thebudgetmom.com

I use this calendar to remind me of the things that need to be paid during the month, so I don’t forget to include things like my bills, events, holidays and occasions in my budget. It’s going to show you where your money went, what categories you should be using in your budget and for your cash envelopes, and how much to assign for your budget categories realistically. Even though I budget my income by paycheck, I still like to assign a monthly budget for each one of my categories. I like to keep track of the extra debt payments I am making every month, and how much total I am throwing at debt every month.

For example, if I were writing down the starting balance for December, I would write down on my expense trackers how much money I have in my checking account and my cash envelopes on December 1st. For me, I like to keep $500-$1000 in my checking account at all times just in case I have an unexpected bill, or I need to use my checking account for an online purchase. I label money that I’m carrying over into a new month as “starting balance” on my expense trackers, but some label it as “opening balance. It’s important to know how much your spending on debt and savings every month, but it’s even more important to know WHAT debt and WHAT savings are you spending your hard-earned dollars on.

The one thing that I realized on my financial journey is that writing down goals isn’t enough. Any time I am questioning my financial journey, or I feel like giving up; I look at my son’s face. It can take weeks and even months to discover your WHY word, but once you find it, it’s time to start thinking about your goals. For example, for my short-term goal of paying off my debt, I would write: Pay off debt by tackling my student loans first.

Learning how to save on a regular basis can be hard. But what’s even harder is turning saving into a daily habit