Believe it or not, 2009 is almost over ! What was your year like? Most of my clients say business is down. But two of them are actually doing better than they did in 2008. Restaurants are down about 20 % (on average) from last year. These figures, of course, vary by industry.
As you begin to take your first steps toward Financial Fitness in 2010 and plan your budget for that year, I thought it would be helpful to point you in the direction of some of the online resources out there along with some advice from a few of the leading personal finance experts today.
A key Building Block to Financial Fitness is Budgeting. Cash flow, knowing what’s coming in and going out is a critical first step to getting your finances in order.
Here are tips from 5 well known Financial Experts on how to budget wisely:
1. CNN Money: Budgets are necessary. You may not want to create and stick to a budget, but they give you the “big picture” for your income and expenses and are necessary if you want to get a handle on your finances. Budgeting generally requires three things of you:
• Identify what money is coming in and what you’re spending
• Set goals for future spending that considers your long-term plans
• Track your spending so that you stay within your guidelines (use free software to save time and stress)
2. Suze Orman: Live within your means. Sounds pretty basic, but for some reason it’s something that most Americans just don’t get. Financial expert Suze Orman has gone so far as to say that she wouldn’t be surprised if we switched back to a cash economy. Financial institutions don’t want to lend if they don’t think they’ll get their money back. Good rule of thumb: if you can’t pay for a purchase outright (without the use of financing), then stop and consider whether your purchase is a “need” or a “want.” If it’s a want, then it could wait until you have the cash to pay for it.
3. Dave Ramsey: Use the “Cash Only” method for all your purchases. Dave says this may not be as convenient as a quick swipe of your debit or credit card, but maybe that’s a good thing. Money becomes real once you slow down and physically see how much you’re spending and it may help you to spend less.
Dave Ramsey offers a useful “Financial Realty Check” tool on his website. You answer a few questions, and the Financial Reality Check will show you where you may end up at age 65 if you stay on your current course.
http://www.daveramsey.com/
4. Jean Chatzky: Remember, budgets help you reach your long–term goals. “The end goal of a budget isn’t to punish you, keep you home on Friday nights, or make you miserable. It’s to help keep your dreams and long-term goals at the front of your mind.”
5. Kiplinger’s Money Magazine: Don’t wait to plug the holes in your budget. As you go along managing your budget, you will likely find there are holes here and there. Maybe you didn’t account for something or perhaps over estimated or under estimated on expenses. This is normal. The important thing to remember when your budget flashes a distress signal is that it’s okay to make adjustments. Kiplinger’s offers some suggestions on “checks” you can run through to find out where the problems are. Click here. http://www.kiplinger.com/basics/archives/2003/02/holes.html
To help you get started planning your 2010 budget, here are some more useful online tools.
Mint.com
This award¬–winning, FREE online software allows you to automatically track your expenses, categorize them, and create a budget. Go to www.mint.com.
Pear Budget
Pear Budget focuses just on the budgeting piece of the financial puzzle. You can try the online software for 30-days for free, and then you’ll pay $3.00 per month. Their automated online software allows you to create a budget and spending plan in about 20 minutes. Go to: www.pearbudget.com.
Now, ready, set, budget!
