Getting A Fresh Perspective On Our Budgeting Process

*This Budgeting Process post is sponsored by Frost Bank but as always, all opinions are my own. Thank you supporting the brands that support Sincerely Onyi*

 

With this new season upon us, it’s all about gaining a fresh perspective on all the changes life has to offer. We’re changing jobs, adjusting to new childcare, hiring out more help and inevitably adjusting our budget. This usually gives me a sense of hesitation and anxiety but after joining the Optimism Challenge with Frost Bank last year, I’ve decided to meet every new beginning with the spirit of optimism. While harnessing optimism in all the changes life has to bring, we’ll be sharing tips from our family budgeting process

 

Motivational speaker, Michelle Gielan and Frost have conducted research that finds ties between optimism and overall personal success. Although we all set goals, it’s easy to become overwhelmed before reaching the finish line. They discovered these 3 habits that explain why optimists have increased financial success:

1. We get comfortable talking about money

2. We look for progress vs perfection

3. We expect the unexpected

 

Frost Bank has been in business for over 150 years, working to find the good in everyday life. I’m a fan of how Frost bank cares about their customer’s success, health, and financial wellness.

Spring Clean Your Budgeting Process

Often we think of Spring cleaning for our home, but what about Spring cleaning your budgeting process? Let me share some easy budgeting process steps to Spring clean/ adjust your budget for success. This might be exactly what your personal budget needs to get you freshened up and back on track for the rest of the year.

Generally when you make a budget its easy just roll with it; but, as life brings on new changes we need to make sure we go back in and adjust our budget. Sometimes more money doesn’t just fall from the sky so we’ve got to figure out what’s not as important and take from that, a portion of the budget. Like giving up eating out as often so that we can put that money towards investing in a housekeeper. That way, there is more time for productivity that can turn around and put money back where we took it.

Start Small

 

Just like cleaning a house, it works best to tackle your budget piece by piece, making sure to focus on one item at a time. Whether we have partners or as individuals, we all want to save to be able to afford things in the future like our kids’ college education or buying an investment property or our next car.Thinking about all of that can be overwhelming. Instead, start with a smaller goal, like building up your emergency fund with 6 months of expenses. Or a real money saver, paying down one of your debts and then creating a snowball effect for your other debt.. By focusing on paying off the smaller debts, you’re going to stay more motivated as you’ll be able to see the dent in the debt faster.

Cut Back Unnecessary Expenses

 

Take a look at your budget and expenses to see if you are staying in the guidelines that you originally set up. Evaluating and cutting back on unnecessary (or forgotten) expenses is a perfect way to set you budgeting process for success. If you’re not already assessing where your money is going, it’s time to do it ASAP. Going out to lunch daily, might not seem like much money at the moment, but these expenses can add up quickly and destroy other things you’re looking forward too like a vacation budget. Other budget-killers are unused subscriptions such as video or music streaming services, magazines, or cloud storage, in addition to unwatched cable channels.

 

Often times we can sign-up for a free trial and by the time the trial expires we’ve forgotten all about it (guilty). If you’re not keeping track of where your money is going, it can be easy to forget about that $10/month charge that comes out. These subscriptions can easily pile up to the point where you’re spending $50+ a month on services you’re not using!

Create Realistic Quarterly and Yearly Goals

 

One of the most important steps when Spring cleaning your budget is to be realistic when setting your new goals for the new season. Yes, it’d be great to pay off your school loan in the next three months, but depending on your current situation, that could mean sacrificing in areas that you shouldn’t. One of our goals could be saving for a family vacation or paying off a credit card balance by the end of the year. Whatever your goal is: write it down and place it somewhere you see every day. By setting yourself up with realistic goals, achievable timelines, and reminding yourself often, you’re more likely to succeed and avoid impulse purchases that bust your budget.

 

What are your budgeting process steps? How often do you adjust your budget?