You know that feeling when it’s a Sunday afternoon and you have no money for lunch because you blew it all on alcohol Saturday night?  Well this situation can easily be avoided if you simply set up a budget to plan out your expenses.  Managing your money is a very good habit to start.  Even if you have a very small income stream, or if you are still living off your parents – don’t you consider them an income stream anyway?  Here is a quick set of tips to help get you started!

First, you should identify all of your monthly expenses.  This should include things like food, clothes, supplies, and entertainment.  Also, if you pay your own bills, you should include things like rent and utilities as well.

Be sure to put an emphasis on your essential expenses such as food, rent and utilities because these are the things that you cannot live without.  Always make sure that you have enough cash for them.  Once you have the important things taken care of you can then decide how much you want to save, or spend on partying.

Although making a budget is very helpful, it is not fool proof, and you can still find yourself at loss for money a the end of the month if you are not careful.  That is why it is a good idea to save any extra money you have at the end of the month. By doing this, you will be more prepared for unexpected expenses like a doctors visit.

Tip: When you are writing/typing out your budget, you should have one category for expected budget and one category for actual budget. This will show you how well you are keeping to your budget during a month, and will also identify if you are over or under performing in your set budget.  Here is a budget template to show you what I mean. You can even download this free template!

The Next Step

All theses tips can be really helpful, but the most important part of making a budget is to follow it. Find a way that works for you. Whether it be something as simple as using the table above, or getting digital and tracking your budget online, just do it.