Budgeting For the Life You Deserve

Let’s talk about the benefits of budgeting. Actually, let’s just talk about my lack of budgeting. I always had the semblance of a budget … the skeleton of one you could say is probably more accurate. My rock bottom on knowing I NEEDED to get serious about creating a REAL budget that worked for me was after a medical trip to Boston with my daughter last year. I had enough money to get there, I had enough for food and subway tickets for the 3 days we would be there, and I had enough for the room … so I thought.

At check-in, my card wasn’t going through. Even though I’d taken into account the incidental fee, I didn’t realize it was actually double what I anticipated it being, which meant not only did I no longer have the extra monies for food and subway tickets, I was also $30 shy of having enough for the incidental fee on my card. At some point during my internal, yet obvious, breakdown, my daughter sent money to me from her account.

Let me say that again, my teenage daughter Cashapp’d me – her grown-ass mother – money, so we could check into the hotel. Talk about being embarrassed, ashamed, grateful … all the feels all at once. Out of all of them, determined to get my shit together was definitely what I felt the most as the benefits of budgeting ran through my mind like a freight train approaching a stalled car on the tracks.

In reality, I’m not alone in my lack of funds during travel or just living in general. Most people spend more time planning a one week vacation than they spend planning their budget. Think about that for a moment. Most people spend more time thinking about the money they’re going to spend rather than spending time ensuring they have that money to spend in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good vacay as much as the next person … maybe even more … and while travel doesn’t have to be expensive (our trips to Boston typically aren’t due to the generosity of Angel Flight and JetBlue), even that is something I budget into my expenses to avoid being the person who can make it to a destination but has no monies to actually leave the room … or check-in.

Words like “frugal” and “budget” tend to have many negative connotations attached to them but it’s not about how much money you make, it’s about how much you keep. Learning to budget the money you bring in is the quickest way to get you living the life you deserve. Haven’t thought about the benefits of budgeting? Consider this …

Less stressed

Living paycheck to paycheck has got to be one of the most stressful ways to live, trust me, I know. Do you know what’s worse? Living with no paycheck and no emergency savings after you’ve been laid off like the many individuals (myself included) furloughed from their positions during Covid-19. You don’t even have to be laid off … thousands of government workers were put on job hiatus during the government shutdown in 2018 and many were forced to get loans in order to pay their bills.

Loans are usually an expensive bandaid that gets more expensive once interest is tacked on whereas a budgeted emergency fund can keep you afloat in times of need and even pay you if you pick the right one. I have a Capital One card that I love, but I’m looking into Ally due to their great rates that rival Capital Ones.

Feel more accomplished

Do you remember when you were a kid? How excited you were about money? Either you got an allowance for being good, you did odd jobs for money, or maybe you even got money for good grades. Regardless of how you came across that money, you likely saved it up for something. Candy at the corner store, a new toy or game you wanted, clothes, something.

Think of how proud of yourself you were when you were finally able to go into the store to make that purchase for the item you’d saved up for. That’s how you’ll feel every day knowing you’ve sorted your money out into different, metaphorical, buckets to pay for the things you need (like rent and utilities) as well as the things you want (an outing with the girls or a weekend getaway).

You have more – not just financially, but mentally

Not having to worry about money is like entering into a whole new world you didn’t think existed. Perhaps you knew that world existed but you didn’t think it was one you’d ever make it to. A place where you don’t fear checking your account because it may be negative after your most recent purchase. I can tell you, I definitely didn’t think I’d make it there. I had this insane mentality that if I didn’t check my account, that meant I had money. Crazy, right!

Budgeting can free you from being at the mercy of your bank account. Let me tell you, nothing sucks more than getting a $35 overdraft fee on a $5 fast-food purchase, especially if you already had food at home.

How many people went through a phase of ignoring their bank account because they were just too scared to look at it to see if they had enough money or if they’d racked up several overdraft fees? What are some benefits of budgeting that you experienced once you made the change to managing your money? If you started budgeting yet, what’s stopping you?