A lot of people get emotionally charged when managing money, but “budget” is not a four-letter word!  Use these tips to take the pain out of household budgeting. When you set up a budget, it will give you a written plan for managing your money. This will help to alleviate some of your financial stress.

Before you set up a budget, you need to first evaluate where you are right now.  What did you spend your income on in the past 30 days?  What are your current spending habits?  Do you shop impulsively?  If you can’t answer these questions, it’s time to take inventory.  For the next 30 days, make a list of every purchase, whether you pay for it by cash, check or credit card. 

Although this will be a challenging exercise, it will be incredibly enlightening.  You will discover the waste in your budget.  You may find that you’re spending too much on coffee, vending machines and eating out. 

Set up a “budget day”.  In most instances, payday becomes your “budget day”, whether you get paid weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.  Put your budget in writing and decide which bills will be paid from each paycheck, based on when your bills are due.

You may need to call some of your creditors and ask them to change the due date of your bills.  Credit card companies will usually agree when you tell them that changing the due date is the only way you can pay them on time.  On “budget day”, you pay the designated bills according to your budget. 

Stop allowing your mind to obsess about bills every day.  Worrying will not pay off your bills; it will only make you miserable!  If you are deeply in debt and stressed out about your bills, having a “budget day” will increase your peace of mind.  Train your mind and emotions to only focus on money on “budget day”. 

Read Pastor Vicky’s book Stop Robbing Peter to Pay Paul to get more money tips! Click on the book picture to buy an autographed copy.