Cars are built from plans. Houses and buildings are built from plans. Even the body we live in has a format and a plan to it. Why don’t most of us think to have a budget or budget plan for our finances?
A mechanical engineer would never construct a mechanical device without a set of plans. A surgeon would never perform surgery without a plan. Yet, most of us go through our entire life without a budget, a money budget or financial plan.
Many people in the west are over their heads in debt, facing foreclosure or other financial maladies. Could some of this possibly have been avoided with proper budgeting of our finances?
Personal budgeting is crucial, if we have financial goals in life we would like to achieve. This includes most of us. We want nice homes, cars, vacation, education for our children and other necessities and luxuries. We would like to attain our financial goals without losing our shirts or become deeply indebted. First, set a lose financial plan, then zero in and refine it for every area of your financial life.
A budget should never be a financial starvation diet. That won’t work for the long haul. Make reasonable allocations for food, clothing, shelter, utilities and insurance and set aside a reasonable amount for entertainment and the occasional luxury item. Savings should always come first before any spending.
The importance of saving cannot be over emphasized. Savings aid us if we have any emergencies and also help us in reaching our goals. There is software on the market which will guide us in creating a budget for ourselves. Some of it is free and available on the internet.
Plan your budget yourself, or hire a financial planner to help you with it. Once it is done, do whatever is necessary to stick to it and meet you short and long term goals.