UNITED STATES—If most Americans hear the term ‘FINANCE’ they clench up. It is not a word many of us like to hear because it forces us to have to think about money, and let’s be realistic many of us hate and I mean hate thinking about money, especially if we don’t have a lot of it. So, what can you do to better acclimate your finances or play the money game?
Well, first and foremost you have to be honest with yourself. Take a hard look at things on paper or on the computer. What is your income? How much money are you bringing in each week, each month? Is that enough to cover all your overhead? If not, then some changes have to be made to make adjustments so you’re not penny pinching to keep your head above water. That might involve getting a second job, a side hustle or a better job period that pays enough that allows you to live the life you want, while supporting your family in the process.
Perhaps more important than the income you make is the amount of expenses you have. I harp on this because sometimes as Americans we have more expenses than we actually need. There are things that are essential, like housing, clothing and food that you must have to survive. Then you have extras like Cable, Internet, Streaming Services, various apps and so much more we pay for that are not do or die things. We might be unhappy if we don’t have them, but the world is not going to end if we don’t. You will indeed survive, guess what in the 80s there were no cellphones and internet and we did fabulous as a society.
Lay out your expenses, what you’re paying each month for everything, then denote essential expenses and those that could be removed and you still survive. If you can trim the fat, do it because it will put more in your wallet and give you more leeway to potentially do and purchase the things that you want. Yes, I’m a firm believer you cannot simply work to just pay the bills. You have to have the ability to take some of the money that you work so hard for to be able to treat yourself once in a while. You may not want to hear it but imagine working and working and working and not doing anything for yourself. It might drive you insane.
Trust me, I’m speaking from personal experience because during most of my undergraduate collegiate career I worked my tail off. I mean my sophomore and junior year was all work and very little play. Every single dollar I had went towards paying tuition and school necessities. I was the biggest movie buff you could imagine, and I went like six months without purchasing a single movie because the money wasn’t there, or I was worried about what I would take away from a necessary expense.
So, once you have a balance of your income and your expenses, then you can take a look at your discretionary income. Money that you can choose to save or spend on whatever you choose. We do have to talk about that element of saving because most of us don’t do it. Hell, I have been guilty of it, where there would be a week, and I wouldn’t place any money into my savings. Then you have a situation yourself where you might need some backup funds, and you don’t have them.
It’s always vital to have something for a rainy-day fund, life can be unpredictable, so expect the unexpected. So, here’s my tip if you have $200 left over after all the bills are paid, then place at least $50-$75 away. So just in case you NEED it, you have it there. What you choose to do with that discretionary income is completely up to you, but you have to have a bit of fun along the way because otherwise all work and no play makes you a dull person as they say.
Written By Jason Jones
