Many of us dedicate time, energy, and resources to our health and wellbeing, whilst devoting considerably less effort towards our financial fitness. As a result, we may find ourselves falling into unconscious and unhealthy spending habits. This can lead to debt gain, sluggish saving, and missed economic opportunities.

By embracing the health ethos that what is measurable is manageable, you can achieve better financial security and growth. With less financial stress and reduced debt, comes greater freedom to enjoy life and achieve your goals. Adopt these simple money management tips to improve your finances and capitalize on your monetary vigor.

Track and trace

How aware are you of where your money is going, and most importantly, have you calculated how much you can afford to spend. Creating a personal budget is key to the development of successful money management skills.

 A budget is simply an estimate of income received versus expenditure over a period of time. Methods for budgeting include simple pen and paper notations, the use of spreadsheets, as well as accessing free online software or purchasing more advanced financial computing programs.

If you only have a rudimentary level of financial literacy, you can still budget effectively using a basic technique such as the one presented in this governmental monthly budget tool. The focus of a budget is to lay out a plan that balances your earnings against your responsibilities, with a view to minimizing debt and enabling you to save for future financial goals.

Seek advice

Life is of course unpredictable, and even the best budgets can come unstuck due to unforeseen events or changes in circumstances. Another essential money balancing skill is knowing when to enlist the services of a professional, and in this regard, the earlier the better.

If you find yourself in financial stress where you have credit card debt, unpaid medical bills, have missed personal loan repayments, or have unpaid store credit, seek advice from an accredited debt arbitration firm as soon as possible. Remember that debt solutions can be tailored to suit your budgetary constraints. Enrolling in a program from Freedom Debt Relief, or another reputable debt settlement provider, is the initial step in regaining control over your finances.

Cash and carry

Firm money management skills center around understanding and appreciating the value of what we are spending, a simple competency that often becomes obscured in our increasingly digitized age. Recent research confirms the hypothesis that money format plays a role in individual spending behavior, such that the human brain perceives significantly more stimulus and greater negative reactions when paying with cash rather than via card or smartphone transaction.

 Thus, it can be concluded that the habit of withdrawing, holding, and paying with cash, may have a modifying effect on spending behavior, causing you to be more cautious and thoughtful with your purchases. Consider withdrawing a predetermined amount for your weekly spending. Carry a wallet with cash with you, and pay for purchases with it, leaving your card at home, and your phone in your pocket.

Punctual payment

Every time you pay a bill, service fee, or other recurring charge late, you risk being charged a late payment fee. These fees may seem small and insignificant in isolation, but over time can accumulate to a considerable amount, that with careful management, can be avoided.

 If you use a direct debt system for paying certain bills, make sure that there will always be enough in your account on the specified dates to allow for any automated payments, as well as other budgeted and discretionary spending that may occur at this time. Where possible, pay bills ahead of time, and keep an accurate record of what accounts are paid or pending.

Planning the way you spend and save will have long term benefits for your financial fitness. Make these simple money management tips to improve your finances a part of your daily wellbeing regime, and release yourself from the strictures of unplanned debt. Plan prudently, save diligently, and spend wisely. In this way, if life throws you one of its inevitable challenges, you should be better positioned to manage it.