In Financial Strategies, When it comes to your money, the first rule is that you must own your money. Your money, your rules, right? But to be confident with your money, you need to develop certain financial habits so that you can control your money – instead of your money controlling you.
From creating a budget to curbing the cost of living, we cover 11 financial habits you need to learn to achieve financial success. Keep reading and let’s go!
11 Strategies Using Your Money, Track and Press Your Shopping
1. Tracking your money
Track your money, this means knowing exactly how much you make and how much you spend. But I’m talking about seriousness here. Make a habit of tracking every dollar you earn and spend. How much money did you earn last month? How much did you spend on groceries? How much have you saved? If it’s too much, think about it. Every dollar you make is money you earned through hard work, blood, sweat, and tears. (Well, hopefully not blood and tears, but real hard work.) Just as you would pay attention to anything else important in your life, remember to pay attention to your money.
2. Live within your means
One of the most controversial financial practices: living below your means. In order to manage your finances, it is important to create a lifestyle that does not require you to spend all of your income. This means that if you bring in $3,000 a month, you won’t be able to live off spending $2,999.99 a month. Your expenses should be below your total income so that you don’t have to create a debt to pay for your living expenses. This is really tough, but that’s where avoiding the cost of living and creating a budget comes in – which we’ll get to shortly.
3. Pay yourself first
You’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it twice, and here I am repeating it for the tenth time – because it’s so important. First you have to pay yourself. Otherwise known as flexible budgeting, this is where you start by investing money to save or invest every month for your future and financial freedom, and then allocate money the rest of your expenses.
What you don’t want to do is create a life where you save whatever is left (if any) when you spend all your hard earned money. There is nothing worse than working for years, only to have nothing to show for your account. Pay yourself first and your future will thank you.
4. Create a budget
But stick to it. enough said. Perhaps the foundation of any financial habit you want to learn, creating a budget is essential to stay on track with your financial goals. Think of it as a guide to your financial life. He rules, keeps you in line, just to make sure you come out the other end. Without a budget, it’s hard to control your money.
A budget helps you set limits on what you can spend and is based on your income. There are many ways to budget, and there is no right or wrong way. Create a budget based on your style and current situation. Some good examples of budgeting methods include the 50/30/20 rule, the budgeting method (as mentioned above), zero-based budgeting, and the budget envelope method. Check out our Instagram post for a quick recap of each one! (Also be sure to follow us on Instagram for great money tips and general life hacks!) Money Practices
5. Don’t borrow to live
Establishing good credit is very important, there is no doubt. But what you don’t want to do is create a life where you depend on credit and borrow. When used carefully, credit is an important tool to help you build your financial future. That being said, credit must, and I repeat, must be used with such care. A simple rule: If you don’t have enough money in your debit account to pay for anything you buy on credit, don’t buy it. Instead of using credit as a way to buy things you can’t afford, use credit instead. If you borrow money, pay it off before your statement comes due to (1) avoid interest, (2) increase your credit, (3) avoid the stress of debt settlement, and (4) develop good financial habits. .
6. Start investing
Next on our list of financial activities… investing. What if I told you that your money can work for you, but you have to work for your money?
You probably won’t believe me, will you? Well, let me introduce you to your new best friend in the capital words you need to know: compound interest. Simply put, compound interest is the idea that your money is making money (we’ll call it interest), and that interest makes you more money. In other words, the basic idea of investing.
With investment comes wealth, which is why it’s important when it comes to your financial planning. For more information on investing, see the reading below.
7. Set financial goals
To build wealth, you need to define what you want to build. Do you want to earn some money? Do you struggle to pay your bills on time? Is there a good net you are hoping to get? Set financial goals and write them down. Make an action plan on how to get there and hold yourself accountable. Remember, the sky is the limit – so don’t underestimate yourself when setting your financial goals!
8. Avoid the cost of living
Similarity to financial habit #2 (living below your means); Avoiding the cost of living is one of those financial habits that will pay off in the future. So, you might be thinking about inflation? WTF is that? Good question, my friend!
