Topic of the week...MONEY!

This week I will touch on many topics about money. Today i'm more focused on budgeting. Growing up I never really had anyone tell me how important it is to budget my money. Even as a teeny or a young adult starting to pay bills, money was just something I needed for fun. Now as an adult with bills, responsibilities, and a child I really wish I had saved more and spent less over the years! Since I can't go back, the only option is to move forward and be a lot smarter. I actually have started poking around at different financial websites and blogs to better inform myself. Now that I feel like I finally have the budgeting tools to succeed I'd love to share them with you. Here is my little top 5 list that seems to be helping so far.

#1 pay yourself first! Meaning even if you only get $100 a pay check take 10% off the top and put it in your savings account. It seems like such a small amout but with time and interest it adds up and can really come in handy when you really need it!

#2 Pay your bills(on time) not only is this a good way to improve your credit but it also makes you feel better once its paid and out of your hair.

#3 Auto matic payments! Through your bank you can set up bills to be paid automatically so that way you dont even see the money when it comes in (can't miss what you never had right?)

#4 The more you make the less you spend. So pretty much if you make $30,000 a year its not a good idea for your bills to ad up to $28,000 a year. At that rate you'll be in debt forever! When you make extra money the best thing to do is to at least take half of that extra and put it into your savings account. Save it towards something you really want, instead of spending in the moment and regreting it later(I'm guilty of this one)

#5 Eat out less! This is something I struggled with for a loooong time! I realized that $10 meals three times a week can better be used for gas or towards paying a bill, rather than adding to the inches on my waist line.

I hope these were helpful but what I really want is to hear what everyone else does to help them save money.