Budgeting on a weekly basis

Few people think of budgeting on a weekly basis but perhaps this is why so many people do not have a good handle on what it happening with their money. When you base your budget on a weekly schedule, few things are left out of the picture. It seems like when the period of the budget is smaller the smaller and seemingly insignificant purchases are more apparent. An example might be money that is spent buying lunch. If you have given yourself the budget of $10 a week for lunch, chances are that you may either evaluate whether or not you actually need to spend that much or find other ways of getting lunch during the work week (like making it yourself and bringing it from home). Budgeting on a week also helps to keep you on track in terms of your larger budgeting goals. When you are budgeting on a weekly basis, it becomes more difficult to loose sight of your budgeting goals because they are always at the back of your mind.

Budgeting on a monthly basis

Most of us think of our budget in terms of what is due and what will be paid to us in a given month. A large reason for this is because many of us have regular monthly payments due to the bank, utility company, insurance company, etc. Many budgeting plans and even software programs are based off of a monthly budget. The time period of a month provides the opportunity of staying caught up on the payment of debts. When budgeting on a monthly basis it is important to keep both monthly and yearly budgeting goals in mind. Of course you want to budget enough money to be able to meet your monthly obligations, but you also want to be setting aside money an at least a monthly basis that is intended to be used for your yearly budget or for other long term savings goals.

Budgeting on a yearly basis

When you think about budgeting on a yearly basis, you may think of evaluate year end statements from your bank, your tax information, your retirement fund totals, and other large accounts that you have been contributing to all year long. Budgeting on a yearly basis could include the re-evaluation of your financial standing and making changes for the next year that will help to put you in a better financial situation come the end of next year. Budgeting on a yearly basis also entails the creation or beginning of larger savings projects or accounts. Perhaps your budgeting goals for the year include eliminating the debt on a car or even finishing paying off your home. Such goals require the entire year to plan and prepare for.

Conclusion

Budgeting on a yearly, monthly, and weekly basis may be quite intimidating for someone who has never budgeted before. Starting with a year plan and trying it out for a few months to see if you can be consistent with the parameters that you have set for yourself is a good start. Then working your way to more detailed budgeting strategies and timelines will not only work better but it will be less daunting.