Today, I want to share with you the importance of having a budget and staying within that budget.
First of all I want to share with you a little of good information.
Growing up, both my parents took care of the money. It was a family business to sit down and understand how much money we had, how much we needed for certain things and how much we would save for specifics.
As I got older my parents included me in the budgeting process, they didn’t sit down with me and said now you are responsible for this.
They started by giving me small responsibilities little at a time….
By the age of 16 I already knew how to balance my own checkbook.
Let me tell you, this is such an important skill…. I believe that every boy and every girl needs to learn how to balance a budget.
A budget is how much comes in (income) how much goes out (expenses).
You can’t have more expenses than income! Simple as that.
Whatever is left over should be saved somewhere.
With this in mind…
I love Dave Ramsey’s philosophy of living a life of cash.
I rather have cash than credit cards.
Dave Ramsey offers Financial Peace University’s class which teaches how to handle your money.
He talks about debt and how to roll out of debt, one bill at a time.
He teaches how to budget so you tell your money where to go….
He teaches how to save….
He teaches how to plan for retirement.
Having a budget is an extremely smart way to deal with your money.
Especially when you are starting out that budget, it can be tight for a while. However, when you start to focus on how you are spending your money, that is when you start choosing to take control of your life.
Money does not bring you happiness, however, studies have shown that finances can be stressful and having at least a moderate income helps couples avoid divorce. (Divorce Info)
With that in mind it is highly important that couples work together towards a common goal, a common budget.
When you work together with your spouse on a budget, in the beginning it can be very stressful.
1. You may not agree on an amount for a specific area. Example groceries vs eating out.
2. You may think the other spouse has more control over one area of the money than you and that can bring frustration.
Now let me tell you a secret.
When you start budgeting together you get to know your spouse. You get to know what is important to them. You understand your spending habits and it can be intimidating.
You are fully exposed to your spouse.
After, the awkwardness of feeling exposed your relationship only tends to grow though.
Now, both of you are on the same page. You are not buying shoes that you don’t need just to hide the fact that your spouse enjoys watching TV and that upsets you (that did not happen to me but to someone I know, I don’t even buy shoes)…..
Now you are on the same page.
This is the fun part, because with your spouse, your best friend….
You start setting goals together.
Example: This much will be allocated every month for us to go on a vacation at the end of the year.
This much will be allocated every month for date nights.
This much money is your “free” money that you can buy whatever you want for yourself or you get to save to buy that nice item you want.
This much money is allocated for a downpayment on a house.
This much money is set for food for the family. (Now you can choose if you want to eat more at home and do game nights and enjoy cooking together, learning new recipes, or you can choose to go out to eat. Whatever works for your lifestyle).
The best advice I ever got was: before you start your budget save all your receipts for a whole month. See where your money is going first and then start telling your money where to go the following month.
Make sure that the first three months you are flexible with your money.
Be flexible if you are tight in one area, and adjust your budget accordingly.
Don’t feel like your budget is set in stones. Make the money work for you!
I hope that you start taking control of your money!
Visit Dave’s website for some great tips and resources www.daveramsey.com
May you be blessed with your finances.
Much love,
Raquel
