The first step to plotting out your budget is to know when you are getting paid and when your expenses come due.

The best way to accomplish that is to map out your paychecks, and mark on your calendar around the time that your monthly bills come. After a month (or two), you will be into the habit of knowing when expenses come do.

If you’ve done all of that, great. Now you have to pay your bills. Often times, you may have more than one bill to pay at a time, so it’s best to know the total amount of money you’ve received for the month and the total amount of money you owe for for the month.

Keep in mind, although you’re getting paid, you still may have some extra cash to cover your expenses… like money in your bank account. In order to properly budget, theoretically, you must keep track of every dollar you receive and spend.

After you’ve paid off your rent, gas, cell phone, groceries etc., you (hopefully) should have money left. Now it’s time to pay yourself. This is where it gets tricky. How much should you save? How often should you save? Well, everybodys individual situation is different. Ever wonder just exactly where you should save to get the best interest rate?

Stay tuned to our Budget Series for answers to these questions and more, including key ratios to look at after you do your budgeting (to help you save big bucks in the long-run).

Can’t wait? Click here to learn more.

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