Hide the Money
The first thing you need to do is calculate how much money you need from each paycheck to take care of all your monthly bills. Add up all of your payments for the month and divide that amount by how often you get paid. For example, if you get paid every two weeks, divide the total by two. Once you’ve done the math, you now know how much you have to set aside from each paycheck. Take that amount right away and put it aside (if you use cash) or put it in your checking account (if you have one). It’s easier not to spend your bill money if you don’t see it.
Budget With Your Wallet
What’s left from your paycheck is the cash for all of your other purchases. Give yourself a set amount of money to use for gas, groceries, entertainment and miscellaneous buys and don’t let yourself pull out a credit card or dip into the bill money if you run out. This is a great method for people who need visual reminders. When you can physically see your money dwindling down and feel your wallet growing smaller every day, it signals you to slow down on spending. Practicing this tactic will result in fewer buys that you really didn’t need and force you to sacrifice short term gratification for long term happiness.
Keep A Log
A more hands-on approach to fixing your financial life is to track your spending habits if you don’t already. Keep a daily log for one month and log every single purchase you make, including bills, food, gas and less common expenses such as birthday gifts. Organize all of your spending into different categories and take a long hard look at where your money is going. If you do this for a month, it will allow you to easily point out where you may be overspending.
Don’t Let An Emergency Bust The Budget
No matter how much you budget your money, emergency situations are bound to arise. Cars break down, medical issues happen and appliances need repairs but it is important not to miss monthly payments because of these situations. Doing so can take a huge toll on your credit score and make in extremely difficult to get approved for credit in the future. If you need funds for an emergency, a better option would be to look into auto title loans. These are loans that use the money you’ve put into your vehicle to get you approved. Getting one of these loans is much easier than trying to fix your credit later. The folks at Embassy Loans have a lot of experience at getting you through this kind of emergency, without busting the budget. For more information on auto title loans, give them a call at 833-839-2274 or fill out the online form on this page.