Feelgood Journal of information and inspiration for life Email RSSFeelgooder FacebookFeelgooder TwitterFeelgooder Feelgood * Home * About * Write to Feelgood Themes * " Finance or or Health Relationships or or social O Work * Contact Get a Grip on your finances, without the guilt November 20, 2010 by Guest Contributor 10 Comments This guest post is from Ali Lucas, Aliventures. Would you like to have more control of their finances? Maybe you know you have problems, you're always on the overdraft, or barely able to make minimum payments on your credit card, but the temptation to keep your head in the sand. Maybe you've been getting for years, never feeling financially secure, but do not want to deal with the gap between where you are and where want to be. Money can cause a lot of strong emotions such as fear, pride, hope, and when we are struggling with guilt. There has to be. We may have made mistakes in the past, but most others as well. We all do bad things sometimes. Instead of being paralyzed by guilt, focusing on simple measures to change their financial future. Find out where This is the most difficult step for many of us. Open your bank statements, invoices, everything I've been avoiding. The overview: * How much money you have in your checking, savings, and elsewhere? * What do you have debts, including student loans, credit cards, and so on? * What is your monthly income? * What are you spending each month, more or less? Get as clear as possible about the location. Do not judge yourself or anyone involved more. Despite the seriousness of the situation may change. Reduce costs Go through a bank statement and find the monthly payments. There will be plenty of expensive items such as rent or mortgage, but also some smaller ones like: * Broadband, TV, telephone and packages * Subscriptions (a magazine, the DVD rental services, and more) * Members of the gym. Can you cut any of these costs? Many people find that they are making monthly payments for services they never use: do not read magazines, or health clubs that do not visit. Can you reduce spending in other areas? Maybe you're reluctant to give up their home Internet access and television, but you can downgrade to a cheaper package. Although it often feels as $ 10 a month makes a big difference also, if you can save $ 10 a month in three different areas, ie, $ 360/year-enough to cover emergencies or simply to make the holidays largest affordable. Sign up for Internet banking If you do not access your bank account via the Internet, talk to your bank and set up. It's easy to stay on top of your money, and create and cancel payments if you can do at work or at home at any time of day. Once you have Internet access to your bank account, I would suggest establishing a regular schedule to see things at least once a week to start. In this way, you can keep an eye out for unexpected payments and detect possible problems quickly. Keep track of expenses Are some fixed monthly bills, but where is the rest of his money? Do not worry if you only have a vague idea. It's hard to keep track of all small items to buy: a coffee here, a sandwich there, a newspaper from time to time. When you're spending a few dollars at a time, it's probably just thinking about it. But these small amounts add up. A record of expense is simply a recording of everything you spend. I like to use a spreadsheet to which columns to display divided into different categories (like "food", "eating out" and "transport"). To be truly useful, the record of expenses: * Includes everything you spend, even small items, and even things you pay cash * Contain sufficient detail to be useful, what it might mean to write what you bought at the coffee shop, instead of typing "coffee shop - $ 7" * Updates every day (if left more than a day, is likely to forget to buy). Once you track your expenses for one month, search results that surprised. Are there areas where you're spending a lot of money unnecessarily? If you buy lunch every day, for example, that adds up fast. The same applies to a newspaper that is read-only. Most people who take this step by the act of writing makes spending more thoughtful about it. Do not let this turn into a guilt trip, but I use it as a message to think twice before buying something on a whim. Start investigating Whatever particular, financial problems, is a safe bet that others have faced exactly the same thing, and written about it. There are several great personal finance blogs, and plenty of books that can help you regain control of their finances and start saving or investing their money. I suggest starting with these links and search for advice on any specific problems they face: Single dollar Get Rich Slowly I'll teach you to be rich How clear about your finances can be liberating. Instead of fighting, trying to ignore the situation, he faces forward and take steps to start making the changes you want. Do you have control over your finances? What stories or tips, the horror! "You can share? Ali Lucas blogs about writing and life in more than Aliventures and has a free ebook called more for your money, get the best value for your hard earned money. About Guest Contributor