Budgeting Tips for Financial Success

Logging into your banking app to double check if you can afford that item? So many of us have been there and done that. Many people are unaware of how much money is even in their bank account. Have you ever looked at your available account balance and thought where is all my money going? You are not alone, according to a OppsLoans recent survey 73% of Americans do not regularly follow a budget. 

There is a solution, however, to help you know how much money you have, how much of that money you can spend, and how much of your income you should be saving. The solution...drum roll please...is FINANCIAL PLANNING!

What even is financial planning, you ask? Financial planning is a method or approach to navigating one’s finances and finance goals. Financial planning can assist you with managing your income, expenses and investments, help you understand your current financial situation, and aid you with planning for the future. Overall, it can help you achieve your financial goals. 

On Instagram we have been sharing budgeting tips for financial success on #tiptuesdays. Wait! Are you following us on social media? Our first tip is to stay connected with TCA (Tyler Collier Associates) on all our social media platforms. Do not be fooled...we are very sociable!  

Alright, so now that we are friends on social, let’s talk financial planning.   

TCA has a step-by-step proven system that we use to assist our clients with planning financially for their businesses and for themselves, but if you are not yet a client...YET, here are 2 tips to get you moving in the right direction. Want to become a client? We are just a click away! Send us a message on our contact page or simply click the “new client” button. 

There are so many methods, tips, and ways to go about planning financially. We are going to share 2 tips to get you started.  

Track your expenses 

Our first tip is to track your expenses. It is important to have a good overview of your current financial situation to make the best decisions moving forward. For at least one month monitor and document your typical income and expenses. Your list of expenses should have everything that you typically spend money on. Your expenses may include your rent or mortgage, groceries, car payments, gas, cell phone bill, streaming subscriptions, etc. For some people tracking where your money is going may seem difficult because it does require you to stay committed to the task when there are so many things going on in our lives. There are many resources available to assist you with tracking your money including apps like Mint, Goodbudget, and QuickBooks® Online. Whether you write down this information in your journal, input it in Excel or Google Sheets, or use one of the apps listed above, we suggest that you look at your bank statements, receipts, and paychecks so you have a realistic view of your spending habits. You could track your expenses for several months if you have a situation where your monthly income and expenses fluctuate.  

Create a realistic budget 

Now that you have tracked your expenses you will have a better idea of what the following months should look like financially. Our next tip is to use the information that you gathered from monitoring your expenses to create a realistic budget. Yes, we said realistic. When creating this financial plan, it is important to be honest about how much you can afford to spend and how much you ideally can save. Your budget should include fixed expenses which cost the same amount each month like your rent and car payments, and variable expenses which change from month to month like groceries, take out, and entertainment. Remember to add entertainment expenses because you are human and having fun is important too. Budgeting in this way allows you to take a moment to assess your current lifestyle and goals and provides you with an opportunity to make changes where it best serves you. Your budget will help you clarify and work towards accomplishing your financial goals. Every budget is different, but if your budget reflects your values and goals, you will have a plan to guide you into the next stage of your financial future.  

Need assistance with personal or business financial planning? ⁠ Connect with us at TCA and we will share our proven step-by-step processes for financial success.