you can‟t afford will cause you to live
hand to mouth forever.

8. Stagnant Wages While Inflation Is On the Rise

I have observed that salaries are mostly stagnant for many
years. If the salary is increased, it is not normally done in
proportion to the rise in goods and services.

Some people live hand to mouth due to the stagnation of their

salaries while their responsibilities keep on increasing.

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9. Procrastination
Many people fail to take on a better lifestyle because they are
always thinking, „I‟ll start taking money matters serious next month‟
then month‟s passes before they know it, it‟s too late.

If you want to take control of the money matters, you need to

do it starting today.

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If this topic was to be imagined to be a field of study, I can
safely say I have a PhD in living the hand to mouth lifestyle. I
say so because when I got married, I was no different from my
father.

My dad was a hardworking man. The only weakness I saw in

his personal money management style is that he was only
spending his money on rentals, food, clothes and medical
expenses.

This lifestyle is always cool until the day the contract of

employment is terminated.

When I resigned from my work, I struggled to take care of my

family just like my father when his contract was terminated
from a five-star hotel. I have vowed never to allow such a
predicament to happen to me again.

What are the effects of living hand to mouth?

1. Any Emergency Becomes a Crisis

Emergencies do happen. We don‟t call for them but they
have a way of forcing themselves on us.

Funerals, accidents, job losses and sicknesses are all part of

life. You may say, „Jones don‟t be negative.‟ I am not being
negative, I am just stating facts.

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 Emergencies can happen to you directly or indirectly. You
may not be the one involved in a road traffic accident but
it may be your sister who is faced with such a fate

I hope you can agree with me that it‟s no longer about if or

not an emergency will come but rather about what you will
do when it comes.

If you are living hand to mouth, any emergency

becomes a crisis because of no money-Jones Chipeta

Do you know why the payday loans companies are making

a lot of profits? It‟s because many people do not plan for
emergencies. If a funeral happens, or the car battery dies,
the only immediate solution is to get a payday loan or a
Kaloba.

2. Savings and Investments Become Impossible To

Do
We all have good intentions when it comes to saving
money, right? We tell ourselves we‟ll start saving once this
or that thing happens. I have heard many people say I will
begin saving when I am 40 years or when I get a salary
increase or when my children become independent.

But at the end of the day, no money is ever saved.

You‟ll only start saving money when you learn personal

financial management and your future needs become more
important than your current wants.

A lot of times, purchasing of things such as a new Dining

set, Smart TV or a pair of shoes is made a priority over our
goal to save money and so we spend all our money, even

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 go into bad debt to fuel our latest desire for immediate
gratification.

The bad debts we accumulate turn into monthly perpetual

payments that control our monthly income forever. At
money and business matters, we encourage people to
SAVE so that they can begin INVESTING

It‟s very sad to see that we are a nation of consumers.

Many of us enjoy buying stuff and not manufacturing
anything at all. The only way we can start manufacturing
things is when we have money. If no money is saved, no
start-up investment will ever be available.

It seems absurd to me that the average Zambian has less

than ZMW10,000.00 to their name. It is impossible to
save money if you are living hand to mouth. How can
you save or invest if you don‟t have any money?

3. Fights Over Money in the Home Becomes

Normal
Romance is reduced in a home when a couple is living
hand to mouth.

Instead of talking about how beautiful your wife is, you will
find yourself talking about how to solve problems that
arise after the salary is finished.

The bedroom suddenly turns into a board room for

discussing stressful financial matters.

When there is no money in the house tempers can easily be

aroused. A simple request for money for a school trip can

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 suddenly turn into a serious debate which can later lead to
serious political turmoil in the house if there is no money.

The joy in the home is reduced due to frequent calls from

creditors as a result of massive borrowings that come
about as a result of solving short term emergencies.

4. You will Have No Money to Grow Your Asset

Base
Haven‟t you ever wondered why some people seem to be
progressing faster than others when in fact they are getting
the same salary?

The reason why one person will become wealthier than the
other is that one who buys more assets will progress faster
in life than a person who only buys liabilities.

Living a hand to mouth lifestyle will cause you to have no

money to buy any assets at all.

I have discussed the difference between an asset and a liability in my

book entitled „The ZANGENA 10 commandments.‟ You can refer
to it should you need any more information about the same.

5. When You Are Fired From Work, Living Becomes

a Nightmare
Your job is not a stable thing because it can end at any
time and there is no guarantee of getting a salary every
month. A job is certainly not something you‟re “owed.”

