Everyone knows that we need a budget. We all know that a plan is what a budget is. We all know that we can't do well in life if we don't have a plan.
So why is it so hard for us to make a plan? What's wrong with our budgeting?
People have trouble because they try to make it too hard. They go to a bookstore and buy as many books on budgeting as they can. They buy the latest software for their computer to keep track of their money. They join one of the many online services for budgeting. By then, they've spent so much time getting ready to do a budget that they don't have time to do a budget!
Don't get caught in that tricky budget trap. Keep in mind that the key to a good budget is to keep things simple. How can you keep things simple with your budget? Well, it's not hard.
Start with a blank sheet of paper or a blank computer spreadsheet. Put each time you get paid in a column or on a page. (Yes, that's what it says. You don't want a column for each month; you want a column for each paycheck. If you get paid once a week, you'll need one column for each week. And don't put more than one month's worth of columns on a page. We want to keep things simple.
But wait, you say. I only pay my rent once a month, so I can't include it in my weekly budget, can I? Yes, you can. We're trying to keep things simple, so if your rent is $1,000 a month, put $250 a week on your budget. You could even ask your landlord if you could pay your rent every week; that would be very easy. It's fine if you only pay the rent once a month. The secret is that in your simple budget, you set aside rent money every week, so that when rent day comes, the money is already in the bank.
If you budget and pay by the week, things will be easy for you. You won't have to worry about whether you'll have enough money to pay the rent this week because you'll have already put the money aside. No need to worry or stress, because the key to a good budget is to keep things simple.
