Why Budget? We’ve got six reasons why you should overcome your budgeting problems! One of the top two New Year’s Resolutions is to get personal finances in order. Many folks want to get out of debt or set up a budget.
But too often this resolution is made, and then quickly abandoned.
We’ve heard it, we’ve seen it, and we’ve helped many families to overcome it.
Any effort you make to manage your money will immediately start producing positive dividends.
We’ve created a four-part series that covers the benefits and “How To’s” of setting up a realistic, workable and maintainable household budget.
The Four Different Blogs are Listed Here
- Six obstacles to the perfect budget
- How to make the Best Budgets for Savvy Spending
- The Amazing Key to the Most Powerful Household Budget Ever!
- How to Build Confidence with a Written Budget
Why Budget? 6 Ways to Overcome Budget Problems
We understand that there are many misconceptions about budgeting, and several mental roadblocks to overcome. Here are six of the more common obstacles to budgeting that we’ve heard:
Obstacle 1: “We earn so much we don’t need to bother with a Budget!”
We say: High-income earners who employ a money management system do much more with their money. Why Budget? You’ll waste less, give more and achieve greater goals than those who simply shoot from the hip.
Obstacle 2: “We just don’t make enough money to budget!”
We say: Even the little you have can be stretched so much further than you ever thought. We know, we’ve lived on much less than the national average and accomplished much more. So why budget when you don’t have enough? You do, and every little bit counts!
Obstacle 3: “Our income is so erratic that budgeting is impossible!”
We say: Budgeting is the perfect tool to smooth out the peaks and valleys of your income. We’ve lived on a commission structure and have managed huge swings in monthly income. Why budget when you never know what you’ll have? Simple, the good months can set money aside for the lean months. And the money will be there when you need it.
Obstacle 4: “I don’t need to write it down, I’ve got it all in my head.”
We Say: A written plan takes spending out of the ethereal—“well, I think I can afford this”— and puts it down in black and white — “I know I’ve got the money saved for this.” Numbers don’t lie. Why Budget? Simple, you just can’t keep everything in your head.
Obstacle 5: “Oh, we gave budgeting a try, it was too restrictive and it just didn’t work for us.”
We say: Rather than being restrictive, a written and regularly maintained budget will provide you with financial relief, confidence, security, and freedom. Once you try it, we promise you will never want to go back to living the way you used to.
Obstacle 6: “My spouse and I don’t agree on anything. We couldn’t possibly work together on a household budget.”
We say: A written budget, worked on together, is the very thing that could help you move forward as a team toward positive financial goals. Rather than arguing about money or the lack of it, you’ll be allowing the budget numbers to reveal if you have enough or need to wait. It will be goal setting in the best way. You can work together to achieve financial freedom. This can be an amazing positive thing for your marriage.
Overcoming these six obstacles won’t necessarily be easy. If we could transfer to you the attitude of hope and financial confidence that we have after so many years of practicing this habit of budgeting, you would hurdle over these obstacles and never look back. A budget creates freedom and hope.
Setting up a budget is something that will take some time, but once it is set up, the maintenance needed to keep it up to date is minimal. We spend about 4 hours each month “doing our budget.” That’s 2 hours, two times each month. Investing that time lets us know exactly what we have to spend, and what we need to save for. It gives us financial confidence and direction.
What is the Magic Formula to Household Budgeting Success?
Well, unfortunately, there is no magic. But there is a formula.
What we’ve done is a result of committing to regularly use a system. Because we’ve employed a budgeting system since day one of our marriage, we’ve had years to practice and fine-tune the management of our living expenses.
And even though our income has fluctuated greatly over the years (over 33 years it averages around $40,000), we have limited our monthly expenses to establish a lean, yet comfortable lifestyle.
During the plentiful earning years, rather than raise our standard of living, we were able to pay off mortgage debt, invest in retirement savings and put aside an emergency fund.
The Family Emergency Binder
Organize your family’s most important information – from finances to traditions to bedtime stories – so you’re prepared, no matter what happens.
The link below will take you to the EmergencyBinders.com website – an affiliate of MoneySmartFamily.com
Our budgeting system has enabled us to reach our financial goals and still have lots of fun.
While there may be obstacles to creating the perfect budget, in the end, once it is created, your budget will help you sail over financial obstacles for many years to come.
If you want to learn more about the budgeting system we created and have used for decades (and thousands of others use) please visit this Budgeting info page.
Please visit our Pinterest Page and click on our budget/debt/savings board for lots of great ideas!
Have you run into an obstacle to budgeting that we didn’t list? Let us know in the comment section below and we’ll respond to your comment.
