I read an interesting article the other day about money advice from women over 50 and one quote really struck a chord with me…
“You have to intentionally manage your money like your time. If you don’t, it will manage you.”
This is just so true and something that I have been advocating for years. I have seen many clients and friends reap the rewards of putting a little time, thought and effort into creating a budget to manage their money and achieve their goals.
No matter how much money we earn, for most of us, without a plan or a budget, we tend to spend it. If we get a $10K pay rise, we don’t end up with an extra $10K (less tax) in our bank account at the end of the year without some good management.
We tend to save a lot slower if we’re just banking our leftover cash at the end of every pay period rather than putting our savings aside first. It’s just so easy to tap, click, tap and just like that, your bank account hits empty again.
If you want to get serious about managing your money, saving for a deposit or a holiday or a car – or anything, you need to plan for it.
Budgeting doesn’t have to be hard, and it doesn’t have to be too restrictive. It just has to work for you. Even the fact that you are becoming mindful of how you are spending can have a big impact on your bottom line.
The best place to start is to look at your last 3 months of spending, categorise it in a spreadsheet into groceries, entertainment, utilities, etc, and then start figuring out where you can reduce costs. Work the plan for a month, adjust and continue.
It’s not rocket science but it does take some time, effort and some motivation and discipline, but the results will be worth it when you make it work for you.
What’s your #1 piece of money advice?
