Monday, 17 August 2009 09:45
by
Jacki
Saving money and getting out of debt takes commitment. Creating good financial habits can help you along the way.
Save regularly
Make sure that you have a plan to save whether it’s for your retirement, your children’s education, or for a rainy day. Make it easier by setting up automatic savings to these funds. Designate from each paycheck how much should go to each of your savings accounts and use the rest to “live” on. Give it some time to get used to this method and adjust from there. What should happen is that you won’t even miss this money.
Spend within your budget
There are times when it is absolutely necessary to spend more than you planned in a given time period but make sure to get back on track the next week. It is amazing how quickly you can get behind by just overspending a couple of weeks in a row. Then, it takes a while to catch back up. Make sure not to make it a habit to overspend.
Pay off your credit cards
You’ve heard it a million times, make sure you pay down your credit cards. Make it part of your budget, and sometimes it may even be necessary to put your savings on hold to take care of debt. Again, you can set it up to where your credit card is paid every time you are. Don’t wait to get the bill; if you have extra money, make a payment. Don’t get in the habit of paying down a card just to put charges back on it; the point is to get rid of ALL credit card debt.
Take control
The most important habit to have is to take control of your finances. Make sure you are on top of it, that you aware of all of your debt, and establish goals. You can do this by utilizing software, ask a financial expert, or if you have a friend who is good with money, ask for their help. Make sure that you aren’t blindly spending money, that’s what gets you into trouble with fees and debt.