5 Hacks to Create a Budget You Can Stick To During When You Are Broke
Maybe you’ve tried the whole budgeting thing, and you were even pretty dedicated, but you found yourself unable to create a budget you stick to. Or maybe you didn’t even thought about budgeting until you realize your money is low and you have nothing to show for it.
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Well weather the reason you are in the right place! It could be that nothing you try seems to work and you’re about sick of all this budgeting talk. I know because there are times when I purposely ignore budgeting because I feel to my self it is not possible for me. But it is in fact possible. There always seems to be more bills than money….. can you relate? Today I want to share why your budget isn’t working, and how you can fix this and get on with your life.
5 WAYS TO CREATE A BUDGET YOU CAN STICK TO
1. FACE YOUR FEARS This first tip is very simple. Remember I said I always ignore budgeting this was me not facing my fears. You need to face your fear of finding out where your finances are really at and stop making excuses. You know I am all about the budgeting now and I would not recommend you pay for one of those budgeting apps, it is just not safe and will just cost you money you do not have.
I’m not a money person as crazy as it sounds I can get lost in numbers sometimes. Stop saying budgeting sounds complicated and I’ll figure it out later when I’m older. “I don’t have time, I’m too busy at work”. You’re literally telling me that you’re so busy making money that you don’t have time to manage the money you’re working so hard to earn?
Everyone is busy. If you don’t make time for your money, you’ll just be a hamster on a wheel constantly trying to earn more money in hopes of keeping up with your spending and lifestyle increases. Well you are in great danger! In order to create a budget you can stick to, you need to face your fears.
2. TREAT IT LIKE A BUDGET One of the biggest mistakes people make when budgeting is setting up their budget and treating it like a forecast.
Budgeting requires being proactive in your finances, not passive. Budgeting styles always vary. It is never constant. Prices change and you don’t want to get overwhelmed because right now as a beginner you what your budget looks like now may change 1 month from now. For example: Say you just started budgeting today and this week your budget is $300 for groceries maybe next week it will be $200 because at the end of the day you will realize that some off those groceries can be cut down. Maybe you are use to buying expensive unhealthy snacks and you decided to eat healthier vegetables might be cheaper hence as you change you budget changes.
If you don’t set your budget and then turn on autopilot mode you’ll likely end up frustrated at the end of the month. You painted a picture of how you wanted the month to go, it didn’t go that way, and you feel immediate failure once you realize real life didn’t align with your predictions. At this point, many people give up and think what’s the point anyway? The problem is that although you might always have money in your bank account without a budget, you likely aren’t prioritizing and making your money work for you. You’re simply getting by, which is what causes money stress in the first place, and thus making you consider budgeting.
Download This free Budgeting Planner
CHANGING HOW YOU THINK ABOUT THE BUDGET Changing how you think about budgeting requires changing how you think about your money- as a finite resource. What many people don’t realize is that the feeling of scarcity isn’t necessarily a bad thing. What am I saying? It’s okay to feel scare at first but you will eventually feel better when you are in full control of your hard earn money. Because that feeling of actually living paycheck to paycheck is daunting.
THE SOLUTION!
The feeling of scarcity will either drive you to quit or drive you to make better decisions with your money. Don’t run just yet. If you want to make better decisions, give every dollar a function before the month begins based on your goals. Then, be proactive and ADJUST your budget as money actually comes in and expenses actually go out.
3. MAKE IT REALISTIC If you’re constantly adjusting your budget for overspending in certain areas, you’re probably not being honest with yourself when setting your budget in the first place.
4. START USING CASH I realize that using cash allow me to save way more. Using a credit card allow me to procrastinate because I know the bills isn’t due until a certain time, which put me into more debt. Paying off credit is already a stress especially if you had the money at the time and waited to pay it later. This means the bills keep piling up.
Using cash instead of a debit card is a great way to reduce your spending in areas of your budget you struggle with the most such as food and entertainment. When you use cash you are far less likely to be willing to part with your hard-earned money than when you are swiping your debit card or even credit card. Using cash lets you see exactly how much money you have and makes you become more conscious of your spending. This leads to being more intentional with your money, which is your ultimate goal here! Give it a try and you will see how much your spending will change!
Pro Tip: You can and you should shift your budget around for different stages of life and as your priorities change
5. BE PATIENT WITH YOURSELF If you have been here on this blog for a while you know I always advise you to take things slow and be patient. Changing up your lifestyle so that you can manage your money better is going to be difficult. It’s possible you will not see results immediately but don’t let that discourage you from sticking to your plan! The best thing you can do is to learn from your mistakes and to be more disciplined about your money in your day to day life. I promise you will see results soon and when you do, you will gain so much motivation to keep going. Seeing your hard work pay off is the best and you will actually become addicted to making those results better and better.
Don’t for get to grab my FREE BUDGETING PLANNER before you go. psst you can type in it on your phone 🙂
