Creating a budget

Creating a budget allows you to make sense of your money and is a simple way to track your spending.

1. Identify your ‘why’
   Think about your motivation for creating a budget. Maybe you have debts to clear, or you want to start saving. It’s good to reflect on your reasoning.
2. Start with the facts
   When you’re creating your budget, the key information you’re going to need is your total income (eg salary) and your fixed expenses (eg rent).
3. There’s no right or wrong
   Next, move on to your variable expenses. This’ll be a rough estimate of how much you’re going to spend on a certain thing. These can be an estimate as they’ll change month-to-month. There’s no right or wrong – this is your budget.
4. Keep it simple
   Input this information into a simple budgeting sheet. These can be found online or create your own. It doesn’t need to look fancy, just stick to the basics and keep it simple.
5. Maintain and analyse
   Now is a good time to analyse to see if you’re able to cut back in any areas. Maintaining the routine of budgeting is a great habit and allows you to have a clear overview.

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