Get You A Budget Sis

Budgeting can be scary. Sometimes we feel like that child again that was told no when we asked for something. When I started to budget, I was so overwhelmed and felt like I was bringing the little that I did have to the light. Little did I know , that I actually had more to save than I thought. Living paycheck to paycheck was not the lifestyle I wanted, so I had to make the decision to do better. Not only for me but for my family as well. I made the mistake of thinking that I had to save large amounts

at a time and that wasn't true at all. It's kind of like working a muscle until it gets strong. There was a time in my life

that I didn't have the strength to do a push up. I remember my commander in NJROTC telling me to do them on the wall. Now in my head, I was curious about how this was going to help me get on the ground and lift my entire body up multiple times. Little did I know that doing this exercise gave me the strength I needed to do the push ups. It’s the same with budgeting. Rather it is $5 or $100 each check, putting some percentage away is creating those healthy habits of saving.

Have that Discussion : It’s nothing wrong with treating yourself . That’s what we work for right? However, sometimes that can spiral out of control quickly. It’s important to distinguish your wants and needs. Here is some questions you should ask yourself. Are you doing things for yourself that you can do yourself? Can your pockets afford all of those wants? If so , great! But my next question is do you have an emergency fund or a retirement account. If you were to lose your job today ? How long can you go without stressing about bills? Do you have insurance coverage to leave your family if something was to happen to you? All in your business. I know sis but these are some serious questions you have to ask yourself.

Set savings goals; It is hard to save with no vision. Matter of fact, it is hard to see many things through without a vision. Take some time and come up with 3 or more goals you want to accomplish while saving.

Here's some examples:

I want to set up a 4-year college fund for my kid(s)

I want to have an emergency fund to cover my bills for at least 6 months.

Having goals with help you remember why you started. You got this sis!

Automate savings/retirement account. Some may not feel comfortable with this but this always helps me save better because I don't have to do it myself. The less I have to do, the BETTER. This eliminates the temptations of wanting to use the money for something else. It takes discipline and sometimes your girl have that spending f

freely itch every once in a while.

Cut the impulsive spending on large purchases Anyone ever make purchases they later regret? (raises hand slowly). I can be an impulsive spender and I had to make a pact with myself. If I wanted to take that nice trip or make that large purchase I would have to save towards it. This may seem small but this cut many unnecessary purchases for me. This gives me time to think and rationalize if the purchase is necessary or not. I concluded that if I want the purchase bad enough, I would save for it.