I was picking up groceries on my way home from work when I realized I was out of money. And that's when I noticed I got no eggs. Rather than purchasing groceries and other food items in bulk, my family buys them on a regular basis. This is due to the fact that, although purchasing in bulk can result in long-term financial savings, doing so in my family leads to waste. We could finish a month's worth of groceries in only one week if we know we have them. Since eggs were on my grocery list, I wanted to acquire four for what I planned to bake. In my neighborhood, there is a business that sells dairy items and offers discounted eggs. When I got there, I asked the woman selling the eggs to give me four. The owner was strolling around with one of his ear pods in his ear. He was there in front of me when I said, "Let me transfer you the money for the four eggs." Ultimately, the account that the saleswoman provides to customers who wish to use mobile banking is his. However, she informed me that he won't accept a transfer for merely four eggs. It was then that I lost my temper. Normally I don't get upset easily, but this really got to me.
It makes sense why some find it simpler to make offensive remarks about other people in comments than in person. The fact that it was completely dark behind me allowed me to say whatever I wanted to say, even though it wasn't so dark that he wouldn't see me because he could see me clearly thanks to the candle. I added, "Forget it; I'm not buying." You obviously don't appreciate your customers. After I had calmed down and had given the whole incident some attention, I felt as though maybe I had exaggerated everything. The part of me that enjoys giving people the benefit of the doubt speculated that they might have been considering providing me the eggs on credit, in which case I would bring the cash the following day, or they might have asked me to transfer ETB100 and were going to return the change. In any event, I was not pleased with how they treated me. I frequently purchase items from them. Possibly, since I found the guy conceited and haughty, my prejudice against him may have overcome me. I get that vibe every time I see him; however, it's possible he's not like that at all. Naturally, his admission that he rejected the transfer just served to support my theory.
Based on my observations and additional deductions, my theory about how he became wealthy is that he arrived from the country side and established his business here. Although I am fully conscious of my judgment at this point, I have heard him talk with an accent on the phone a few times. He now believes that he is too wealthy to take ETB40. "Take care of the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves" is a proverb that only the wealthy may truly grasp. People such as me squander pennies as if they were worthless, no wonder why I am not rich.
The Amharic proverb ‘ye maylflet deha habtam yegabzal’—which means a person who isn't hopeful about becoming wealthy spends his money treating others who are already in a better financial position than him—perfectly captures my predicament. This is accurate for a lot of individuals, in my experience. While those without money spend like they have it, while those who are wealthy don't spend much or spend what they have on assets or things that increase their wealth. I was almost certain the owner of the diary place wasn't exactly floating in money wealthily. Had that been the case, I never would have seen him double-checking the quantity of goods he sold each night at his business. I doubt that, if I were a billionaire, I would spend hours in one of my stores assessing and monitoring the balance because I would either be enjoying life and giving other people the responsibility or I would be too preoccupied with something else.
My initial idea, aside from never buying from him and boycotting his store because I can be vindictive at times, was to put him out of business by starting a comparable company and selling the things he sells—if not all of them, then at least one or two items—for an absurdly low price. That ought to instill in him the value of not demeaning others. I've heard it said a lot: people who come from wealthy families aren't snobbish; instead, show-offs and people who look down on others are typically those who didn't start at the top. That may be a stereotype, but in certain cases, it is accurate.
Even though a lot of people use mobile payments these days, some people still don't understand them. I experienced it twice. I once bought stuff from a store and offered to pay with telebirr because I didn't have any cash on me. The man told me to send ETB100 birr or he won't be able to take it out. I had originally intended to send him ETB100, but I quickly realized that when he went to take out the money, it wouldn't be just for my ETB60; it would mount up, especially since another guy was using Telebirr to pay while I was standing there. Therefore, why should I go out of my way to send him ETB100 when I could have just sent the precise amount I paid for the item?
The second incident took place at a ride-hailing business. The driver said that he would have canceled the request if he had known he would be paid in Telebirr after I told him I had reached my location and was going to transfer the money to him. He continued to think that way even though he saw traveling with kids were difficult. Because after I left the house, it would have been inconvenient for me to find another ride. Considering that he chose the longest way and it took him forever to get to my destination, he had the guts to say that to me. I don't think many people understand that, regardless of the amount, digital money is still money.
Vendors shouldn't be alarmed by my decision to use mobile banking or any other handy digital financial payment option as long as I make the payment. Retaining clients who prefer digital transactions over cash payments would be difficult unless suppliers fully set aside their bias towards digital payment.
It is up to both private and government financial institutions to ponder on it and act to heighten the level of financial literacy among certain social groups so that people can enjoy the ease of doing business, making transactions and many more. Since 70 percent of the global economy is expected to go digital consuming online techs in the coming six years, according to World Economic Forum, and this trend has even been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the tendency to shy away from digital trading, marketing, transaction and the like systems would not pay off.