Financial Wellbeing: Budgeting (during the pandemic)
Disclosure: Be Your Own Date is reader-supported and may contain affiliate links for products and services that I love to use and have found incredibly useful in my self-care and wellbeing journey. When you buy through these links, I may earn an affiliate commission, at no extra cost to you. See the disclosure statement for more details.
Welcome to the Be Your Own Date series on financial wellbeing. I previously shared my Budgeting Checklist and this post goes into a little more detail.
Budgeting is so important regardless of your income, whether you feel comfortable financially or if money is a little tight. I have always budgeted to some degree and it really helps me to feel more at ease about my personal finances and the pressures of life in general. Budgeting also encourages me to be more intentional with my spending, confident in financial decision-making, and, ultimately, to feel more in control of my finances, which is what financial wellbeing is all about. This has been incredibly important to me during the pandemic, and the process of creating, checking, and adjusting my budget is very grounding during such an unsettling time for us all.
Budgeting (during the pandemic) | Photo by NORTHFOLK on Unsplash
Personal finance goals
For me, personal finance goals are all about how I decide to use my money in pursuit of achieving my personal goals. One of my biggest goals to date was to repay my student loan, which is a huge milestone and ending to that chapter of my life, as well as an important step in my personal finance journey to lead a more simple and (financially) healthy life. We all have personal goals...what’s yours? I’d love to find out about some of your own, so if you feel comfortable sharing, let me know in the Comments section below and connect with me on your socials.
Budgeting (during the pandemic)
Personally, the change in my budgeting was in adjusting my monthly budget to reduce my spending and build up my savings. I’m pretty sure that I’m not alone in this. Whereas I was happy to live within my means before - and over, occasionally, if buying a big-ticket item such as furniture or a new appliance - my approach now is to live below my means, so that I can allocate more money to my savings. This simply means ensuring that the allocations for my expenses, according to the different categories shared in my Budgeting Checklist, are set well below my income, where possible. More on saving in a future post and I thoroughly recommend reading the UK version of I Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi. To be honest, the title was a little off-putting at first, but once you get past that it’s a really engaging read with lots of practical advice to consider.
Make no mistake, managing your finances can feel very overwhelming at times. Thankfully, it can also be empowering too. I find it empowering to think about what’s in my control, rather than outside of my control, in terms of my budget allocations and my subsequent spending. Interestingly, some of my living expenses (or needs), whilst essential, may not be fixed and still have some room for manoeuvre, such as considering alternative plans, or even providers, for my mobile phone and broadband in order to keep my costs down. This is why reviewing my budget plan regularly as well as actively thinking about and seeking ways to reduce my expenses is so very helpful.
Do you ever find that by the end of the week/fortnight/month (whichever applies to you) there’s hardly any money left? Me too, sometimes! Well, budgeting is really handy for reducing this because by thinking of how you are going to spend your money ahead of time, the risk of running out too soon is lowered. Now, don’t get me wrong, life certainly gets in the way and sometimes this is simply unavoidable, but I think that our intentions and how we choose to spend our money really are key here.
Budget for self-care
If you can, budget for self-care and personal development, whatever that means to you. Maybe it’s a little treat to make yourself feel good, like a good book and a cup of tea/coffee, or a course in an area of interest, or an opportunity to gain new skills. I’m seriously enjoying listening to audiobooks and podcasts, as well as Earl Grey tea with a slice of lemon at the moment. Even if you are unable to budget for self-care now, leave a space for it in your budget plan, which serves as a reminder to be kind to yourself and to action it when you are able to do so. Investing in yourself is priceless!
Budget for Self-Care | Photo by Tetiana Padurets on Unsplash
Underspending vs. Overspending
I find it super helpful to regularly check whether I am underspending or overspending, which is a simple calculation of subtracting your spending from your income. If you are fortunate enough to have some money left over that’s awesome! And I have a question for you to consider: what will you put that extra money towards? If this is not the case and you are within budget or even overspend, don’t fret because you still have a chance to try and spend less next time. I guess what I am saying here is that there may well be some mishaps or mistakes, whether you are new to budgeting or more experienced in the process. It’s all part of the personal finance journey! Embrace your mistakes: it happened and now it’s probably time to move on. I have a habit of overthinking things myself, so it’s always helpful to remind myself of this. Take a look at my Conscious Spending Checklist for more of my top money tips!
Tip: Plan for annual fees and expenses using sinking funds, so that you can add to a pot (or pots) of money on a regular basis, rather than being confronted with one big expense at the end of the year or for a special event. For example, I try to put money aside each month for the events and experiences that I value most, like travel (not so much of that these days) and birthdays.
💎 My Personal Finance Gems
These resources have proved invaluable in my personal finance journey:
Books
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
I Will Teach You To Be Rich (2nd Edition) by Ramit Sethi
Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez
Unf*ck Your Finances by Melissa Browne
Money School by Lacey Filipich
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Research
Financial literacy research by Professor Annamaria Lusardi
Save money online
I use TopCashback when shopping online. It's a free service enabling you to gain cashback from a variety of shops. Sign up to the website using my referral code, at no extra cost to you
1:1 Wellbeing Coaching ☀️
I am delighted to share that I can support you with your life and work transitions through 1:1 Wellbeing Coaching.
Curious to know more? Read about my unique approach, personalised coaching programme and what to expect while we work together.
When you are ready to get in touch, submit your interest in personal coaching sessions or pass this information on if you think it might benefit a loved one.
💌 Share and subscribe
I hope that you have found this information useful. Please share my blog if you know someone who might be interested.
You can also subscribe to my newsletter, that way you’ll never miss a post!
Feel better about your finances. Be kind to yourself. Be Your Own Date.
~ Amy-Jo ☀️
Disclaimer: I am not a Financial Adviser, just a regular gal sharing my experiences and encouraging others to feel better about their personal finances. The content of this blog is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
