There is an old saying, “If you don’t plan to succeed, you plan to fail.” I believe this holds even with your finances.
We have talked about budgeting, but how many of you have done so? Has it been helpful? If you have not, that is ok. Today is a great day to start. This blog entry is not about putting together a budget. It is about making sure that your money is doing what you need it to do. Yes, you can tell your money what to do!
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by all the bills you have and did not know where to begin? That is because you haven’t put your money to work. Here is a quick example of what I mean.
Brother Y has a job that pays him $900 every two weeks. Brother Y also has rent, utilities, food, and a small loan with a family member. Often, we believe that Brother Y should pay everything to $0, but who wants to work for two weeks and walk away with nothing to enjoy because of bills? No one. I say put a serious plan into play and stick to it!
Sit down and write out how much you can put towards each item without breaking the bank. Utility companies will allow for extensions or even partial payments in the form of budget plans where your bill remains the same even throughout the winter months. If rent is not due, immediately put a third or half away, then add more to it during the next pay period. The idea is to plan to succeed in life, not to walk around broke and wanting.
Here is a hypothetical plan:
Brother Y
Bi-Weekly Take home paycheck – $900
- Utilities (due in 3 weeks) – $90
- Pay: $45 now, $45 next pay period or call and ask about payment plan
- Cable/Wi-Fi (due in 2 weeks) – $89
- Pay: $45 now, $44 next pay period
- Streaming (due now) – $50
- Pay: $50 now
- Rent (due in 4 weeks) – $500
- Put Away: $250
- Insurance (due in 2 weeks) – $100
- Pay: $50 now, $50 next pay period
You get the point.
With these hypothetical bills, Brother Y should have around $460 leftover to save, pay on credit, buy food, and possibly have a little extra to put toward his life dream/goal. Never shortchange yourself, bills will be there and life will happen but always invest in yourself.
It is 2021; we plan for what we want and get it. I want to encourage you that there is nothing that is out of your reach! IF you write out a solid plan and work it, then you will have it. Financial health is yours. Will you plan to succeed? Or Are you failing because you won’t plan? As always, this is subjective knowledge; you do what you need to do with it. Let’s Build!
