On Being Penny-Wise

It's almost March! Time certainly flies, huh? Last December, my mom and I were busy enlisting the gifts for my family members and relatives. It has been a tradition in my father's side since I can remember to give every one a thoughtful present on Christmas. And it is also during this time of the year when I over spend. January went by pretty fast. The property tax was due and I was broke even before the end of the month. Come first week of February, I had to pay for the car registration. And you guessed it right, I was under my budget again! Thankfully, I was able to put aside something from the previous months to spend for these occurrences.

Below are some tips I painstaking do to meet a monthly budget:

I track my expenses by jotting every item I buy, including the payments made for the regular bills. At the end of the month, I could  identify the items I can forgo. This will further enable me to find out the cause/s of my over spending and modify my expenses in the coming months.

  I try not to go out too often to avoid temptation. Unfortunately my self-control is low. When I window shop for instance, I have the tendency to get myself a refreshing smoothie. And when such expense is accumulated at the end of the month, it can be an astounding amount! I also avoid spending unnecessarily. For example, when doing the groceries, we try hard to stick to the grocery list though my mom and I find it hard not to be sidetracked at times. A new product may lure her to purchase it or a craving I have been having for days.

When paying for the bill, I always use my PWD ID to get a 20% discount from the total bill. Unfortunately, some companies do not abide with the Magna Carta Law and only give discount on a single item purchased. When this happens I remind myself to be grateful nonetheless than paying for the full price of the item.

How do you stick to a budget? I'd be delighted to hear it!


Photo sources: Garden International School, Bloomberg Businessweek and Stay Freckly