Oct 19, 2009 0
Daily Expense Tracking Template
I wanted to post this printable expense tracking form / template in the hopes it may assist you in tracking your daily spending. This has been a great tool to help me track my day-to-day spending.
The template, in Adobe Acrobat format, is formatted for printing. I used a hole-punch and keep about 20 sheets in a small binder. Using the receipts I save, I record my spending in this log at the end of each day.
This isn’t rocket-science, but it is a good practice to keep you tuned into your budget and spending on a daily basis. Doing so will cut down on the number of “how-the-hell-did-I-spend-that-much” experiences you may have.
Jun 10, 2009 0
Budgeting – The Successful Budget Plan – Personal Finance – Part 1
The personal budget… ‘Tis a thing of wondrous beauty or the sordid tale of despair. There are two personal qualities necessary to budget successfully.
How do I succeed? Discipline
Above all, the key to a personal budget that works is discipline (I can’t write or say that word anymore without thinking of the Arnold Schwarzenegger prank calls – hilarious). A personal budget is not something you prepare, review, and go back to from time to time. You must integrate your budget into your daily life. For it to truly be beneficial to you, you need to actively (every day or close to) review, measure, and adjust your finances based on your budget. You should designate a 15 minute daily window in your schedule solely for the purpose of tracking your spending against your budget. It really doesn’t have to be drudgery though. Tracking your progress can be quite fulfilling. When you see that you are on track, controlling your spending based on your budget goals, you get a concrete view of success.
Where does the money go? Choices
It is so simple these days to lose track of our spending. Spending is often looked at as the root of all evil in the context of a budget. In fact, spending is not the problem. Real problems are caused by choices. If you have the resources to spend $200 at Starbucks each month, super! But, if you are spending that kind of money on coffee each month and coming up short on your groceries, insurance policies, credit card bills, clearly, you have a problem making proper choices. Therefore, it is imperative to your budgeting success that you make proper choices. Choose to live within your means. Choose to simplify your finances. Choose to attain the financial goals you have set for yourself.
The combination of persistent discipline and proper choice making, will almost certainly guarantee you financial success.
In the next week I will post more information on creating a personal budget using a budget planner or budget software. These are only tools to assist you maintaining you budget and tracking your spending. Home budget software will not do the work for you. I have not heard of any personal finance software that will take care of it all for you. Only you have what is necessary to succeed.
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