BUDGETING – WHY SHOULD I?

Would you enjoy seeing your money work for you?  or….

keep watching it work for others.

Let’s face it — we know budgeting is a good thing but the majority of us create that sour look as though we have just bit into a lime when we are asked about budgets.  Yes and for some us of it can seem quite painful.  Numbers? Yuck.   However do you want to hear of something more painful?

• How about the fact that you have paid $600.00 or possibly even more in interest this past year to sustain credit cards.
• How about the impulse buy on a new vehicle or motorized toy you cannot afford and each month you wonder how you are going  to make the payment this month (again)
• You have purchased a little too much house and now you cannot afford to buy groceries without credit.
• What about the compound interest you are missing out on because you are not saving?

Come on….add more items that may be relevant as that list is just a simple start.   Sometimes one is fearful of creating a budget because their finances are a mess and they do not want to really know how messy. There are collector calls everyday and you avoid the phone.  It can be scary and sometimes quite overwhelming.  There is always a solution and better to work towards a solution then to keep pretending.

To truly understand what your income and expenses look like, bank statements are great tools for being honest about where you money is going.  Review at least 3 months worth so as to help establish some consistency.  Use these averaged amounts to start your initial budget.  Do not be too concerned about exact amounts at this stage.  You will tweak you budget as you go along and as life changes.

CASH – yes – that’s right – CASH!  As you begin to draw up your budget and learn to live within it, put away your cards- yes all of them. Each week withdraw the amount of cash you need for items that you would use a credit card or debit card to pay for. Cash shows us our true spending habits. Try it for a month and you may even enjoy living on cash.

Provide yourself with no regrets or missed opportunities  for your money to work for you by starting one today.