A great place to begin to take charge of your finances is with a budget. I know, it’s a bit like a diet – a budget will limit you from enjoying all the things you love.

Did you know?

A budget will help you:

• Decrease your stress levels
• Manage your money and take charge of it
• Identify where your money is going
• Plan ahead
• Prioritize your spending
• Adapt quickly as things change
• Achieve your financial goals
• Keep a healthy credit score

A budget is:

• The process of creating a plan to spend your money ie a spending plan
• An estimate of income & expenses for a set period of time
• Based on:

– What happened the same time last period
– What is likely to happen in the next coming period

Why you might be avoiding doing it:

• It’s all too hard
• It takes a lot of time
• I don’t know how to
• I don’t need it, I know enough
• It’s hopeless, I don’t have enough money, I’m in debt

To create your budget you will need:

• A spreadsheet, an app, or a piece of paper and something to write with.
• Previous bank statements – my suggestion is  6-12 months – this will prompt you of when things are usually paid especially annual bills that are often overlooked eg I used to forget to factor in my Norton subscription and my website hosting and when times are tight these can throw your plans out.
• Some dedicated time to start with – if you can’t face it all in one hit, break it down into smaller chunks (and remember to celebrate each step completed!).
• Regular monitoring of your budget – it’s a working document, a plan, and it’s not set in concrete and it is okay to tweak it.

With a budget in place, and using it, you will experience life very differently. A life that includes freedom from money worries, seeing your debt go down and with money to spare, the kind of freedom that comes from being in control of your money, not controlled by it. Now that’s living life your way!

Take the plunge. Get your finances on track. Contact me to see how working with a life coach can help your financial success.