Lifestyle costs, also known as lifestyle costs, occur when we start investing more in luxuries that we perceive as necessary, even though they have no direct use in our lives. In other words, as we start to increase our income, we spend more money on things that we will not use, just because we can. It’s a bit of Keeping Up with the Joneses meets Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
Lifestyle costs can quickly get to you, so it’s important to consider your budget and stay close to your financial goals when you start making more money.
9. Protect yourself from emergency funds
Regardless of your current income level, how much you owe, or your financial situation, you need emergency funds. Think of your emergency fund as a rainy day fund – a sum of money that you can access quickly, efficiently, and suddenly. Maybe it’s an emergency stoppage, a broken oven, an unexpected car repair – the list goes on. Whatever it is, you will always need a sum of money to withdraw if necessary.
A good starting amount is $1,000, over time you will increase this amount to cover 3-6 months of your budget. $1,000 may seem like a lot right now, but small steps add up to big ones, so start spending as much as you can, and you’ll be surprised how quickly you can save for emergency cash.
10. Learn about personal finance
The smartest financial practice – always learn. Your personal finances are not the same after all. Money comes, money goes. There are always new opportunities to earn, save, invest and more – so learn about personal finance. Whether it’s reading a new personal finance book every year or researching ways to improve your finances, never stop learning.
It sounds like you already have this money habit… after all, you are here reading this, aren’t you? Keep up the great work and keep learning!
11. Always check your finances
Last but not least, check your finances regularly. To bring us back to the first financial habit (review your expenses), doing a regular financial review is critical to your financial success.
Here are some things you should check, at least, every month:
- The total amount you bring in
- Monthly expenses
- Is your current budget working or do you need to change it?
- Compensation – status and outstanding amount
- Emergency fund
- Investment account
- Expenses and income are coming
Again, if you need help putting all of this on paper, get your free copy of Money Moves here.
So whether that means reviewing your finances once a week or engaging in a thorough review at the beginning of each month. Always get your money’s worth.
11 Strategies Using Your Money, Track and Press Your Shopping
When it comes to your money, the first rule is that you must own your money. Your money, your rules, right? But to be confident with your money, you need to develop certain financial habits so that you can control your money – instead of your money controlling you.
From creating a budget to curbing the cost of living, we cover 11 financial habits you need to learn to achieve financial success. Keep reading and let’s go!
11 Strategies Using Your Money, Track and Press Your Shopping
1. Tracking your money
Track your money, this means knowing exactly how much you make and how much you spend. But I’m talking about seriousness here. Make a habit of tracking every dollar you earn and spend. How much money did you earn last month? How much did you spend on groceries? How much have you saved? If it’s too much, think about it. Every dollar you make is money you earned through hard work, blood, sweat, and tears. (Well, hopefully not blood and tears, but real hard work.) Just as you would pay attention to anything else important in your life, remember to pay attention to your money.
2. Live within your means
One of the most controversial financial practices: living below your means. In order to manage your finances, it is important to create a lifestyle that does not require you to spend all of your income. This means that if you bring in $3,000 a month, you won’t be able to live off spending $2,999.99 a month. Your expenses should be below your total income so that you don’t have to create a debt to pay for your living expenses. This is really tough, but that’s where avoiding the cost of living and creating a budget comes in – which we’ll get to shortly.
3. Pay yourself first
You’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it twice, and here I am repeating it for the tenth time – because it’s so important. First you have to pay yourself. Otherwise known as flexible budgeting, this is where you start by investing money to save or invest every month for your future and financial freedom, and then allocate money the rest of your expenses.
What you don’t want to do is create a life where you save whatever is left (if any) when you spend all your hard earned money. There is nothing worse than working for years, only to have nothing to show for your account. Pay yourself first and your future will thank you.
4. Create a budget
But stick to it. enough said. Perhaps the foundation of any financial habit you want to learn, creating a budget is essential to stay on track with your financial goals. Think of it as a guide to your financial life. He rules, keeps you in line, just to make sure you come out the other end. Without a budget, it’s hard to control your money.
