Budgeting Can Improve Our Life

Budgeting Can Improve Our Life

Budgeting

Most people don't mind of having a budget.  They think a budgeting is hard to do and time consuming.  Are you one of these people?  This is a very unfortunate way to think.

How do I know?  I used to think the same way before.  However, I’ve definitely changed my mind. I’ve learned that a budgeting can actually help to improve our life.  A good and well budgeting gives us financial freedom.  It doesn’t take it away.

Things I Learned Living on a Budgeting

For the entire years of my adult life, I lived like everyone else without a budget. Today, I’ve been budgeting my money for over 3 years now.  Obviously, my positive view of budgeting has stuck. To me, this means that it is the real deal.  If it wasn’t, I would have abandoned it because it does take a little time and effort.

Here are eight ways which I believe a budget can improve our life:

1. A Budget Relieves Stress

Financial stress is one of the common causes problem in every home.  I think we’ve all experienced the tension in a household when money is tight.   Our mom and dad arguing about tuition fees, payment for utilities bills and etc. A budget helps relieve this stress because it gives you back control over our finances.  It puts you in the driver’s seat. 

Stress comes from anxiety about the future. When you don’t have a budget, you don’t know if you’ll be able to meet your obligations this month or not.  With a good budget, you know exactly where we stand which reduces stress.

Savings

2. A Budget Helps You Focus

Without a budget, no one knows where the our money goes.  We can easily spent our money on whatever catches our eye or so called impulse buying.  A budget is a tool that allows you to prioritize and direct our money on a most important things.  

It was absolutely amazing to me how much I was able to accomplish financially once I started budgeting.  It is very easy to underestimate our financial strength when you don’t have a budget. You simply do not have a tool available to focus your financial energy in any specific direction.

3. A Budget Motivates You to Simplify

Once we start budgeting, we can see exactly where our money is going.  This generally motivates people to simplify their lives because they learn that a lot of their money is being wasted on things that aren’t much important.  For example, when we started budgeting, we tend to eliminate and lessen those stuff that was regularly costing us money to store, maintain and repair.  Simpler truly is better.  It also leads to less stress.

4. A Budget Provides Freedom

Our budget gives us more freedom and not less. It reveals when and where we have extra money to spend on the things we want.  Also, it allows us to make purchases without the guilt that was involved before.  We know we have the money so we don’t have to feel guilty or try to hide what we are doing.  Our budget has also freed us from living with a debt.

5. A Budget Makes You More Generous

As you get a handle on your finances and create some margin between what you make and what you spend, you will have more money to give to worthwhile causes of your choice.  This is one of the main reasons that we wanted to live on a budget.

It is nice to be able to help our family when they need it.  It is also rewarding to be able to give to charities and our church more generously.  A budget frees up some resources that you can then direct to greater causes.

6. A Budget Will Make You a Better Citizen

As we started tightening our budget to reduce expenses so we could pay off debt, we discovered all kinds of ways to save that made us better citizens.  For example, we started shopping for local products which is much cheaper instead of buying imported.  

This converted us into supporters of our local suppliers.  Also, we lowered our environmental footprint by reducing what we consume and increasing what we recycle.  A budget leads you in all kinds of better paths in life.

7. A Budget Will Discipline You

As we start budgeting and do it frequently, it becomes a habit and a discipline, which is good for us. You will be more cautious and aware of your income and expenses. We will be more wiser. And if you are disciplined, everything will follow. And that is a good thing!

8. A Budget Is Your Path to Wealth

Finally, a budget can improve your life by leading you to greater personal wealth.  You will stop paying so much interest on borrowed money such as credit card debts, loan, etc., and you will start investing to actually earn interest . In other words, you will put your money to work for you.  It is exciting to watch your savings grow in the bank, or in your investments.  The best way I’ve found to make this happen is by living on a budget.

I will always budget my money from now on.  It is just a better way to live.  It offers less stress, more freedom and allows me to use my financial strength for the benefit of those I care for the most.  In my mind, a budget is really can improve our life.