Well Planned Day – Busy Gal

We’ve probably all needed a little bit of financial management help from time to time, haven’t we? As such, tools that offer guidance in learning to budget or manage money can be very helpful. Of course, any budgeting or money management tool needs to be customized to fit your own personal needs. That includes the Money Management section of your On the Go planner. 

Obviously, if you have a workable budget set up in a different location, the Money Management section might not be relevant to you at all. And that’s okay. But, if what you’re doing now isn’t really working for you or if you don’t have a budget at all, the Money Management form could be just what you need. 

Determining Your Budget

The first thing to do is to determine your monthly budget. At the top of the form, you’ll find a spot to record your monthly income. In the first column, you can write in your budget. This is your expected income. If you have a job that pays hourly, your income may vary. That’s okay. Write down an estimate or average of what you earn each month and start from there. 

As you work further down the form, you’ll find space for entering your monthly expenses. Again, some of these will be fixed and others will need to be estimated. Start by putting in the necessities, the things that are pretty much non-negotiable. Add those up, then determine how much of your budget is left each month. This remainder can be divided up between the remaining items, starting with the most important (such as savings) and saving the more flexible (like entertainment) for last. 

Obviously, the categories listed might not fit your needs exactly, so you’ll need to customize a bit. You can do this by changing or clarifying some of the existing lines to more closely match what your budget needs to be. 

Looking at Reality

The most important part of figuring a budget is not the numbers you write in the first column but the numbers that go in the second and third columns. These are the actual figures. How much did you really earn this month? How much did you actually spend for each budgeted line? That information goes in the second column. Calculate the difference between the first and second columns to find the amount you need to enter in the third column. Did you overspend? Did you spend less than expected? These are calculations that will help you better budget next month. 

Keeping a budget can be challenging, but it can also greatly reduce the stress that comes from poor financial management. Whether you use these forms or find your own way, budgeting can make a huge difference in staying on top of your finances.