Financial well-being January 5, 2023 By
To reach your financial goals, you must have a realistic idea of your monthly income and how to adjust your spending and savings based on your desired outcomes.
According to the book, The Millionaire Next Door, almost 60% of millionaires use a budget to manage their money. This shows that success with your finances can start by creating and sticking to a monthly budget. We can't get rich by mindlessly spending all our money!
To help you see where your money is going each month, start with creating a budget (also known as a spending plan). If you find that you are consistently spending more than you make each month, you will need to make some adjustments to your spending.
Here are some common areas that eat away at your money, also known as "Spending Leaks."
- Eating out – try eating leftovers. Staying away from restaurants can literally save you some Benjamins every month!
- Car payments – try getting a good, reliable used older car that you can get around in just fine. Pay cash or apply a sizeable down payment. This will allow you to say goodbye to the average $718 monthly car payment!
- Groceries – Clipping coupons, waiting for sales, or buying store brands can make a huge difference to your monthly food bill. Also, consider splitting a meal with a friend or spouse.
- Utilities – Shut the lights off when you leave a room. Read a book instead of watching TV. Unplug your devices & their chargers when they aren't being used. Small changes can add up to significant results.
- Clothing – We don't need new clothes as often as we think we do. Plan ahead & find deals at garage sales & consignment stores. You can save BIG.
Budgeting is a process that gets better and easier with time. Minor tweaks may need to happen, but these tweaks can help you stop living paycheck to paycheck, and you can spend your money and your life more wisely.
