If you are not budgeting your money, you’re allowing unnecessary debt into your life and making it next to impossible to save for the future. But how can we effectively budget to cover all of our costs while still saving? What technology is available to help us along the way? Follow these steps to make a budget and control your spending habits.
Keep your Budget on you
Unless you have a remarkable memory, you
will need to carry a hard copy of your budget with you. What better resource to
have than your smartphone? Create a new note and keep your budget with you in a
device you already use on a daily basis. That way, when that new graphics card
or tablet is calling your name, you will be able to refer directly to your
budget to see what you might be able to move around to make the purchase. If
you can make a sacrifice the following month to make your purchase now, perhaps
you can pull the purchase off. It will be your decision to make, but you’ll be
able to make the best decision possible having your budget at your fingertips.
Calculate
Just as important as having your budget on
hand, you need to use a calculator when out shopping. Luckily, your smartphone
doubles as a calculator, so you don’t need to make an additional purchase. Your
daily errands, such as dry cleaning and grocery shopping, can derail your
budgeting plans quickly if you do not keep them in check. As you move
throughout the store, keep a cumulative total of the cost of your items. If you
exceed your weekly budget, you’ll know pretty quickly. It’s perfectly acceptable
to purchase more one week if you’re taking advantage of sale prices, but you
must document the additional purchases so as to not go off budget the following
week.
There’s an App for That
Whether you’re one of the Apple-faithful,
or live and die by the Droid, there are personal finance apps
available for you to utilize. These intuitive applications can do almost all of
your budgeting for you. Most require you to input your bank account information
to their secured application, which then tracks every purchase made through the
specific account. These apps even allow you to create sub-categories to help
you better organize the types of purchases you are making. Install the right
personal finance app for you and begin planning for your future.
Budget Weekly
It will be imperative that you read through
your budget every week. You need to make decisions as to whether or not your
budget is realistic. If you exceed your limits in one category on a regular
basis, you may need to readjust the amount you’ve budgeted for that area.
Unless you anticipate your income adjusting to meet the difference, you will
have to make sacrifices in other areas to cover your spending.
Plan Ahead, Budget Accordingly
Go through your calendar for the upcoming
month and take note of any special events you have planned. Dinner with your
spouse, a concert, and any other pre-planned event should be added to your
budget for the month. If you know you have an event coming up beyond the
current month, reduce your monthly spending for the event. You can plan for
vacations, home improvement projects, and landscaping projects simply by
planning for the future.
Fall-back Funds
Lastly, begin preparing for unexpected
expenses. You never know when you’ll need to dip into your funds for an
emergency room visit, new car windshield, or personal computer. Start by saving
up at least $1,000, and build from there. Unfortunately, we cannot predict the
future, and the only way to help yourself with those unforeseen expenses is to
prepare for the unknown.
About the author:
Melanie Gomez is a Staff Writer for TechBreach.
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Lifestyle