

It’ll show you that you may want to save money on your cell phone bill or cut out some infrequently-used streaming services.

You won’t be able to hide behind your credit card bill anymore. No one said budgeting was rocket science.Ī big part of that is that it will show you exactly where you spend your money. A budget helps to mitigate the human brain’s natural tendency to focus on a more immediate reward. We can very easily trick ourselves and rationalize expenses that affect us in the short-term. I know it seems silly and easy, but you have to realize that the brain is very bad at making informed long-term decisions like that. With your budget, you set aside $150 per month and after a year you’ll have $1,800 dedicated to your road trip to Cali. Let’s say that you’ve always wanted to travel to visit Yosemite National Park in California, but you never have enough money to go. It will also allow you to live your dream life. Budgeting lets you make progress towards your goals in a measured reliable way. Importantly, creating a budget will stop you from spending more money than you intended to spend on things that you don’t really care about. You need to follow the instructions to make sure you don’t miss a piece.Ī budget is your set of instructions that you’ll follow to reach your financial goals. You don’t just open the Lego set and look at the picture on the front and start building. The end goal of finishing the Lego is like being able to retire. Think of your financial life like building a Lego set. Whether you are paying a debt or saving for the trip of a lifetime, you must be intentional with your money. You control where it goes and how you spend it.
MINT VS YOU NEED A BUDGET HOW TO
It’s especially important if your financial livelihood requires knowing how to make a business budget! Budgets Give You Power And Freedomīudgeting gives you power over your money. This also applies to business owners or those with a more irregular income. What if I’m rich and make more than I spend? That’s nice, but I don’t care - you still need to know how to budget! “Really, even if I am broke and barely make money, I need a budget?” Yes, you still need to know how to budget! It doesn’t matter if your paycheck is $400 or $4,000, you need to know how to budget! I don’t care if you’re working the graveyard shift at Dollar Tree or work as a corporate lawyer, you still need a budget. But a budget isn’t only for low wage-earners. If you still can’t make ends meet with a tight budget, then it’s a strong signal that you need to find a way to increase your earnings. If you want to provide a better life with your kids without worrying about whether you’ll be able to afford their school supplies, a budget will make it easier for you.ĭoes that mean that a budget will solve all of your money problems? No, but it will help you identify them. If you want to stop wasting money on useless things and learn how to start investing, then a budget will give you that freedom. You need a budget because it’s the easiest thing you can do to have more money. The goal of a budgeting method is to stop yourself from having to ask, “Where did all of my money go?” at the end of the month. This means prioritizing expenses and choosing which ones give you the most satisfaction for every dollar you spend. Even a tight budget can still afford some flexibility!īudgeting is merely creating a saving and spending plan for your money. Budgeting is not about spending as little money as possible or cutting out all “fun” expenses from your daily life. Many people view a budget as a financial ball and chain that prevents you from spending. Simply put, a budget is system or process you use to manage your family’s monthly income and expenses. This post will cover how to make a budget! We are going to walk you step-by-step on how we helped one of our readers make their 1st monthly budget. The other half is making sure you spend wisely and have a monthly budget. That is the secret sauce. Internalize this: Making money is only half the battle. If you can’t seem to save and manage your money when you only have a few thousand dollars, then what makes you think you’ll do a better job with $100,000? Making a bunch of money won’t teach you a thing about managing that money. Look at the athletes who have squandered fortunes, or the lottery winners who have nothing left to show for it after a few years.

There is a widely held view that if you make enough money, all of your money problems will be solved. Today I am going to tell you what a budget is, why you need one, and most importantly, how to make one.īenjamin Franklin famously said, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” And it wouldn’t surprise me if he were talking about money and how to budget. You need to control your money, not let your money control you.
