Knowing how to stick to a budget is a skill that is going to help you throughout your entire life.
Not only can knowing how to plan a budget allow you to become financially free, but it can also banish your worries about money forever and help you become happier and healthier.
Let’s take a look at how to stick to a budget.
Have a Goal
One of the best things you can do for yourself if you want to learn how to stick to a budget is to have a goal.
If you are budgeting for no reason or do not have a specific goal in mind, you will have very little reason to talk yourself out of going over your budget when the temptation comes.
Of course, everyone’s goals are going to be different. For one person, this may mean saving up for a holiday or a new washing machine that is badly in need of replacing.
For another, it could be a matter of putting food on the table.
Your goal can be whatever you want. Even if it is a far-off goal such as becoming rich, this can still act as a great goal if this is something you are truly aiming for.
Whatever your goal may be; it needs to be genuine.
If you do not truly want to achieve your goal, the chances of you sticking to a budget are going to drop drastically.
Once you have a clear goal in mind, sticking to your budget will become much easier.
It just takes the guesswork out of the ordeal.
Be Precise & Specify
After setting a goal, it’s time to specify. The more specific and precise you are regarding your budget, the higher your chances of sticking to it will be.
First off, you should set a specific amount that you want to save. And we mean specific.
No, “oh, I want to only spend a few hundred pounds of my wage every month”. Instead, set a specific amount, like £200, £300, or whatever you wish.
This keeps you more accountable, once again raising the chances of you sticking to your budget.
This is one of the most important parts of learning how to create a budget. In fact, it might even be the most important.
It’s also a good idea to set specific dates and times for things.
For example, when figuring out how to do a monthly budget, you may decide to transfer £100 from your general account to your savings account on April 20th at 2:00 PM.
This adds yet another layer of accountability.
Because of the fact that each and every one of you are going to have different goals and circumstances, it would be impossible for us to list everything you could specify.
However, as a general rule of thumb, the more specific you are, the better.
In a perfect world, you will know exactly where every penny of your paycheck is going to end up as soon as you get paid.
Change Your Perception of Money
While all of the advice we have given you so far is going to help you out tremendously when it comes to figuring out how to put yourself on a budget, we have yet to attack the root cause.
To put it bluntly; it is your own fault that you struggle to stick to a budget.
This isn’t because you lack discipline or self-respect, but because you have a misguided perception of money in the first place.
You see, to most, money and luxurious items are synonymous with happiness.
This is why you see people leasing expensive TVs in spite of the fact that they are struggling to afford rent, and it is also why people choose to wear branded clothing when they are trying to stick to a budget.
Deep down, you know that this isn’t how the world works. If money and luxurious items led to happiness, there would be a direct correlation between health and happiness, and this just isn’t the case.
In fact, it is well-known that more than a fair few of the wealthiest individuals in our society are miserable.
This can even be seen in your own life.
While you may be happier for a brief moment once you make an unnecessary purchase, after you have had it for more than a day your happiness returns back to baseline, and you may even look for something else to buy.
So, how should we look at money? Well, it’s simple; money is a tool.
Once you start seeing money as simply a tool and not a gateway to happiness, you will stop feeling the need to buy new things in order to boost your “happiness”.
Of course, that’s not saying that you can never buy nice things – it’s just about understanding that material items will never make you happy.
In all reality, you will be much happier once you let go of this attachment.
Not only will your money troubles begin to dissipate due to the fact that you are no longer spending a considerable amount of your paycheck on useless items that you will forget about in a day or two, but you will feel a sense of relief knowing that you can find some level of peace.
It is worth noting that when you first begin putting this philosophy into practice you may feel a short stint of sadness.
Not having the constant barrage of dopamine hit you every couple of days may feel a little strange – it is almost like quitting an addiction!
However, once you get past the initial days, weeks, and months you will begin to become happier overall, and no longer will you need a surge of dopamine to feel satisfied in life.
After this, sticking to a budget will become a breeze!
How to Stick to a Budget
At this point, we have told you everything you need to know when it comes to how to stick to a budget.
However, we would like to see this article off by going over a few more key points.
First off, let’s take a look at what it means to stick to a budget. You may think this is self-explanatory, but you would be surprised how many times the “stick to a budget definition” is Googled.
Sticking to a budget simply means not spending over a specified amount of money within a given time frame.
People set budgets for a wide range of reasons, from saving up for a new car to putting money in investments.
Most people think sticking to a budget requires a ton of discipline, but this is just not the case.
If you follow all of the steps we listed in this article, you would be shocked at just how easy it is to stick to a budget once you get in a routine.
While sticking to a budget does require some level of discipline, most of it comes down to setting up the right habits and viewing the ordeal in the right way.
If you become less attached to material things, view money as a tool, set a goal for yourself, and be specific, you will find sticking to a budget easy.
You won’t even realise you are doing it.
The benefits that come from being able to stick to a budget are going to help you throughout your entire life, and while it might not seem like it, something as small as sticking to a budget may transform you as a person.
How to Stick to a Budget – FAQs
What To Know About Setting up a Budget?
The things you need to know about setting up a budget are that you need to be specific, set goals, and change your perspective on money.
Setting up a budget is doable for anyone – it just takes a little work to get into the swing of things.
How to Start Budgeting?
To start budgeting, you should set a saving goal that is specific, track your expenses, and try to reduce your outgoing expenditures.
If you want to start budgeting, you should also view money as a tool instead of a symbol of power or wealth.
How to Plan a Budget?
To plan a budget, you need to consider your current financial situation and set realistic goals.
Try to reduce your expenses as much as possible, but do not set a budget that you are not going to be able to stick to.
How to Do a Monthly Budget?
To do a monthly budget you should calculate your monthly income and expenditures and then set a realistic budget based on that.
Each person’s goals are going to be different, and depending on how much you want to save, you can be as strict or as lenient as you like.
We hope this article will be of use to you! Setting up a budget for your weekly, monthly, or yearly expenditures can benefit you in so many ways, and once you get the hang of it, this skill will just come naturally.
Sure, it’s going to take some getting used to. For some, it is not going to be easy to set a budget and stick to it at first.
However, the rewards you will reap from learning how to start budgeting will make it more than worth it – just give it a few months and see for yourself.
If you would like more financial advice or just more self-improvement content in general, don’t be afraid to scour MovingForwards to see if we have anything else that can help you.
From teaching you how to stick to a budget to explaining how to build muscle or reduce stress, we are bound to have something that will be able to aid you even further.
See you next time!
