According to Gallup, 32% of Americans do not keep a detailed household budget. This fact combined with the average household debt level of $135K makes me even more motivated to get the word out about the absolute FREEDOM that budgeting can bring you. I mean, jump for joy, loving money freedom.
All of this data tells me that most likely, if you’re reading this article, you’re looking for ways to become motivated or stay motivated to better manage your money, whether it be because you’re behind on bills, because you want to make a career change, or just because want to create a secure financial future for your family.
Before you begin your first budget, you need to understand the many commonly held myths and quite frankly, popular excuses for not budgeting. It’s time to get real, friend! Do any of these apply to you?
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7 Myths and Overall Popular Excuses Not to Budget
Myth #1: “I already track my expenses.”
If you review your checking and credit card statements every month, then I applaud you (yay!). But if you’re simply looking at where all your money went last month, then you might be missing a key part of financial planning.
While it’s one thing to see where you spent money last month, it’s another thing entirely to plan where you will spend your money in the future.
I recommend you set goals for your spending each month and then see if you are able to stick to your goals. These monthly goals are truly what budgeting is all about.
Fact #1: Tracking expenses is not enough.
Don’t just look at past expenses. Plan for the future. Take your monthly income and divide it into specific pots of money (categories).
Then you can truly begin budgeting and begin making your money work for you!
Related Post: 6 Half Way Good Reasons to Begin Budgeting
Myth #2: “I don’t have the time to budget.”
I’m going to have to call BS on this… sorry!
I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase that time is money. Try changing this statement to “I don’t prioritize my time to budget.”
Fact #2: Spending time on a budget is an investment.
Investing the time upfront will streamline your process. When you invest the time, you’ll discover little pockets of extra savings that lead to reaching your financial goals faster.
Also, when the inevitable “emergency” occurs, the amount of time and energy you will save by “not stressing” because you are well prepared is totally worth the time invested in the long run. When you invest the time, you’ll see your bank account grow before your eyes! I’m talking from experience here! I used to stress so much, but now I feel like I have control!
If you’ve felt like you can hardly make the bills meet every month, and you don’t know where the little extra money is going to come from at the end of the month to get ahead for once, then you need to start a budget (here’s my favorite zero-based budget).
Related Post: How to live on one income with a baby (not grocery hacks)
Myth #3: “It’s not the right time for me.”
Look, friend, I know that life is busy. That motherhood is overwhelming. And that adding one more thing to your to do list seems like it will break you. But in this case, you will see a vast improvement in your quality of life if you start budgeting NOW.
Not tomorrow. Not the next day. Not next year.
The longer you wait to start a budget, the more you miss out on a valuable opportunity to reach your financial goals sooner. If not because you are saving money, but because of concepts like Time Value of Money (TVM)!
Fact #3: A budget gives you a clear picture of your finances.
You worked hard for every dollar that you earned, therefore you should work hard to spend each dollar wisely. Budgeting is like goal setting for your money.
Whether you have a lot of money or only a little, setting goals gives you a clear picture of which direction you’re going (or not) and allows for a course correction. But it starts with today!
Myth #4: “I’m kinda, sorta afraid of what I’ll find.”
Confession time…this was me for a long time!! I realllllyyyy didn’t want to look at how much I spent splurging on my Grande Peppermint Mocha with one pump mocha… or how often I splurged on extra guac and chips at Chipotle during the workweek.
I wanted to continue hiding (from) those little guilty pleasures.
What changed?
Well, I finally jump-started my budget journey when I was pregnant with our first and I really wanted to get our money situation figured out!
Fact #4: It’s scarier not knowing.
Learn from my mistakes! After I took a peek at our spending…well, I was pleasantly surprised. We were doing well in some areas but we also found some easy areas we could improve on.
I stopped fearing failure and fearing change and embraced a plan that led to the certainty of reaching our money goals!
Yes, there was a little bit of a reality check, but it helped me break some old habits and I began to feel more confident about our budgeting journey!
Myth #5: “Budgeting is just too restrictive.”
Everyone’s budget looks different. And everyone’s idea of “nice-to-haves” is different. Just because I’m suggesting you budget your money doesn’t mean you have to be a “penny pincher” in every aspect of your life. Far from it.
Fact #5: Budgeting gives you freedom.
I believe, budgeting actually gives you the freedom to spend when and where you want!
Budgeting is like coloring all your dollar bills different colors. Restaurants get red, entertainment gets purple, and utilities get blue, etc.
All you have to do is grab yourself that color of money and spend away guilt-free!
If you don’t have enough in that color, then go ahead, use the magic marker, erase the color, and paint it a different color.
It’s okay if money changes color! The key is not spending what you don’t have. If you don’t have the cash to color, then you don’t have the cash to spend.
Myth #6: “I keep a budget in my head. I’ve gotten this far, why do I need one now?”
While I might have made this argument in college when my expenses were relatively low and I made less than $600 per month. My life is way too complicated now (1 husband, 3 kids, and 2 dogs later), and I’m assuming yours is too.
I can barely keep track of my mama to-do list and my schedule, much less also keeping track of all my money spending habits in my head (plus, hello….husband!).
Fact #6: A budget takes care of the details, so you can focus on what’s important.
Instead of thinking about and managing all the decimals and debits and credits in your head, write it down and give yourself a break! Create a budget so the budget can do the thinking for you, and you can spend more time with the ones who matter to you most.
Related Post: How to use Trello to organize your life
Myth #7: “I don’t even know where to start, so I just won’t.”
This was me 7 years ago. I simply didn’t know where to start. My parents never taught me and I only got a brief introduction in college.
Fact #7: Something is better than nothing.
Even if you don’t know the exact steps you need to take a simple step to take is to download this Simple Budget Template printable.
Also, so you don’t have to go through the same time-consuming research as me, here’s a link to read all about The Beginner’s Guide to Budgeting. But also, here’s a simple yet awesome spreadsheet for couples that my husband and I personally use every month to make a basic budget that guides my expenses. I follow it up with expense tracking in You Need a Budget (try free for 34 days).
The first budget spreadsheet offers me a clear view of where I’m going, helps me set money goals, and helps me save for things that I really want like our upcoming 10-year anniversary vacation.
The Last Myth to Quell about Budgeting
Myth #8 “Numbers are hard for me… I can’t do this.”
This one is at the heart of the matter for most people. Because of a lifetime of telling yourself you’re no good at math (and other fears of failure)… now you’re expected to look at all those numbers in your bank account and figure out where they are coming from.
The biggest thing I can say is to take it little-by-little, sweet friend. Stop reading about it and take action. You’ll start learning as you go and anything is better than nothing!
If you ever have any questions, feel free to e-mail me!