A budget helps you set limits on what you can spend and is based on your income. There are many ways to budget, and there is no right or wrong way. Create a budget based on your style and current situation. Some good examples of budgeting methods include the 50/30/20 rule, the budgeting method (as mentioned above), zero-based budgeting, and the budget envelope method. Check out our Instagram post for a quick recap of each one! (Also be sure to follow us on Instagram for great money tips and general life hacks!) Money Practices
5. Don’t borrow to live
Establishing good credit is very important, there is no doubt. But what you don’t want to do is create a life where you depend on credit and borrow. When used carefully, credit is an important tool to help you build your financial future. That being said, credit must, and I repeat, must be used with such care. A simple rule: If you don’t have enough money in your debit account to pay for anything you buy on credit, don’t buy it. Instead of using credit as a way to buy things you can’t afford, use credit instead. If you borrow money, pay it off before your statement comes due to (1) avoid interest, (2) increase your credit, (3) avoid the stress of debt settlement, and (4) develop good financial habits. .
6. Start investing
Next on our list of financial activities… investing. What if I told you that your money can work for you, but you have to work for your money?
You probably won’t believe me, will you? Well, let me introduce you to your new best friend in the capital words you need to know: compound interest. Simply put, compound interest is the idea that your money is making money (we’ll call it interest), and that interest makes you more money. In other words, the basic idea of investing.
With investment comes wealth, which is why it’s important when it comes to your financial planning. For more information on investing, see the reading below.
7. Set financial goals
To build wealth, you need to define what you want to build. Do you want to earn some money? Do you struggle to pay your bills on time? Is there a good net you are hoping to get? Set financial goals and write them down. Make an action plan on how to get there and hold yourself accountable. Remember, the sky is the limit – so don’t underestimate yourself when setting your financial goals!
8. Avoid the cost of living
Similarity to financial habit #2 (living below your means); Avoiding the cost of living is one of those financial habits that will pay off in the future. So, you might be thinking about inflation? WTF is that? Good question, my friend!
Lifestyle costs, also known as lifestyle costs, occur when we start investing more in luxuries that we perceive as necessary, even though they have no direct use in our lives. In other words, as we start to increase our income, we spend more money on things that we will not use, just because we can. It’s a bit of Keeping Up with the Joneses meets Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
Lifestyle costs can quickly get to you, so it’s important to consider your budget and stay close to your financial goals when you start making more money.
9. Protect yourself from emergency funds
Regardless of your current income level, how much you owe, or your financial situation, you need emergency funds. Think of your emergency fund as a rainy day fund – a sum of money that you can access quickly, efficiently, and suddenly. Maybe it’s an emergency stoppage, a broken oven, an unexpected car repair – the list goes on. Whatever it is, you will always need a sum of money to withdraw if necessary.
A good starting amount is $1,000, over time you will increase this amount to cover 3-6 months of your budget. $1,000 may seem like a lot right now, but small steps add up to big ones, so start spending as much as you can, and you’ll be surprised how quickly you can save for emergency cash.
10. Learn about personal finance
The smartest financial practice – always learn. Your personal finances are not the same after all. Money comes, money goes. There are always new opportunities to earn, save, invest and more – so learn about personal finance. Whether it’s reading a new personal finance book every year or researching ways to improve your finances, never stop learning.
It sounds like you already have this money habit… after all, you are here reading this, aren’t you? Keep up the great work and keep learning!
11. Always check your finances
Last but not least, check your finances regularly. To bring us back to the first financial habit (review your expenses), doing a regular financial review is critical to your financial success.
Here are some things you should check, at least, every month:
- The total amount you bring in
- Monthly expenses
- Is your current budget working or do you need to change it?
- Compensation – status and outstanding amount
- Emergency fund
- Investment account
- Expenses and income are coming
Again, if you need help putting all of this on paper, get your free copy of Money Moves here.
So whether that means reviewing your finances once a week or engaging in a thorough review at the beginning of each month. Always get your money’s worth.
