A job advert highlights annual CTC but says little about variable pay or benefits.
What is missing from the headline? What would you verify before comparing the offers?
3.1 Salary & CTCCard 1 · Big CTC Headline Card 2 · Lower First Payslip Card 3 · Old Tax Advice Card 4 · Relocation Offer
Salary Detective
Your first fictional net pay is lower than you expected.
Do not jump straight to “payroll made a mistake.” What would you reconcile first?
A friend quotes a tax/PF number from two years ago.
What part could be stale? Where would you verify the current rule?
One offer pays more but requires higher rent and commuting costs.
What changes when you compare usable income with the cost of living around the job?
3.2 Emergency & RiskCard 5 · One Month Without Income Card 6 · Highest Return Card 7 · Insurance Claim Card 8 · Planned Laptop
Liquidity & Protection
Income stops unexpectedly for one month, but rent, food and transport continue.
Which bucket is meant for this—and what happens if that bucket is empty?
A friend says all emergency money should go into the highest-return option available.
What could go wrong if the money is hard to access or falls in value when you need it?
Someone says “Insurance always pays for every medical cost.”
What exclusions, limits or conditions would you verify before relying on that statement?
You expect to replace a laptop in 18 months.
Emergency, planned/sinking goal, insurance, or long-term investment?
3.3 Credit & DebtCard 9 · ₹1 Lakh Limit Card 10 · Low EMI Card 11 · Score Myth Card 12 · Borrow to Invest
Debt Cost Detective
Your card shows ₹1,00,000 available credit.
How much of that ₹1,00,000 is actually income? What does the limit really represent?
Option B has a smaller monthly payment than Option A but runs much longer.
Ignore the smaller EMI for a moment. What is the total repayment, tenure and cost?
“Paying one bill on time adds exactly 50 points to every credit score.”
Why should you distrust any exact score-change promise?
A friend wants to take expensive consumer debt to chase a speculative return.
You would be locking in a borrowing cost to chase an uncertain return. What risks are being mixed together?
3.4 Mutual Funds & SIPsCard 13 · Guaranteed SIP Card 14 · Past Returns Card 15 · Diversification Card 16 · Emergency Money
Investment Claims Court
No fund, platform or product recommendations.
“A SIP guarantees profit because you invest every month.”
What kind of claim is this? Rewrite it without the guarantee.
“This fund returned 18% last year, so it will return 18% next year.”
Which assumption turns last year into a prediction about next year?
“Diversification removes all investment risk.”
What can diversification reduce—and what can it never remove?
You are considering putting all emergency reserves into a volatile long-term investment.
Which job is this money supposed to do, and does this choice match that job?