How to Stick to a Budget
Creating a budget is just half of the battle; living within it is the other half of. Living inside of a budget is like setting up or authoring an alternate reality with you (the consumer) as the writer, the director, and the actor all in one. The reality of the story is that the consumer (who plays all the part) is having a trouble managing his/her finances and is going to be in a lot more trouble if he/she does not alter the story. The alternate reality is that the consumer has to live in a world of constraints (budget) in which his/her spending is going to be inside of a set parameter. At first it is going to feel as if it is unreal. The consumer would feel as if it is just a game until he/she incurs debts and like a criminal, has to appear in court. Only then would the consumer feel regret that had he/she played his/her part well in the alternate reality, he/she would not find himself/herself in a worse predicament.
Every story has an ending, whether or not it is successful is left to be decided. What are some of the ways for this story to have favorable conclusion?
1. The actor in this story must have a tough mind set. It is important that he/she keeps reminding himself/herself the reason why he/she is doing this. If he/she starts thinking that the budgeted lifestyle is an order from someone (like some bully just pulling his/her weight around), it will never work. Being the rebel in the story is not always a good thing, it is difficult if everything is against you. So instead, the consumer should thing or reminds himself/herself that he/she established a budget to break the bad habits that got him/her into financial trouble in the first place, and that the real goal is to be able to afford the necessities and to save up for the future and be able to finally afford the things that make him/her happy.
2. The next thing is to track all of the income and expenditure (short of being obsessive compulsive about the little details) so he/she can have a complete and accurate picture of where the story is heading. Do not be tempted to forget five dollar expenses here and there because these small amounts add up.
3. The consumer’s specific budget need not be cast in stone; but the determination to live within it (the budget) should be.
Related articles about budgeting: