Save Money
Personal Budget Planning

Save money. It's easy right? I mean I am sure all of us have six months of income set aside for an "emergency fund". Oh, you don't. I suspect that not too many folks do.

We spend the first part of our lives acquiring stuff and the second part trying to get rid of it.

Well why not?

How much money do you have in your bank account right now? Are your bills paid and up to date? How much consumer debt do you have? How much do you spend each and every month?

These are just a few of the questions you could ask yourself to help you gain a clearer understanding of your financial situation. There are probably dozens more.

I am not a money expert. I am not a financial planner. I have however educated myself on my own income and spending habits. I make a certain amount of money each month and I do not spend more than I make. It did take me a while to get to this point.

As you could read on other parts of this site, I was just like a lot of people out there. I was unhappy with myself as a person and unhappy with my life. So to make myself happy I wanted to spend money. Go on trips, buy cars, new clothes, etc, etc. You know what I mean I am sure.

Well the amazing thing is that spending money never made me happy. I was still the same person on the inside. I still had the same problems with my relationships. The other thing is I would now have more stuff to try and find a place for!! I had some bad habits that had been ingrained in my head. I did not understand why I was spending or why I was unhappy

Personal Finance Budget

We live in a society that puts money and possessions on a pedestal. The more stuff you have, the bigger house you live in, the more successful you must be, right?

This is the common perception. We want to climb the social ladder and be perceived as successful in the eyes of our peers. And we are conditioned from birth to spend.

Advertising is everywhere. I sometimes think that even on a deserted island they would get to you, always coming up with some new product that you must have today. No wonder it is so hard to save money.

The way of society is so powerful. Even the school system fails us here. How much real money management are we taught in school?

Yes we learn some basic stuff. But what about the real nuts and bolts about income tax and credit cards and interest. Not much attention is given to this.

Shakespeare is so much more important than life skills! And when students head off to university they are encouraged to get a credit card. The race is now on. We do not understand the credit card or the interest on that card, but we can go and get...whatever.

And once we enter that race it becomes harder and harder to exit. Before we know it debt has been accumulated, bills have not been paid, we are living beyond our means and we are miserable. They say that the number one cause of divorce is money.

I believe it.

There are eliminating debt types of shows on television that show this clearly. Some of these shows involve people who are planning for their wedding! They will be in 15000-30000$ in debt from their wedding! Good luck with that marriage.

What Are YOUR Values?

You need to decide what is important to you. Is it to save money? To be frugal? What are your personal core values?

Not what society says they should be (which we have already determined are money and possessions). The ten or twenty or thirty attitudes/characteristics/traits YOU feel are important.

After evaluating what your values are and feeling strong convictions toward them, you find that they aren't conducive to keeping up with the Joneses; it can slowly erode if you don't consistently maintain the convictions of your values over time.

Media, advertising, and society in general will start too slowly poke holes in your resolve - consistently, and that's the magic of it all. We are exposed consistently to this so it influences our behaviour and it becomes really easy to be sucked back into the race of keeping up with the Joneses in order to impress others through showy displays and status symbols.

Maintain your own personal chosen values and beliefs and you'll come to the point where you'll feel freedom - the freedom to live life the way you see it, not by the way you think you should, based on how others will view it. You can save money and eliminate debt. You must make the choice.

Save Money
Frugal Living Tips

Here are some tips to help you on your journey of eliminating debt and to save money.

• How much debt do you have? Most people underestimate. Get out the credit card bills and start adding.


• How much do you spend? You MUST keep a daily spending journal for one month and log EVERY expenditure and every ATM withdrawal. You will be shocked at the end of the month.


• Set a weekly budget. How much for transportation, food, clothes, entertainment, everything else.


• Get rid of your credit card AND debit cards. They are just too convenient for getting us in trouble financially.


• Go into your bank and get your weekly budget in cash. Put this cash in jars with labels. You cannot spend more than the weekly allowance.


• Take extra money that you are now not spending and pay off your credit cards. You have to start somewhere. You will feel better when you do this and you know it.


• Still keep track of every expenditure to make sure you understand where your money is going.


• Gather up stuff around the house and sell it to earn some extra money AND to help de-clutter.


• Really look hard at EVERYTHING you have. Does it have a purpose? If not, it goes.

Save money and eliminate debt. It does not have to be a mystery. Find your core values, follow the tips and you will be on the road to financial freedom.

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