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Personal Finance – managing your money smartly as a teenager (Part 2)

The greatest moment to start pursuing financial stability is right now, so you may realize all of your goals in life and have a promising future.

A few weeks ago, I started writing to you about the essence of spending your money intelligently and wisely, regardless of your level of income as a teenager. I hope you have started implementing the four tips I gave in the last post, and found them helpful. Just incase you missed it, I would advice you read it up via the link below: https://www.tgfgnetwork.org/%ef%bb%bfpersonal-finance-managing-your-money-smartly-as-a-teenager/


The greatest moment to start pursuing financial stability is right now, so you may realize all of your goals in life and have a promising future.

As promised in the last post, below are a few more tips to help manage your money wisely and gain financial stability as a teenager.

5. Avoid Impulse Spending: Most times when you have more than enough money as a teenager, you tend to spend on things that really do not matter. Temptations like wearing the latest shoes and clothes and following trends will come up, make sure you’re not influenced by the things you do not need. It is better if you only buy the necessary things and that will last, because sooner or later, trends will vanish. Another hack is to always try to take just the exact amount that you have budgeted whenever you go shopping; having your credit cards can spur you to buy things you didn’t plan.

6. Don’t give in to Peer Influence: Never let other people’s actions affect your financial decisions, and never let other people tell you what to do with your money. In most cases, it is much better if you go shopping with your parents instead of your friends, though this may sound ridiculous. Temptation is your biggest enemy, if you’re not careful, you may succumb to peer pressure from friends and purchase stuff you hadn’t intended to. Most importantly, always have a list of the things you need before you go shopping with or without someone.


Never let other people’s actions affect your financial decisions, and never let other people tell you what to do with your money.

7. Keep Track of Your Spending: You must keep account of everything that you spend money on. Look over your previous spending to find the things you should cut off.Check your list to see if there are any purchases you made that you didn’t really need and cross them off.

8. Reward Yourself: Although it may seem counterintuitive, concentrating too much on your budget might sometimes be detrimental. It occasionally could start to feel like a hassle and no one enjoys that sensation, either. Consider rewarding yourself occasionally to maintain your motivation. Even better, you may budget for it in advance and plan ahead so you have something to look forward to. You can reward yourself for a good job with even the littlest things, like buying a snack you like or whatever makes you happy.

In conclusion, as a teenager, good money management is a skill that you should cultivate and practice, just like any other skill. If you can follow all of these tips consistently, you will save yourself a lot in the future. The greatest moment to start pursuing financial stability is right now, so you may realize all of your goals in life and have a promising future.

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Board of Trustees

Dr. Waheed Awonuga

Member, Board of Trustees

Waheed Oyetola Awonuga is a trained Medical Doctor with five years of ongoing practice experience, specialising in Family Medicine. He is also an entrepreneur with a knack for developing ideas that are not only bankable but profitable.

Waheed attended Santa Maria Private School in Mushin and Government College Ikorodu. He holds a Diploma in Data Processing from Olabisi Onabanjo University and completed his medical education at the University of Sierra Leone, graduating with MBChB (Medicine and Surgery). He passed the West African College of Physicians Primaries Examination at UCH, Ibadan.

Waheed is an alumnus of the Young Africa Leadership Initiative (YALI), Africa Cohort 2. He owns Infinity Creative Media, a media consultancy firm in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and Infinity Print House, a general print firm also based in Sierra Leone.

Waheed is an avid reader and writer who enjoys travelling and spending time with his family.

Management Team​

Hon. Tobi Olatunji

Executive Director

Hon. Tobi Olatunji serves as Executive Director of Teens Going for Gold Network, providing strategic leadership across TGFGN’s programmes and institutional partnerships.

He oversees programme delivery across all five active states and drives the organisation’s evolution into an institutional peace education body, ensuring that TGFGN’s work remains responsive to the complex social realities facing Nigerian youth today.

Management Team​

Ola Olaoluwa

Co-Founder

Olawumi Olaoluwa is a graduate from the Economics department of the University of Benin, Nigeria. He is also the Creative Director of JOSEL kolektionz, a clothing line.

Vocationally, he is a writer, content developer, actor, and leadership enthusiast. One of the pioneer volunteers of Teens Going for Gold Network, Olawumi has over five years of experience in teen mentoring and coaching. He currently serves as Director of Human Resources.

