Welcome back to Budget Bible! Last time we were together I started to scrape the tip of the iceberg with budgeting in college and different ways that may look. In this post I am going to discuss how to create your own personal budget based on what your financial goals may look like short term or long term!
So, starting out you are going to want to evaluate your lifestyle. Where do you spend your money? How often do you spend? How could you decrease your spending or find cheaper alternatives? You will want to note all of this down and you may start noticing a pattern. We tend to put a large amount of our money into one or two sources. For example, I spend most of my money on coffee. Now a simple cup of coffee may not seem like that big of a deal but it does put a good dent in my bank account.
Once I started noticing how much money I had been spending I went through my transactions and noted down how much I was spending and where I was spending it. I was eventually able to see how much I was spending on “little” things and realized I needed to start budgeting and spending my money more wisely. I believe it is so important to have a physical budget either on a digital document or a physical document. This helps you visualize your budget a lot easier.
I highly recommend creating a monthly budget because this allows you to plan in advance but not too far ahead so you are still able to make small changes without completely throwing off your savings for the year. First, you are going to want to note down expenses you have to pay for like rent or utilities, basically any type of bills you take care of monthly. Once you have those down then start adding expenses you still need but tend to fluctuate like groceries. After you have your necessary expenses written out, then start adding more personalized items and this can all fall under “extra spending money.” This money can be used for shopping, entertainment, emergency funds, etc.
When you have these all listed you will want to total up all of your paychecks to see how much you will be making that month. Then take out how much rent, utilities, and groceries will cost you that month. Once that is dispersed you now have a remaining total that you are able to disperse into your “extra spending money.” Now, do not put all of your extra money in this spot because you want to take at least some of your paycheck and put it in your savings account.
Now you have your own personalized budget! This is just a starting point so you are able to add other spaces to disperse your money as you please and make it even more personalized to your lifestyle. Stay tuned for another blog coming your way diving deeper into grocery shopping and finding the best deals! See you then!!