It’s hard to know where to start with your personal finances. Should you set a budget? Cut coupons? Separate the ply on your toilet paper? Here is a list that can help you know where to start with your personal finances without feeling overwhelmed!
1. Assess the current situation
It’s important to know where you are so you know where you need to go. We’re going to do a little thing called a Net Worth statement. Basically, it just helps you to keep track of how much money and assets you have verses how much debt you have. To make analyzing your situation easier, I’ve made this awesome Google spreadsheet!
Isn’t it pretty?
It gives you ideas of things you might have in each category, and even does the math for you (so put away your calculators!).
2. Realize where your money is going
Look over your last bank statement. Look at where your money went, and what things you spent on. Take particular notice of patterns that you may have. Did you just go through finals week and bought a ton of ice cream and take out? Take note of that.
It is important to notice these behaviors so we can decide what’s most important to us. If you notice you are buying things you don’t really care about, you can stop it and save some money. But, know that it’s okay to spend money on fun things! Just because you are smart with money doesn’t mean you can’t buy anything nice ever.
3. Automate anything you can
Life is busy. We have school, we have work, and we (sometimes) have a social life. It’s easy for things to slip through the cracks, even if those things are as important as a car payment. That’s why automation is so important. Paying late is never a good thing so if we can minimize that, it means less stress and one less thing to remember.
This may take a little bit of time upfront, but it will save you so much time later and help you avoid the “oh crap my bill was due two days ago” moments. #personalfinancewin
4. Stop being the victim
Your successful financial journey starts with you. Yes, you can’t control gas prices or tuition costs, but you can control how you react to it. By taking responsibility for how you react, you are at least exhibiting some control over our situation. If you are always thinking you will never get out of debt, then you never will. Instead, realize you may be in debt (or whatever your financial problem may be), but that you are also going to fix it.
5. Realize it’s okay to get help
Hey, everyone needs a helping hand sometimes, and that includes you. If you feel lost (which most everyone does at some point), reach out. I know it may be a hard topic for you to bring up because money is actually a very emotional thing, and you may even feel embarrassed about your current situation. However, by talking to someone who is not in your financial situation, you can get a new perspective.
Don’t have anyone to talk to about your personal finances? I would be happy to help you in your financial woes! There will be no judgement, and I will bring the (virtual) cookies. 🙂
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