When it comes to learning to masterfully control your finances, it goes without saying that it is a learning curve. It is an unfortunate reality that the world revolves, for the most part, around the give and take that centres around financial currency. This means, at the end of the day, that it is practically impossible to escape the necessity of having your own financial backing, and being able to adequately handle that backing on an ongoing basis. Companies like Money Task Force are perfect for helping to bridge the gaps, but you should know how to handle your finances yourself for the most part.
People are often easily frustrated when handling their finances, because it can often seem like their finances are chaotic to handle. While it is certainly true that, if left unchecked, finances can be an especially chaotic subject to handle, if you stay on top of them they can actually be quite easy to adequately maintain and grow. So, what is the trick to successfully taking control of your finances? Ultimately, it comes down to three steps.
Create a self-imposed budget and work to actively stick to it
Before anything else, self-control is crucial. It can take some trial and error to work this through one’s mind and to realise the truth of it. Often what happens is that when someone gets a payday, they find themselves excited and end up overspending before they even have a chance to regulate that pay check into compulsory bills and other costs, spending money, and savings. This often (if not always) leads to a distinct imbalance in income, and savings – even if one is living generally quite within their means.
So, to get a handle on your finances, start by working out a self-imposed budget. This is the budget that you create for yourself. Separate your paycheck into different categories, always starting with the compulsory costs like bills and the like. From there, work in spending money, social money, savings for trips and holiday gifts, etc, and the savings pool that you are not going to touch – think of this like an additional Super…you can touch it, but treat it like you cannot, and watch it flourish and thrive.
Have separate bank accounts for everyday access, savings, etc
This might be obvious to some, but having separate bank accounts for everyday access and savings makes the world of difference. It is easy enough to spend haphazardly if all your money is in one place, but if you spread it out strategically over different bank accounts – even across separate banks altogether, at that – you will find that it is easier not to touch your savings. Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes. This is very important, and it is one of the most useful keys you can have that helps you to successfully handle your finances.
Set up direct debit so you can easily track ongoing expenses
Think about all the ongoing expenses that you have – bills, etc. These are payments that, like it or not, continue to come out of your account until they are paid off or you are no longer obligated to continue repayments. In setting up direct debits for these payments, you can click on ‘Upcoming payments’ in your bank app to get a real-time play-by-play of all the bills and upcoming payments that you have due soon. This makes it easier to keep track and thus stay on top of your repayments.