In other words, I‟m saying, the workplace is not safe

anymore. You can be fired anytime or your employment
contract may be terminated or not renewed.

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 We have all heard of companies closing. I am sure we
know what downsizing is by now.

Living a hand to mouth lifestyle will cause you to live a

miserable life after losing a job because there will be no
money to spend when the job is over.

Somebody said, „some people are only one month rich‟

Just imagine life without receiving a salary for a month or

two. How would you survive?

How would you take care of your children, pay for rentals,
and pay for water and electricity bills?

Do you have a plan for this or maybe you have left

everything into the hands of God?

6. Leads to Money Stress Which Develops Into

Health Problems
Do you know that it‟s easy to tell if a person is broke?

Some become short-tempered, some quiet and some low in

spirit.

Money has the power to affect a person‟s emotions.

Stress over money matters may lead to clinical depression,

suicidal thoughts, high blood pressure and even behaviours
which are not acceptable in society.

Constant stress from financial problems that come as a

result of living a hand to mouth lifestyle can lead to
persistent anxiety and interfere with a person‟s ability to
enjoy life and connect with others.

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 If you want to live long on earth, breaking the hand to
mouth cycle is the way to go.

7. You Will Retire Poor

The energy you have today will not be there forever. There
will come a time when you‟ll have to stop working.

How are you going to survive when you retire?

Living a hand to mouth lifestyle will cause you to live a

poor life during retirement.

I feel pity for those elderly people who had put all their
hopes into the National pension scheme (NAPSA) only to
realize that the money they so much budgeted for will
either be given to them in part or will be delayed due to the
challenges being faced economically.

You need to reach a point when you retire where a

payment from NAPSA does not matter whether it comes
or not. A point where you can be okay whether NAPSA
pays you or not.

8. You will Teach Your Children to Live the Same

Way
Your children do not learn much from what you say but
what you do. The way you are living your life is a clear
example of a normal way of doing things.

If you continue living hand to mouth, your children will

begin to think that it‟s a normal way of life and will follow
suit.

What legacy do you want to live for your children?

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 What do you want them to remember you for?

A parent who was financially wise or someone they never

wish to imitate?

9. You Cannot Invest Money in Yourself

It will practically be impossible to upgrade your credentials
if you are living hand to mouth.

It is okay to start small but is not

acceptable to remain that way –
Jones Chipeta

While you are living hand to mouth, other people are busy
upgrading themselves through further education and
upgrading of their money-making skill sets.

Make it a deliberate policy to invest in yourself. Learn a new

computer program. Read a book, develop a new skill; just
do something which will make you become better than you
are now.

10. You Will Be Stuck At Your Job Longer

It‟s going to be difficult to quit your job or pursue an
entrepreneurial venture when your financial situation is
weak.

When you start working on breaking the hand to mouth

cycle, you will discover that certain useful skills and
knowledge will be developed in you which can be very
beneficial when your working days are over.

One of the skills you will develop is the habit of growing

your asset base.

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 If your asset base is weak, you will work in that job forever.

11. Early Payment Discounts and Cash Opportunities

There are always discounts that are given if you pay with
cash instead of credit. If it‟s not a discount, there will
always be someone who has an emergency and is selling
something at a giveaway price.

You will not be able to take advantage of some of these

lucrative opportunities if you are living the hand to mouth
cycle.

I bought a plot worth k40,000 at only k10,000 simply

because someone was desperate.

Never live a life of being completely broke. Keep some

lose money to take advantage of such things.

12. May Cause You to Demonize People

While you are living hand to mouth, other people are
realizing the grave effects of this lifestyle and are making
adjustments. Sooner or later, they will become better than
you.

If you are not careful, you may find people getting

successful while you remain at the same level. When this
happens, many people start demonizing those who are
doing fine calling them all sort of names „Balayumfwa‟ or
„they are using juju‟ instead of just learning from them.

While you still have the time, energy and money; start
making a plan to come out of the ZANGENA hand to
mouth cycle.

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13. It Turns You into a Perpetual Borrower
Living hand to mouth causes you to spend every money
you receive on consumption thereby making you to
become a perpetual borrow. What would you do if mealie
meal finished on the 15th?

You can‟t stay hungry right.

The only option is borrowing to survive. Borrowing to buy

food is a clear indication that you are not managing your
money properly.

