Simply Save Podcast | Your living expenses should not be more than 50 percent of your income: Upasana Taku

Entrepreneurs often invest their lifetime’s savings when did decide to take the plunge into the world of start-ups. Betting their – and at times their families’ savings – can lead to  disastrous consequences if their venture fails to  take off or does not shape up according to their vision.

It’s for times like these that entrepreneurs should make efforts to insulate their individual finances against start-up-related uncertainties. Having a contingency fund that can take care of your living expenses until your start-up picks up pace is a must, says Upasana Taku, Co-Founder, Mobikwik.

Before she ventured into the start-up space, Taku worked in the US, and saved diligently, ensure that she stuck to her budget and her living expenses did not exceed 40-50 percent of her post-tax salary. “I invested in bank deposits and other instruments, mutual funds, stocks and a little bit in start-ups floated by friends,” she says. Her savings kitty came in handy when she came back to India and decided to launch Mobikwik.

However, what Taku did not have when she was in the process of setting up Mobikwik operations was an individual health insurance cover. While she was fortunate that the period was uneventful in terms of health, she acknowledges that it is important to have a separate health insurance cover in place.

In a conversation with Preeti Kulkarni, Taku shares her journey prior to becoming an entrepreneur, how she managed her individual finances and planned her investments to bootstrap Mobikwik. Tune in to this International Women’s Day special episode of Simply Save for details.