I have not had any experience actually creating or sticking to a monthly budget. I
still get my bills paid on time, but I have to admit it would be much easier to have a
budget set. I currently keep track of what and when bills need to be paid through a
mental note. I did at one time for a very short period of time decided to track my
spending . I stopped doing this because it seemed a bit ridiculous at times because I
would literally write down everything I spent that day. Sometimes this meant writing
down things like spending 2.00 on a drink. It also required me to save reciepts which
is one of my pet peeves unless I know I will absolutely need it. The strategies I have
learned so far this week is to create a spreadsheet that list all my monthly expenses,
and my income per month. I will also need to track my spending. This will help me
see how much money I actually have left over after all my monthly expenses are
paid. This being in writing for me will help me to stick to budget instead of spending
so freely. I have to admit I feel that I spend too much money going out to eat. If I
have a budget set and stick to it I could of had so much more money saved. As for
the tax withheld , I need as much of my money throughout the year rather than at
the end of the year so if I usually claim 3 dependents instead of 0. With claiming 0
too much money is deducted that I could use now, also this way I can have some
money that I can put away for savings. The amount of tax withheld can make a big
difference in our monthly income. This class has really opened my eyes to see that I
really need to stick to saving a certain amount each month. It upsets that all the
money I have thrown away on unecessarry things in the past could have
accumulated to an amount that could have well covered me for at least 6 months if
needed. From here on foward I plan to focus more on saving.