In his own words: “The opportunity Teens Going for Gold Network presents me with to impact teenagers with qualitative and sustainable education is the main attraction the organisation holds for me.”

Board of Trustees

Dr. Mala Mustapha

Member, Board of Trustees

Dr. Mala Mustapha is an academic and development professional with deep expertise in conflict resolution, peacebuilding, and institutional governance.

His scholarly and practitioner experience spans multiple Nigerian states and regional contexts, providing TGFGN with critical insight into the structural dimensions of peace and security in Northern Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin region.

Board of Trustees

Idayat Hassan

Chair, Board of Trustees

Idayat Hassan is a leading expert in security, governance, and democracy in West Africa. She serves as the Director of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), one of the region’s foremost policy research and advocacy organisations.

Her work spans election monitoring, conflict prevention, and democratic institution building across Nigeria and the broader West African sub-region. She brings decades of governance expertise to TGFGN’s Board of Trustees.

Management Team​

Godsgift Chayil Obi

DEPUTY DIRECTOR

Godsgift Chayil Obi serves as Deputy Director of Teens Going for Gold Network, supporting organisational management, programme coordination, and operational delivery.

In this role, she works closely with the Executive Director and management team to ensure that TGFGN’s programmes achieve their intended impact across all active states, maintaining the quality and consistency of delivery that has defined the organisation’s 12-year track record.

Board of Trustees

Dele Olomide​

Member, Board of Trustees

‘Dele Olomide currently leads the Human Resources and Admin function of Clarke Energy Nigeria, the largest authorised distributor and service partner for Jenbacher gas engines and a leading brand in the power and utility sector in Nigeria. His interests are Leadership Development, People Development (Coaching and Mentoring), Organisational Development and Change, Strategy and Growth.

‘Dele is an HR professional with approximately 10 years of generalist experience spanning Manufacturing, IT, Gaming and Energy. He is also an Associate Pastor with El-Shaddai Covenant Church, Lagos. Before now, he has worked with two multinationals, three start-ups, and a Secondary School.

He graduated from the University of Ilorin where he studied Mathematics/Statistics and holds an MBA in Marketing Management. He is an Associate Member of the Nigerian Institute of Training and Development and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management.

Board of Trustees

Adedolapo Osuntuyi

Member, Board of Trustees

Adedolapo Osuntuyi is a children and education advocate. She is the founder of Dolly Children Foundation, a nonprofit organisation that equips the African Child to adopt twenty-first-century skills through education, capacity building and advocacy programmes.

Inspired by her upbringing, she has a passion for empowering and creating equal opportunities for children from low-income backgrounds. Dolapo has developed organisational strategy and management processes in the Foundation that have impacted over 22,000 children in 25 communities in four states.

Dolapo has over a decade of experience in child protection, early childhood and community development programmes. A graduate of Botany from Lagos State University, she also holds a master’s degree in Child Health and Social Care from the University of Central Lancashire, Preston, United Kingdom.

In 2015, she received an Africa-America Institute Scholarship to study Social Sector Management at the Enterprise Development Centre, Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria.

Board of Trustees

Adebanke Ilori Oyeniyi

Secretary, Board of Trustees

Adebanke Ilori Oyeniyi is a lawyer and development professional. Her professional experience spans across politics, inclusive governance, and legislative reforms. She serves as the Executive Director of Raising New Voices Initiative and as the Managing Editor of Lawyard, a platform for interactions around the practice of law in Nigeria.

In 2019, Adebanke led New Voices to conduct the national #BreakTheHold campaign providing resources to competent young people under 35 contesting to be members of the Federal House of Representatives. As a woman in politics, she was appointed as the National Publicity Secretary of Kowa Party — making her the youngest female to occupy the position in Nigeria.

As an advocate for social equality, she has championed the right of prison inmates to education in line with the UN Minimum Standard Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, and has worked for the implementation of laws to promote the rights of children and prevention of violence against persons.

As a Pan African, she has facilitated extensive deliberations at the African Union on the importance of youth integration in the actualisation of Agenda 2063.

Adebanke holds a bachelor’s degree in law from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, a Certificate in Public Management from Bridgewater State University, Massachusetts, and is pursuing her Master’s in International Development and Policy at the University of Chicago. She is a 2019 Mandela Washington Fellow.