Budgeting clearly shows you where your money goes. It provides you with a detailed understanding of what you can afford and what you cannot. It saves you stress from overspending and helps you achieve your goals.

You don’t have to struggle anymore with making your money work for you.

There are a million different reasons why you should budget. Each person has reasons personal to them. If you’re anything like me you want to spend the least amount of time dealing with your money. And instead spend more time enjoying the freedom you have when it is well managed.

Even with this knowledge, a large majority of people still do not budget.

What stops you from budgeting?

Budgeting is the most basic tool for managing your money. Many  believe that budgeting is  restrictive and doesn’t allow for fun or entertainment. My way of budgeting creates the exact opposite. Budgeting allows you to have the money for the things that will help you get to your goals. And that includes having fun.

Others believe there is no reason to make a budget because they can’t stick to it. This means they haven’t found the right type of budget that works for them.

Many coaches or financial gurus out there promote cookie cutter plans or one size fits all for budgeting. This is crap. Each budget requires personal touches. People need personal touches within their budget to help them stick to it.

We’ve been budgeting for about 2.5 years. Since we started paying attention to our money we have been able to make more headway with our financial goals. If you want peace in life you must find peace with your money. That does not mean that you must make millions of dollars!! It is about making enough to live happily within your means.

It’s a necessary part of life. If you don’t pay attention to your money it will cause you more stress and worry than necessary. When you focus on your money in a positive, intentional way you  free up more of your time, energy, and money. Allowing you to focus on the things that really matter.

Not having a budget can mean you aren’t maximizing your potential.

How many times have you spontaneously decided to go out to dinner or do something fun for yourself?  Most of the time the money that pays for that it’s not accounted for. In the back of your mind you may worry, “can I afford that?” Or you think if I buy this now what will I have to give up later? Having to think about all these things takes away from the enjoyable moment you are trying to have.

Think about when you go on vacation, you may have planned  how to get there and bought hotel reservations. That’s great. What about the time while you’re there? Money for entertainment, food, and all the other things that come up that you didn’t think about.

The purpose of a vacation is to relax, not to stress about or regret all the things you did. It’s not a time to think about the things you forgot you had to pay for. Setting a budget for things like this allows you to enjoy the time you have during your vacation.

Forgettable expenses happen in everyday life too. A car repair comes up, a repair around the house, or you just have to have that super cute decor you saw at Target, Hobby Lobby or Home Goods. My budgeting techniques plan for and prevent these situations  from derailing you financially.

Being on a budget means you can have more fun.

People who get on a budget are able to enjoy more of what life has to offer. My financial coaching clients save every month for the things that matter most to them. Even in December they’re saving for Christmas for the next year.

Every month we have a set amount we set aside explicitly for travel. Even when we don’t have a vacation planned we are saving up for the next one. We are able to have money available if we wanted to take a spontaneous trip or save up for a big family vacation. When we take our trip the money comes out of that account and we never feel the hefty cost of our vacation come out of the budget that month. This is peace of mind.

What do you have coming up that you could plan for now?

Take a few minutes to look at your spending and determine where your money is going. Is it worth it?