u/Pretty_Change_8147

24M here. Just wanted to share this as a simple appreciation post and maybe makatulong din sa mga nagsisimula pa lang mag-work.

I’ve been working for 2 years and 9 months.

My take-home pay started at ₱14,800/month, then eventually went up to ₱19,800, and later ₱24,800.

For the first 1 year and 6 months, sobrang tipid talaga ako because mababa pa yung income. The good thing was WFH and hindi rin masyadong mabigat yung trabaho, so I was able to save consistently without feeling completely deprived.

As of now, I have roughly:

• ₱148,837 in savings/investments/accounts
• ₱82,000 motor, fully paid
• ₱0 debt

I also started putting money into MP2, which is currently around ₱65k.

Recently, kaka-resign ko lang sa work.

Hindi siya biglaang decision. Since last year ko pa siya pinag-iisipan because I felt that there was already little to no salary increase, limited growth, and not much room for career progression.

I decided that staying longer just because I was comfortable wasn't necessarily the best move for me.

So ngayon, nasa phase ako na:

applying for jobs + upskilling + looking for side income/projects.

Medyo uncertain yung next step, pero at least I have some savings to give myself breathing room while figuring things out.

Looking back, I think the biggest thing that helped me wasn't having a high salary. It was simply learning how to live below my means and save consistently, especially during the years when I was only earning around ₱15k–₱20k.

I'm still far from financially independent, and I definitely have a lot more to learn about investing, increasing income, and managing money properly. But I'm grateful that at 24, I already have something built.

Not posting this to brag. Honestly, I'm just happy seeing that the small sacrifices and pagtitipid during my early working years actually added up.

And maybe this can also remind someone who's currently earning a small salary that you don't have to earn a lot immediately to start building something.

One step at a time.

For those who have been through something similar:

Was leaving a stagnant job worth it for you, and what did you do during the transition period—upskilling, applying, freelancing, or starting a side hustle?