How to Stick to your Monthly Budget

Monitoring your Budget

If you have created a budget, you have already hurdled the first step towards wiser money management. Now, the more important challenge is to stick to it. If you don’t, your budget will just be meaningless figures on a piece of paper. It will not do anything to help you reach that secure financial future that you have been dreaming of.

One of the crucial aspects towards successfully sticking to your budget is to monitor it. If you’re trying to observe a weekly budget then monitor it weekly. If it’s monthly, then keep track of it monthly. Review your spending and compare it with your budget to check if you have been faithful in observing your financial plan for the past month. If you have—and even have some extra dollars left over which you can add to next month’s budget—then congratulations! You are well on your way towards being financially secure.

But what if you were not able to follow your spending plan? Like many of us, the natural reaction is to simply give up. We immediately think that budgeting is so difficult that we raise our arms in despair and tell ourselves that we’re just not cut out for such a task. However, you are dooming yourself to a life of financial despair if you immediately forego making a budget. Instead, there is a more productive way to face such setbacks.

First, look at the reason why you were not able to stick to it. Perhaps you did not allocate enough. Take note that a budget is not meant to punish you. It is a smart way of fitting your money to your needs, savings, and investments so that you are able to live comfortably now while setting aside funds for the future when you won’t be as productive. When making your budget, make sure that you don’t base on it penny-pinching but rather on what you actually need and a bit more. If you make your budget too tight, you’ll end up reallocating other funds or borrowing from your savings thereby destroying it.

Next, check if you’re getting too caught up in the recording than in the essence of budgeting itself. Sometimes, it’s easy to just keep on listing the things you’ve paid for without really minding where you have placed your money. While keeping track of your expenditures is necessary, don’t equate it with budgeting. It is only one part of it. When you list all your expenses for the day, you must do so with the intention of making sure that you don’t go overboard with your spending

allocations.

If the problem is that you’re getting bogged down by too many categories, try lumping together similar categories into one. This way, you simplify the record-keeping and focus on really following the budget instead of getting caught in the details.

Third, make saving a habit. Even if you have already allocated a certain percentage of your income to savings, try to save a few pennies where you can. It’s not the amount that really matters here. It’s the habitual act of saving that counts. Once you become comfortable saving little amounts, you will be encouraged at setting aside larger sums. When you see your savings grow, budgeting actually becomes more pleasurable.

Finally, make sure that your budget reflects the major changes in your life. Perhaps you acquired a brand new appliance that needs to be paid up each month for up to a year. Or maybe you just got married or had a new addition to the family—whether it’s a child or a new dog. Perhaps you were promoted and were given a raise. All these should be factored in when preparing your budget.

Don’t get tired of reviewing where you went wrong even if you have to do it for a few months at first. Over time, staying within your budget becomes easier as spending wisely and saving for the future comes more naturally.

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