Personal Finance: Six platforms that can help you create wealth this year

You're probably looking forward to a fresh start in the new year. And if 2020 threw your finances for a loop, a money-related New Year's resolution might be on your list of ways to improve your life in 2021.

But simply making a resolution doesn't mean you'll be able to keep it. Only about 40 percent of people who make resolutions are still on track to meet them by June. If you want to be in the group that succeeds, you should be prepared for unique challenges.

Financial support systems and platforms that are dedicated to wealth creation are known to help. Here are some platforms you can join to learn about better money management, budgeting, investing, and saving this year. Some charge and others are free. Take a look:

52 Week Savings Challenge

This is a group on Facebook that has a membership of over 400,000 people. The group is dedicated to building a savings culture and maintaining wealth. According to the group's description by founder, moderator, and personal finance coach Felista Wangari, members set financial goals and save money on weekly basis for 52 weeks to achieve these money goals.

"Here, you will share and get helpful ideas, discuss challenges and solutions and generally help yourself and other members reach their financial goals," Felista says in the description.

The group has two savings chart options for this year. You can deposit or save Sh50 or Sh1,500 in week one. Alternatively, one can deposit or save Sh200 per day while monthly savers save Sh6,000 per month. By the end of the year, these basic options will give you between Sh72,000 and Sh78,000. There is an alternative for monthly savers with the option of saving 10 to 30 per cent of one's income. You can also increase your savings in line with your goals. An accountability WhatsApp group exists to support each other to stay the course. Joining this group is free.

Centonomy 101

This platform has training options for personal finance, career, and entrepreneurship. Each package is offered at a fee which is payable in installments. The platform is run by Waceke Nduati Omanga, a personal finance coach and the author of Making Cents. Most of the financial training on offer will begin in February this year. The personal financial management online training has 12 modules that are covered in 12 weeks. One class is attended every week for two and a half hours. This course costs Sh40,000. The platform has additional training courses for career development and entrepreneurship. These cost Sh23,850 and Sh53,100. Centonomy is also running a personal finance programme for the youth aged 17 to 24 years at a fee of Sh15,300.

The benefits of these trainings include business mentorship, income, and debt management, and retirement planning. The courses are certified by the National Industrial Training Authority.

Young Nairobi Stock Exchange Investors

This is a Facebook group that is dedicated to learning how to invest and investing in shares at the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Some of the discussions you are likely to encounter in this group include investors' experiences on the best and worst stockbrokers in the market, companies paying dividends, and the best shares to buy, sell and hold. The group periodically holds workshops and members are trained on the basics of investing, opening trading accounts, and trading online by themselves.

Market Cap

This is a platform that offers both face to face and online wealth creation coaching. The platform mainly focuses on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, Treasury Bills and Bonds, Sacco's, Crypto Currencies, and the Money Market Funds. "We aim to interact and develop a diversified approach towards wealth creation," says George Mangeni, the founder. This platform charges Sh5,000 for beginners. Investment recommendations and follow-ups are not charged.

Money Sense

This is a financial market investment training platform that runs on WhatsApp. You will learn how to build an investment portfolio and know what to look out for before investing your money in any asset. Members are charged between Sh3,500 and Sh35,000 for the ten months of training. The programme for this year will begin on February 1st and conclude on November 30th. "You will first understand where you stand financially, the principles that govern money management, then scale to an evaluation of the investment opportunities in the financial markets that you can tap to create wealth," says Michael David, the founder.

Abojani Finance Masterclass

This platform is phone-based. You can access it via WhatsApp, email, or zoom. It specialises in personal finance principles such as budgeting, investing offshore, and planning for retirement, and personal financial modeling. It charges between Sh3,000 and Sh5,000. The offshore package is aimed at exposing people to foreign investment options such as stocks in foreign companies like Amazon, Apple, and Zoom. "We are also exposing people to the world of Crypto Currencies and the possibilities of blockchain," says Robert Ochieng' the founder.