Budgeting!!!!!!

Do you have a personal budget in place to manage your finances? Creating a personal budget is the key to gaining control of your money. Creating a budget doesn't have to be overwhelming or discouraging. Here are a few tips on creating a personal budget

- Track how much money you have coming in. This is what the entire budget is hinged on. Consider all your sources of income if they bring in steady cash flow. A side hustle? Freelance? Royalty?

- Know your recurring monthly bills and expenses. List out everything you spend money on monthly that is recurring. E.g data plans, cable TV, light bill, transportation, food.... This will help you manage and you’ll be able to see where you need to re-allocate your money.

- Write down your personal finance goals. Make a list of all the financial goals you want to accomplish in the short-and long-term.

- Make a plan. Use the variable and fixed expenses you compiled to help you get a sense of what you’ll spend in the coming months. With your fixed expenses, you can predict fairly accurately how much you’ll have to budget for. Use your past spending habits as a guide when trying to predict your variable expenses.

- Adjust your habits if necessary. If you're in a situation where expenses are higher than income, you should look at your variable expenses to find areas to cut.

- Track, Monitor, and Be Disciplined. Keeping track of your budget takes an hour or so a week. But this will save you a lot of time in the long run. Once you have an established budget, you will want to keep it in check. After the first month take a minute to sit down and compare the actual expenses versus what you had created in the budget. This will show you where you did well and where you may need to improve.


Sample Budget Categories

*Automobile/Transportation
*Childcare
*Charity
*Healthcare
*Gifts
*Entertainment
*Treat myself
*Telecom
*Clothing
*Education
*Household
*Insurance
*Hobbies
*Savings


If you don’t have a budget, now’s the time to create one. Do you have a solid personal budget in place? What has and hasn’t worked for you? Share your best personal budgeting tips in the comments below.

PS: Be realistic with your budget/plan! Set yourself up for success



XoXo