A perpetual borrower is someone who lives the rest of

their life paying off debts. Such people keep on clearing
one debt after the other and are never debt-free in their
entire life on earth.

Living this lifestyle is a cage. You cannot invest or save

money if you are living a life of paying off debts.

14. It Destabilizes Your Spiritual Life Causing You to

Start Seeking Shortcuts
You may become unstable and start searching for short-
cuts to making money such as miracle money or getting
involved in satanic activities (such as ritual killings) for the
sake of survival.

You may end up compromising and sleeping with people

for money and for the sake of making ends meet.

I was counselling a young lady early this year who was

living with parents who has a hand to mouth lifestyle. They
had no extra money to support this girl with her „girlish‟
needs. In no time, she became involved with the wrong

36
company of friends who encouraged her to start offering
her body for money.

I do not support such type of behaviour but what I am

saying is that certain things can be avoided if the hand to
mouth lifestyle can be short-circuited.

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38
 For orders contact +260969 293078

PDF k50.00

Print Version k100.00+Transport/Shipping

39
 Jones Chipeta is a Zambian businessman,
investor, self-help author, educator, financial
commentator, and radio/TV personality.

Mr Chipeta is the founder of the Money and Business matters

consultancy firm, a private financial education company that
provides personal finance and business education to people
through books, videos, seminars, blogs, coaching, and
workshops.

He is also the creator of The ZANGENA ladder, The

ZANGENA 10 commandments and the ZANGENA
mentorship programs that help adults and children to
assimilate finance and business concepts in an easy to
understand manner.

Jones Chipeta is the author of more than 6 books, including

the bestselling personal finance book entitled ZANGENA-
Managing your salary wisely.

Jones Chipeta is known for simplifying complex concepts and

ideas related to business, investing and finance. Jones believes
that the best way to take care of your money and business
matters is first to break the hand to mouth lifestyle and then
create an asset that will bring forth money to use for investing.

40
As An advocate for financial education, Jones Chipeta has
stressed that the importance of entrepreneurship, business
education, and investing and comprehensive financial literacy
concepts should be taught in schools and employees around
the world.

Jones Chipeta also operates his own blog, acts as a principal

host on his YouTube Channel called Money and business
matters Channel, radio show called the 1 hour of money and
business matters and maintains a monthly interactions on
social media talking about his business endeavours and his
views on the global economy, investing, business, personal
development and personal finance

41
Other Books by the same author
1. ZANGENA

How to manage your salary wisely to achieve great things

2. NO MONEY NO EXCUSE

The ZANGENA 7 step process of how to start a business

even when you don‟t have capital

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3. MORE MONEY; NO FIGHTS

22 mistakes couples make and how you can avoid them

4. 200 BUSINESS IDEAS

Real businesses you can start in Zambia whether you have

limited capital or no business experience

43
5. WHY SMALL BUSINESS FAIL

Top 10 reasons why 95% of small business fail and you can
avoid yours from being one of them

6. THE ZANGENA 10 COMMANDMENTS

The money management laws I wish I knew when I got my

first Job

44
7. How to make an extra ZMW10,000.00

8. The ZANGENA ladder

The Financial plan to end poverty and break the hand to

mouth cycle

45
Do you need coaching and mentorship in the following areas?

1. How to make your first extra ZMW10,000.00

2. How to create a financial plan using the ZANGENA ladder

3. Kindle Publishing Business

4. Mobile money business

5. Broiler chickens business

6.How to start and run a Private school

7. How to write and publish a book

Well, you can get in touch with Mr ZANGENA for a

personalized mentorship and coaching programs.

What you will get from the coaching and mentorship sessions:

1. One Hour calls every week from Mr Zangena

2. Connections to Mr Zangena‟s inner circle and contacts
3. Access to Mr Zangena‟s recommended Budgets for running these
type businesses
4. You will be able to ask Mr Zangena any questions of your choice
5. All his books (Except the „How to make your first
ZMW10,000‟ and „The Zangena Ladder‟ will be given to you
for free in pdf format
6. You will be admitted into Mr Zangena‟s money and business
matters events for free
7. Mr Zangena will automatically become your accountability
partner

46
8. Mr Zangena will give you personalized strategies to start and
run your business
9. You will Join M & B mastermind group (We Meet once every
month to discuss money and business matters)
10. You will be admitted to my secret Facebook group where you can
find similar minded people.

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