Grinds my Gears II
To begin my blog, I posted a Grinds my Gears entry. Well, that's not all that grinds my gears!
I have said this over and over again that when first starting to budget and track your spending, it can be stressful, a real reality check and hard to do. Many people don't even want to see their credit card statement after a vacation because they know they blew their budget. If this is you, this is a sign that your spending is out of control. Start with just one week of tracking your spending. Start with just one week of budgeting. Starting is the hardest part but will be freeing a year from now when you have gained control over your situation. I am your cheerleader, reach out with any help you may need.
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People who say they make so much they don't have to budget.
You can't see me, but I am rolling my eyes. These people probably have no idea where their money is going. The average millionaire has a budget and they probably have more money than the people saying they don't need one. Most millionaires are first generation and they didn't become millionaires by accident. The Millionaire Nextdoor cites that the percentage of first generation millionaires is 80%. When you tell me that you don't budget, that is your choice but you should, and you shouldn't make the excuse that it's because you make so much money.
Those that have an excuse to why they poorly manage their money.
You want help to manage your money but then you say you don't have time to go the grocery store, meal prep, sit down and do a budget, track your spending, etc. This is the same as those that say they want to get in shape but don't have time to go to the gym or eat healthy. You clearly don't want it bad enough. You don't have time to go to the grocery store? Fine, do clicklist and just show up and they load your groceries. Or, choose a food delivery service like Blue Apron. You can bring in sandwiches for the week and that requires no effort until lunch time. Don't have time to track spending or do a budget? There are so many free tools out there to do that for you, just attach your card info. Even your own bank will tell you where your money is being spent, just look at your statements. Check out mint, everydollar, PocketGuard, etc. Your excuses won't help you, figure out what works best for you and get started.
"I have no extra money to save... but check out my vacation photos."
If you have money to go on vacation, eat at nice restaurants, have the latest phone, the nicest clothes, then you have more than enough money to save. Even if you can only save $20 now, do that. People that say they will start saving in a few years when they make more money, wont. These are the same people who are going to be broke at retirement and wondering what happened. Vacations are nice, but if you can't afford to go, don't. "Oh, but I want to provide memories for my kids.." you can do that here in town as well. You don't have to go spend thousands of dollars to create memories. Your kids don't have to see every beach, state, country, cruise at the expense of your retirement and financial freedom.
"I had to buy this new x because they had a deal going on."
People who know how I am with money will often try to tell me about the deals, coupons, tax breaks, etc on why they purchased something. Truth is, we are all on our own financial path in life, and my path is usually more extreme than others and I don't judge you for buying that car, house, shirt, phone, etc. But I probably won't agree with you if you are also the person telling me how you have no money. I would also like to drive a Range Rover. But I don't drive a Range Rover because I can't buy one with cash right now. And I also don't want my insurance to increase. And with a new car in Colorado, you have to pay a lot of money to register it and I don't want to do that. I did buy the latest iPhone because we saved up the money to buy it. If you can budget it for it, buy it. If you have to rationalize with yourself on why something is ok to buy, then you should probably walk away.I have said this over and over again that when first starting to budget and track your spending, it can be stressful, a real reality check and hard to do. Many people don't even want to see their credit card statement after a vacation because they know they blew their budget. If this is you, this is a sign that your spending is out of control. Start with just one week of tracking your spending. Start with just one week of budgeting. Starting is the hardest part but will be freeing a year from now when you have gained control over your situation. I am your cheerleader, reach out with any help you may need.
Comment and subscribe.
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