Money, just like the need to breathe, is one of the most important things in life. It is up there with clean air and clean water because without them we are more or less walking corpses.
And in this day and age, money has become so vital to everyone that it is virtually impossible to be alive without you having money. Basically, everything now has a price attached to it. It has gotten so bad that for some people if there is no price to it then it would be suspect. As a matter of fact, if the price is too little, it will still be suspect.
That is to tell you just how far we have come in life when it comes to money. And to this end, there is a good and bad side. The good side of it is that every day more and more means of making money keep coming up. With just your smartphone you can relax in the comfort of your home and make cool cash, that is just how easy it has gotten. And on the flip side, the cost of living has just been on the increase and does not seem to be coming down any time soon. Everything is just unnecessarily expensive, even the things that shouldn’t be are also sucking more money from us.
But then, such is life.
Well, as we live it, we spend a lot of time making money, doing what we can to make ends meet, and also trying to have a good time ourselves. After all, you only live once. If we don’t take special care of ourselves who is going to do it then?
Bills will come from all corners of the earth, multitudes of them will fall on your shoulders like rain and you will have no choice but to settle them because they are all important, and avoiding them will only lead to an accumulation that you might not be able to handle in future.
So, when they come, we try to sort them out as quickly as possible. Doing our best to reduce the financial obligations that are on our necks, even though it only seems to be increasing instead of reducing. And to this, it is easy to get carried away and keep on spending. Until we spend everything we have and are left with nothing, except even more and more bills.
And this is where a budget comes in.
Budgets are very important because they give us an idea of how much we will have to spend compared to how much we have. When we make budgets and stick to them, we are less likely to overspend or run out of money. Budgets keep us in check and make sure that there are no excesses where our spending is concerned.
So, do I also make use of budgets? Of course. Everyone that makes money in this day and age has to make use of budgets, if not they will just be swayed by the tides of the economic crises that keeps hitting the country
The best way to save more money and spend less is to use budgets. Spending off heart or spending as the urge comes or as the needs come is very unhealthy. There are some needs that can’t be planned, like health and emergencies, but it is possible to make sure that there is something always set aside for emergencies, and include it in your budget. That way, no matter what happens and how sudden, you won’t be caught unawares.
So, how do I plan my budget?
First off, I know the lay of the market and how favorable the economy is. At the moment, the economy in my country is not very favorable, another reason why this is very important. Knowing the cost of things you want to spend money on will give you an idea of how much you need to spend. That way you will know how much you have to work towards in regards to raising the funds.
Also, one thing I try to do is that I try to be flexible in my budget. If there is one thing this economic crisis in Nigeria has taught me is that for one to survive one must be very flexible, exactly like the inflation rate. It keeps going up stubbornly. You can buy something at a price today and when you come tomorrow it will be more expensive. Everyone is feeling the pinch.
So I try to make room for possible increases in the prices of the things I will need.
And thirdly, I arrange the things I will need in their order of importance. The basic things will be answered first, and I will work my way down the list until everything is taken care of. That way, if for some reason I am not able to take care of something, it will not be so important that it will ruin every other thing I have done.
When budgeting, I always try my best so that I don’t spend everything I budgeted. I always like getting everything done and still having some change. It reminds me that I am quite frugal when it comes to spending.
I guess the importance of budgeting cannot be overemphasized, we need it and we have to learn it until it becomes a habit. That way, we would be one step closer to having a handle on our finances and our spending habits.
So, my dear friends, what do you think of this? Do you also make use of budgets? Is there anything you would like to add? What are the tips you would love to share? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below, I would love to know what you are thinking.
Thank you for reading. Till we meet in the next post.
This post is inspired by the first topic of this week which is Budgeting. Feel free to try it out.
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