I know, I know...you don't want to hear about it and frankly, I don't want to talk about it. Sure you should definitely have a budget, blah, blah, blah.
However, the reality is that most of us are just plain unwilling to take the hours and dedication necessary to obsessively track expenses and categorize our 500 debit card swipes a month.
So I've come up with a system that works relatively well for me:
BUDGETING FOR LAZY PEOPLE!
Yep! You heard me! Now, this isn't a typical "budget" but more so a way for the rest of us to begin to get a grip on our finances. You have to start somewhere.
The system goes as such:
1. Organize on payday.
You'll want to gather ALL of the mail you've received since your last paycheck. First, get rid of all the junk mail. Next, separate bills from non-bills. Now, take your bills and put them in two stacks:
1) Bills that are due before your next pay-day.
2) Bills that are due after your next pay-day.
The bills that are due after your next pay-day, set aside. You can deal with those next time around. The bills that are due before you get paid next, sort according to their due date. What I do next is to take a sheet of scrap paper, and write down how much money I have in the bank now that I've been paid as well as a quick list of all the bills in my "due now" and the amount that is due. If you are super lucky, you'll be able to pay all your bills and have plenty of money left over until next pay-day. If you are like me, you might have to start making decisions. Some bills will be more flexible than others on the due date or amount you can pay, but at least you have all the info in front of you at once.
2. Pay before you spend!
This is a crucial step in making the Lazy Budget work. Before you've spent even a dime of your paycheck, write out all the bills that are due (if you can, and within reason) and send the checks. Now you know how much you just wrote in checks - subtract that amount from your paycheck. That is the money you have left over to spend on your general living expenses like food and gas until your next pay period. But hey - the bills are paid now!
3. Keep at least kind of tracked as you spend.
Now the rest that is left over after bills is yours to spend. I would highly, highly, highly recommend that you take at least 1/10th of your paycheck each time you get it and have it automatically moved to a savings account, preferably one with a decent interest rate. You'll never get ahead financially if you keep giving your money to other people. You must meet your existing financial obligations of course, but this is the key to building personal wealth. Save a little bit - trust me, you didn't need a new shirt that bad.
Here's an example of what the Lazy Budget looks like:
Give it a try! Let me know if this works for you (or not) in the comments!
Always cheering for you!
No comments:
Post a Comment