Let’s be honest: Setting up a budget and monitoring your spending is tough. It can be time consuming, restrictive, and something that is always on your to-do list for tomorrow. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
When done right, budgeting to have control of your money can be empowering and can help you reach your financial goals with ease. It can even help you plan for the occasional splurge (guilt free!). The basic concept of a budget is simple—spend less than you make. But creating a budget that is both empowering and easy to stick to is a little tougher.
Most people don’t really keep a budget, even though we know we should.
And if you do use a budget to track your finances, chances are it gives you only a rough idea of what’s going in and out of your bank account. Am I right?
That’s the boat I was in not long ago. I had a “budget” set up — and I use that term loosely here — but it wasn’t really helping me manage my money. Without even realizing it, I was spending a lot more than I was bringing in every month.
I knew something had to change.
So I decided to dive in and give budgeting a shot, and I quickly realized budgeting isn’t nearly as bad as most people make it out to be!
I reach out to my homegirl Kara Perez, Founder of Bravely. Bravely is a community that gives self-identified women the financial tools to bridge the gap between their dreams and their realities. Bravely is for the woman who wants to learn how to raise money for her business. For the woman who wants to save money for a year long, round the world trip. For the woman who wants to pay off her credit card debt.
Bravely hooked me up with The Bravely Values Based Budgeting Workbook ($20). It is a GAME CHANGER. It walks you through not only how to budget, but how to build YOUR best budget- because not all budgets are created equal.
The Bravely Values Based Budgeting Workbook walks you through identifying your values, your needs, and how you can best hold yourself accountable.
It’s filled with worksheets and questions to help you identify your values, figure out your spending triggers, your savings blocks, and then tools to help you start a new budget that will actually work. The download also comes with two spreadsheets; a spending tracker and a new budget template to kick-start your budgeting journey.
You’ll set financial goals, you’ll spend time analyzing your spending habits, you’ll identify your true values. Laughs and shenanigans will be had! Well, not so much shenanigans as deeply personal financial work, but isn’t that kind of the same thing?
I loved this budget workbook and I really feel that it will help you too.
You can find Bravely on their website, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Do you use a budget?
What is the hardest part of having a budget?
What is the hardest part of saving?
